HoopsHype.com Rumors

A bank is suing former pro basketball star Julius Erving, claiming he owes more than $200,000. Georgia Primary Bank filed the lawsuit in Fulton Superior Court on Oct. 18 against the 61-year-old Erving and his corporation, The Erving Group Inc. of Atlanta. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports ( http://bit.ly/rYivYx) the lawsuit says Erving's company was given a $1 million line of credit in April 2009, which was due the following April. It says a balance of $205,277.84 has not been paid. Ledger-Enquirer

Philadelphia 76ers, Julius Erving 

An autographed Virginia Squires ABA road jersey game worn in 1972-73 by the great Julius “Dr. J” Erving smashed through the existing record for a basketball jersey at auction in Grey Flannel’s May 11, 2011 sale with a final bid of $190,414 (all prices quoted include 20% buyer’s premium). In total, the event took in $2.4 million, the highest auction gross ever achieved by Grey Flannel. Finishing as the auction’s top lot, the Dr. J jersey was a rare style in use for only one year in the ABA. “We had never even seen a common jersey of this type, let alone a Dr. J game-worn example. We knew it had an excellent chance of making $100,000 at auction. It did that and much more,” said Richard E. Russek, president of Grey Flannel Auctions. LiveAuctioneers.com

Julius Erving 

Dr. J hasn't forgotten how to play defense. NBA legend Julius Erving tried to duck being served with a breach-of-contract suit at a fund-raising dinner by "suggesting . . . that his hands were full," according to court papers filed yesterday. Mary Gilbert, who claims that Erving cheated her out of profits on an investment deal, says the lawyer finally placed the papers at his feet. New York Post

Julius Erving 

The NBA employs so many former stars like Julius Erving, using them as glad-handers who tsk-tsk on today’s players. “Most people may not realize that Dr. J works for the league, that they parade him around the country,” Hunter says. “They should’ve asked Dr. J for his income tax statements, and see how much he got from the NBA last year.” The league “has got to play hardball,” Julius Erving told ESPN.com at ESPN the Weekend in Orlando. “When I played, the owners had the power. The prisoners are running the prison now, not the warden. The warden is strong and he has say-so but, the balance of power is definitely with the players.” Yahoo! Sports

CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Julius Erving 

But Dr. J, after judging the All-Star Slam-Dunk contest won Saturday night by Blake Griffin, told The Post he thought Carmelo Anthony can do wonders to lift the Nets’ brand. “They’ve had success making the [NBA] Finals twice, but they haven’t gotten over the hurdle or established themselves, still in the shadow of the Knicks,” Erving said. “Carmelo can change that. I think the new owner will be very instrumental in changing that. He’s got deep pockets and looks like he’s willing to spend.” New York Post

Denver Nuggets, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks, Trade, Carmelo Anthony, Julius Erving 

This isn't the kind of "steal" that made Dr. J a star. Legendary basketball player Julius Erving is being sued for allegedly cheating a wealthy Manhattan woman out of more than $420,000 in a deal with crooked money manager Kenneth Starr. Mary Gilbert's suit -- which charges Erving with breach of contract and fiduciary duty -- seeks payment of all her lost profits, along with "prejudgment interest" and punitive damages. Gilbert, 71, says she met the Hall of Fame hoopster in 1990 through Starr, who hooked her while amassing a roster of clients that included such celebs as Uma Thurman, Martin Scorsese and Sylvester Stallone. New York Post

Julius Erving 

Gilbert claims Erving, 60, and Starr convinced her to invest in a "lucrative" limited partnership called Commonwealth Investors, in which the formerly high-flying forward was a partner. They also told her "that Erving was facing a capital call from the partnership and that if Gilbert would finance a portion of this capital call, Erving would assign to her a percentage of his interest in the partnership," her Manhattan federal court filing says. In exchange for nearly $257,000 in cash, Erving allegedly promised Gilbert 33 percent of all his Commonwealth distributions until she was paid back and 30 percent of his returns after that. The deal turned out to be another slam dunk for Erving, who raked in more than $2.9 million from Commonwealth between 1995 and 2010, court papers say. New York Post

Julius Erving 

NBA legend Julius Erving is about to lose his 6,700 sq. ft. house in Utah ... because it's about to go into foreclosure. The house -- which the former basketball star has been trying to sell for over a year -- went into pre-foreclosure last month ... after Dr. J defaulted on his loan. Erving tells TMZ, the house is "substantially underwater" -- meaning he owes more than it's worth. TMZ.com

Utah, Julius Erving