Minnesota Pipers

Minnesota Pipers were a member of the American Basketball Association for one season, 1968-1969.

The franchise began its existence as the Pittsburgh Pipers in the ABA's first season, 1967-1968, and that team won the league's first championship in the 1967-1968 season.

The Pipers then departed for Minnesota where they played as the Minnesota Pipers during the 1968-1969 season. This move was made despite the fact that the Minnesota Muskies, had success on the court, had such financial problems there during 1967-1968 that they moved to Miami, Florida to become The Floridians. The Pipers played most of their games at the Met Center in Bloomington (near Minneapolis), with a few games at the Duluth Arena-Auditorium in Duluth. They got off to a good start before their top four starters--Connie Hawkins, Chico Vaughn, Art Heyman and Charlie Williams--went down due to injuries. They barely squeezed into the playoffs, where they lost in the first round to their predecessors in Minnesota, the Floridians.

After losing $400,000, it was widely expected that the Pipers would move back to Pittsburgh--which they did for the 1969-70 season. The team was renamed the Condors in 1970, and folded in 1972.