Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. He is often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time. Johnson played 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). After winning a national championship with Michigan State in 1979, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers, leading the team to five NBA championships during their Showtime era. Johnson retired abruptly in 1991 after announcing that he had contracted HIV, but returned to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, winning the All-Star MVP Award. After protests against his return from his fellow players, he retired again for four years, but returned in 1996, at age 36, to play 32 games for the Lakers before retiring for the third and final time.
The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The Clippers play their home games at Crypto.com Arena, which they share with NBA team Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Clippers plan to move into their own arena, the Intuit Dome in nearby Inglewood, by 2024.
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The Lakers play their home games at Crypto.com Arena, an arena shared with the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers, the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association, and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League. The Lakers are one of the most successful teams in the history of the NBA, and have won 17 NBA championships, tied with the Boston Celtics for the most in NBA history. More recently, the Lakers were the champions of the NBA's inaugural In-Season Tournament in 2023.
Christopher Paul Mullin is an American former professional basketball player, executive and coach. He is a two-time Olympic Gold medalist and a two-time Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee.
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher level at a given point, usually in an association with a major-level parent team. This system can be implemented in many ways, both formally and informally. It is not to be confused with a practice squad, which fulfills a similar developmental purpose but the players on the practice squad are members of the parent team.
Derek Lamar Fisher is an American professional basketball coach and former player. Fisher played professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 18 seasons, spending the majority of his career with the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he won five NBA championships. He also played for the Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Dallas Mavericks. He has also served as president of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA).
Bradley Lee Daugherty, nicknamed "Big Dukie" and "Hooch", is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels and professionally with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
John M. Most was an American sports announcer, known primarily as the raspy radio voice of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association from 1953 to 1990.
William Walton Sharman was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is mostly known for his time with the Boston Celtics in the 1950s, partnering with Bob Cousy in what was then considered the greatest backcourt duo of all time. As a coach, Sharman won titles in the ABL, ABA, and NBA, and is credited with introducing the now-ubiquitous morning shootaround.
Mitchell Kupchak is an American professional basketball executive and retired player. He is the current president of basketball operations and general manager of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a college player, Kupchak was an All-American at the University of North Carolina and a member of the gold medal-winning 1976 United States Olympic team. As a professional player, he won three NBA titles – one as a member of the Washington Bullets and two with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Keyon Latwae Dooling is an American basketball coach and former professional basketball player who played the guard position.
Bronta Laron Profit is an American professional basketball coach and former professional basketball player.
The Los Angeles Lakers franchise has a long and storied history, predating the formation of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Terence Darea Morris is an American former professional basketball player. He was twice the Israeli Basketball Premier League Defensive Player of the Year, in 2007 and 2008. He was an All-EuroLeague First Team selection in 2008.
Oak Hill Academy is a co-educational, private, Christian secondary school in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia, United States. Oak Hill enrolls approximately 140 students in grades 8–12, and is 100% boarding. It is accredited by the Virginia Association of Independent Schools and is authorized to enroll international students.
Eric Riley is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Dallas Mavericks in the second round of the 1993 NBA draft. Riley played for the Mavericks, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Boston Celtics in five NBA seasons, averaging 3.1 points per game. He was an injured reserve member of the 1993–94 Houston Rockets who won the NBA championship.
The 1979-80 NBA season was the Lakers' 32nd season in the NBA and the 20th season in Los Angeles. It featured a 20-year old rookie Magic Johnson leading the Lakers to their seventh NBA Championship, defeating the Philadelphia 76ers led by Julius Erving in six games in the NBA Finals. This was also the team's first season under the ownership of Jerry Buss. Magic's season represented the birth of the Showtime Lakers.
The 2000–01 NBA season was the Clippers' 31st season in the National Basketball Association, and their 17th season in Los Angeles. After finishing with the worst record the previous season, the Clippers selected high school basketball star Darius Miles with the third overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft. During the off-season, the team acquired second-year guard Corey Maggette and top draft pick Keyon Dooling from the Orlando Magic, while acquiring Sean Rooks from the Dallas Mavericks. With the addition of Miles, Maggette and Dooling, along with first round draft pick Quentin Richardson, the Clippers were a young team. However, center Keith Closs was suspended for the entire season due to lack of physical conditioning. Under new head coach Alvin Gentry, the Clippers would struggle losing 14 of their first 19 games as Tyrone Nesby was traded to the Washington Wizards after 14 games. As the season progressed, the Clippers went on a nine-game losing streak in January. However, they would play around .500 in the final three months of the season, as they doubled their previous season's win total finishing sixth in the Pacific Division with a 31–51 record.
The 1993–94 NBA season was the Bucks' 26th season in the National Basketball Association. In the 1993 NBA draft, the Bucks selected Vin Baker from the University of Hartford with the eighth overall pick. During the off-season, the team signed free agent Ken Norman. However, the Bucks struggled all season long posting a 10-game losing streak early into the season, and held a 14–34 record at the All-Star break. At midseason, Frank Brickowski was traded to the Charlotte Hornets, while second-year forward Anthony Avent was dealt to the Orlando Magic, and Danny Schayes was sold to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Bucks went on to lose 22 of their final 25 games, including a nine-game losing streak in April, finishing last place in the Central Division with a franchise worst record of 20–62, a record that stood for 20 years until the 2013–14 team posted a 15–67 record during the first year of the future Bucks' superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo era.
When the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, all major professional and collegiate organizations responded by suspending operations indefinitely. This effect was passed down to the world of sports broadcasting, which includes live coverage of thousands of events on an annual basis through stations and network available over the air, through cable, satellite, and IPTV companies, and via streaming and over-the-top services.
