The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association (ABA) for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky Colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the league's history, but the team did not join the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the 1976 ABA–NBA merger. The downtown Louisville Convention Center was the Colonels' venue for their first three seasons before moving to Freedom Hall for the remaining seasons, beginning with the 1970–71 schedule.
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.
Daron Oshay "Mookie" Blaylock is an American former professional basketball player. He spent 13 years in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the New Jersey Nets, Atlanta Hawks, and the Golden State Warriors.
Drew William Barry is an American retired professional basketball player. He is the son of Basketball Hall of Famer Rick Barry and has four brothers: Scooter, Jon, Canyon and Brent, who also share his profession. His grandfather Bruce Hale also played in the NBA and was Rick's college coach at Miami of Florida. His stepmother is Lynn Barry.
Albert Harrington is an American former professional basketball player. Selected with the 25th overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, Harrington played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Indiana Pacers, Atlanta Hawks, Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks, Denver Nuggets, Orlando Magic and Washington Wizards. He also spent a short stint with the Fujian Sturgeons of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA).
Michael Joseph Dunleavy Jr. is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is the general manager for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils, earning consensus second-team All-American honors in 2002. Dunleavy was selected by Golden State with the third overall pick of the 2002 NBA draft. He played in the NBA for the Warriors, Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks. He is the son of former NBA player and head coach Mike Dunleavy Sr.
Cazzie Lee Russell is an American former professional basketball player and coach. An NBA All-Star, he was selected by the New York Knicks with the first overall pick of the 1966 NBA draft. He won an NBA championship with the Knicks in 1970.
Erick Travez Dampier is an American former professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors, Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks. He is a 6 ft 11 in / 265 lb. center.
Jarrett Matthew Jack is an American professional basketball coach and former player and an assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He attended four high schools in North Carolina, Maryland and Massachusetts before playing collegiately at Georgia Tech. He was selected with the 22nd overall pick in the 2005 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets, before playing with the Portland Trail Blazers, Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, New Orleans Hornets, Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Brooklyn Nets, New Orleans Pelicans, and New York Knicks.
Keith McLeod is an American former professional basketball player and current varsity boys basketball head coach at East Canton High School in Canton, Ohio. He is 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) tall. He has also played in the NBA for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Utah Jazz, Golden State Warriors and Indiana Pacers, in the CBA for the Yakima Sun Kings, in the USBL for the Saint Joseph Express, in the NBA D-League with the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, Canton Charge, and Erie BayHawks, and in the Italian top league for Mabo Prefabbricati Livorno, Lottomatica Virtus Roma and Montepaschi Siena.
Hilton Julius Armstrong, Jr. is an American former professional basketball player and current member of the Golden State Warriors coaching staff who last played for the Nagoya Diamond Dolphins of the B.League. During his college basketball career, he played as a forward and center for the University of Connecticut Huskies. He formerly played for the New Orleans Hornets, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets, Washington Wizards, Atlanta Hawks, and Golden State Warriors of the NBA. He was also on the pre-season roster of the Indiana Pacers in 2014 and played in a summer league for the Los Angeles Clippers in 2012. Hilton Armstrong is currently married and is the father of four children.
The 1993–94 NBA season was the Hawks' 45th season in the National Basketball Association, and 26th season in Atlanta. In the off-season, Chicago Bulls All-Star guard Michael Jordan shocked the NBA by announcing his retirement. This meant that various teams in the league had an opportunity to contend for a championship. The Hawks hired Hall of Famer Lenny Wilkens as their new head coach. Wilkens was a star guard for the franchise when it was based in St. Louis in the 1960s. He was quickly moving up the all-time coaching wins list after successful runs with the Seattle SuperSonics and Cleveland Cavaliers. Wilkens employed a defensive system which benefited several members of the team. The team also signed free agents Craig Ehlo, and Andrew Lang during the off-season.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the Pacers' 22nd season in the National Basketball Association, and 31st season as a franchise. In the off-season, the Pacers hired former Indiana State and Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird as head coach, acquired All-Star forward Chris Mullin from the Golden State Warriors, and signed free agent Mark West. Bird and Mullin were once teammates on the "Dream Team" from the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. The Pacers struggled early in the season losing five of their first seven games, but then won 15 of their next 18 games, and held the best record in the Eastern Conference at 33–13 before the All-Star break. The Pacers won nine of their final eleven games, and returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence finishing second in the Central Division with a 58–24 record. It was also the first time since joining the NBA that the Pacers finished with a winning road record. The Pacers had the fifth best team defensive rating in the NBA.
