The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams. It is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and is considered the premier professional basketball league in the world.
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The team plays its home games at the Toyota Center, located in Downtown Houston. Throughout its history, Houston has won two NBA championships and four Western Conference titles. It was established in 1967 as the San Diego Rockets, an expansion team originally based in San Diego. In 1971, the Rockets relocated to Houston.
Moses Eugene Malone Sr. was an American professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1974 through 1995. A center, he was named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times, was a 12-time NBA All-Star and an eight-time All-NBA Team selection. Malone led the Philadelphia 76ers to an NBA championship in 1983, winning both the league and Finals MVP. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2001. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the sport's history, Malone is also seen as one of the most underrated NBA players.
Jason Eugene Terry is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 19 seasons in the NBA as a combo guard and is also known by the initialism "the Jet". With the Dallas Mavericks, Terry won the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award in 2009 and an NBA championship in 2011. As of April 2024, Terry has made the tenth-most three-point field goals in NBA history.
Nathaniel "Tiny" Archibald is an American retired professional basketball player. He spent 14 years playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA), most notably with the Cincinnati Royals/Kansas City–Omaha Kings and Boston Celtics. In 1991, he was enshrined into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame.
Mario Antoine Elie is an American former professional basketball coach and player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Elie grew up in New York City and played college basketball at American International College, before being drafted in the seventh round of the 1985 NBA draft as the 160th overall pick by the Milwaukee Bucks.
Shane Courtney Battier is an American former professional basketball player. He also worked for ESPN and recently joined the board of Yext.
Steven Charles Mix, nicknamed "The Mayor", is an American former professional basketball player and coach. Mix had a thirteen year playing career, was an NBA All-Star and played in the NBA Finals on four occasions. He later had a lengthy career as a broadcaster for the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 1972 NBA draft was the 26th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 10 and 15, 1972 before the 1972–73 season. In this draft, 17 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Portland Trail Blazers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Buffalo Braves were awarded the second pick. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. As a result of last year's supplemental hardship draft, the Cincinnati Royals, the Atlanta Hawks, the Golden State Warriors and the Baltimore Bullets forfeited their first-round picks, while the Los Angeles Lakers forfeited their fourth round pick. Prior to the start of the season, the Cincinnati Royals relocated and became the Kansas City-Omaha Kings. The draft consisted of 18 rounds comprising the selection of 198 players.
The 1971 NBA draft was the 25th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on March 29 and 30, 1971, before the 1971–72 season. In this draft, 17 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Cleveland Cavaliers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Portland Trail Blazers were awarded the second pick. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. Prior to the start of the season, the San Diego Rockets and the San Francisco Warriors relocated to Houston, Texas, and Oakland, California, and became the Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors respectively. The draft consisted of 19 rounds comprising the selection of 237 players. The league also hosted a supplemental hardship draft on September 20, 1971, for college underclassmen who wished to join the league.
Hasheem Thabeet is a Tanzanian professional basketball player. He played college basketball for UConn before being drafted second overall in the 2009 NBA draft by the Memphis Grizzlies. His performance as a second overall draft pick has led many analysts to label him as one of the "biggest busts" in NBA history.
Curtis R. Perry is an American former professional basketball player. Born in Washington, D.C., he attended Southwest Missouri State University and played at forward.
Allen Frazier Leavell is an American former professional basketball player from Muncie, Indiana.
William Edward "Easy Ed" Ratleff is an American retired basketball player. He attended East High School where he led his high school basketball team to the Ohio State Championship in 1968 and was joined by Dwight "Bo" Lamar to claim the 1969 Ohio High School title. In college, Ratleff was a two-time first-team All-American at Long Beach State. He was chosen for the 1972 U.S. Men's Olympic Basketball Team and participated in the Munich Games. He was selected with the sixth pick of the NBA Draft and played five NBA seasons.
The 2007 NBA betting scandal was a scandal involving the National Basketball Association (NBA) and accusations that an NBA referee used his knowledge of relationships between referees, coaches, players and owners to bet on professional basketball games. In July 2007, reports of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were made public, which alleged that during the 2005–06 and 2006–07 NBA seasons, referee Tim Donaghy bet on games in which he officiated. Donaghy later admitted to betting on games he officiated in each of the 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, and 2006–07 seasons.
DeJuan Lamont Blair is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Pittsburgh Panthers from 2007 to 2009. Blair entered the 2009 NBA draft where he was selected as the 37th overall pick by the San Antonio Spurs. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 7 seasons with the Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and Washington Wizards. Blair also played in the NBA Development League and overseas in Russia, China and Argentina.
Bernard Anthony Hopkins White is an American-Spanish retired professional basketball player. Hopkins is a 6'6", 235-pound power forward. He played college ball at Hagerstown Community College for two seasons before transferring to Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) for his final two. As a senior in 1995–96, Hopkins was named the 1996 CAA men's basketball tournament MVP as well as the Colonial Athletic Association Men's Basketball Player of the Year.
Damion Lee is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for four years at Drexel University and transferred to Louisville for his final year of eligibility. After going undrafted in 2016, Lee played in the G League before signing with the Atlanta Hawks in March 2018. He then signed a two-way contract with the Golden State Warriors the following season, winning an NBA championship with the team in 2022.
Mery Elizabeth Fernandes Andrade is a former professional basketball player currently working as an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). She played five seasons in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is the older sister of former player, Carlos Andrade
