A 6'6" forward from Drake University, Wise earned a spot on the American Basketball Association's (ABA) Los Angeles (later Utah) Stars in 1969.

He would prove to be one of the best all-around players in the league, as he was both a proficient scorer (19.2 points per game during his ABA career) and a highly esteemed defender.

While playing for the Stars, who won the 1971 ABA Championship, Sports Illustrated described him as "the best two-way performer in pro basketball".

[2] After the ABA–NBA merger in 1976, Wise played one full season and part of a second in the National Basketball Association as a member of the Denver Nuggets and Seattle SuperSonics.

The way they play is the way we played in the ’60s and ’70s, and the NBA’s adoption of the 3-point line after much wrangling back and forth — because there were a lot that did not want it because they thought it was just an ABA gimmick to get people into the stands; let’s give them three points for a shot from a certain distance rather than just two, and the old guard in the NBA didn’t want it and fought against it, Red Auerbach being one, Dick Motta from the Bulls being another, and I want to say, but I’m not certain about this one, Jerry Colangelo.