Editing Baltimore Claws (section)

==Background==
The team that eventually became the Baltimore Claws was a charter member of the ABA, playing as the [[New Orleans Buccaneers]] from 1967 through 1970. They then [[Memphis Sounds|moved to Memphis]] from 1970 to 1975, playing first as the Pros from 1970 to 1972, the Tams from 1972 to 1974, and the Sounds during the 1974–75 season. The Memphis franchise had struggled through the years and in its last season there it had relied on the league itself to handle some of its bills. The Sounds began the 1974–75 season with a win followed by several losses; fan interest waned but the team rallied to finish in fourth place in the ABA's Eastern Division. In the playoffs they lost in the Eastern Division semifinals to the eventual league champion [[Kentucky Colonels]], 4 games to 1. Of the Sounds' draft picks that season, two of them ([[Lonnie Shelton]] and [[Terry Furlow]]) remained in college, while the third ([[Rich Kelley]]) signed with the NBA's [[New Orleans Jazz (NBA team)|New Orleans Jazz]] instead. At the close of the 1974–75 season, league commissioner Tedd Munchak issued an ultimatum to the Sounds if they wanted to stay in Memphis: sell 4,000 season tickets, line up new investors for the team, and get a better lease at the [[Mid-South Coliseum]]. When none of the conditions were met, the league effectively took control of the franchise and put it on the open market.