The 2005–06 NBA season was the Atlanta Hawks' 57th season in the National Basketball Association, and 38th season in Atlanta. After finishing the previous season with the worst record, the Hawks selected Marvin Williams out of the University of North Carolina with the second overall pick in the 2005 NBA draft. During the offseason, the team acquired Joe Johnson from the Phoenix Suns, and signed free agent Zaza Pachulia. However, tragedy struck as center Jason Collier suffered a heart attack during the preseason and died suddenly on October 15. The Hawks would stumble out of the gate again losing their first nine games the same as the Toronto Raptors, on their way to an awful 2–16 start. Tony Delk was released to free agency after one game, and later signed with the Detroit Pistons. However, they would play better in December winning five of their next seven games, including a home win over the defending champion San Antonio Spurs, 94–84 on December 10. The Hawks played .500 basketball in February, which included a 99–98 home victory over the Pistons on February 7. The Hawks doubled their win total by finishing last place in the Southeast Division with a 26–56 record, tied with the second-year Charlotte Bobcats.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the Warriors' 51st season in the National Basketball Association, and 35th in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Warriors had the eleventh overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft, and selected Todd Fuller out of North Carolina State. Due to extensive renovations at the Oakland Coliseum Arena, the team played their home games at the San Jose Arena in San Jose, California this season. In the off-season, the Warriors signed free agent All-Star guard Mark Price, then traded Rony Seikaly to the Orlando Magic in exchange for Felton Spencer, Donald Royal and Jon Koncak at the start of the season. However, Koncak was out for the entire season with a knee injury, and never played for the Warriors.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the Warriors' 52nd season in the National Basketball Association, and 36th in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Warriors received the eighth overall pick in the 1997 NBA draft, and selected Adonal Foyle out of Colgate University. The Warriors also moved into their new arena, known as The Arena in Oakland. During the off-season, the team acquired second-year center Erick Dampier from the Indiana Pacers, and Brian Shaw from the Orlando Magic. Early into the season, they traded B. J. Armstrong to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Muggsy Bogues and second-year guard Tony Delk. However, under new head coach P.J. Carlesimo, the Warriors struggled losing their first nine games, which led to an awful 1–14 start. Things would get even worse in December as All-Star guard Latrell Sprewell choked, and assaulted Carlesimo during practice, and was suspended for the remainder of the season, which was 68 games left in the Warriors' schedule. Sprewell averaged 21.4 points, 4.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game in only just 14 games.
The 1999–2000 NBA season was the Warriors' 54th season in the National Basketball Association, and 38th in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city of Oakland hosted the 2000 NBA All-Star Game. During the off-season, the Warriors acquired Mookie Blaylock from the Atlanta Hawks, and rookie guard Vonteego Cummings from the Indiana Pacers. The Warriors struggled losing 16 of their first 18 games as head coach P. J. Carlesimo was fired after a 6–21 start, and was replaced with General Manager Garry St. Jean, where the team suffered a 12-game losing streak between December and January. Second-year star Antawn Jamison, Chris Mills, Erick Dampier and Terry Cummings all missed large parts of the season due to injuries. At midseason, the Warriors traded John Starks to the Chicago Bulls, and acquired second-year guard Larry Hughes, and former Warriors forward Billy Owens from the Philadelphia 76ers in a three-team trade. The Warriors lost 23 of their final 26 games, and finished sixth in the Pacific Division with a 19–63 record.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the Pacers' 21st season in the National Basketball Association, and 30th season as a franchise. During the off-season, the Pacers acquired Jalen Rose and Reggie Williams from the Denver Nuggets; the Pacers also received the tenth overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft from the Nuggets, which they used to select Erick Dampier out of Mississippi State. However, after playing just two games for the team, Williams was then traded to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Vincent Askew. Injuries and sluggish play would hamper the Pacers all season long as Rik Smits only played 52 games due to a foot injury, while Derrick McKey only appeared in just 50 games due to a foot injury, and a ruptured Achilles tendon, and Haywoode Workman was lost for the remainder of the season with a knee injury after only playing just four games.
The 1999–2000 NBA season was the Hawks' 51st season in the National Basketball Association, and 32nd season in Atlanta. The Hawks played their first season at the Philips Arena, which was built over the site of The Omni. The team also had four first-round draft picks in the 1999 NBA draft, selecting Jason Terry from the University of Arizona with the tenth overall pick, then selecting Cal Bowdler out of Old Dominion University with the 17th overall pick, Dion Glover out of Georgia Tech with the 20th overall pick, and Jumaine Jones from the University of Georgia with the 27th overall pick, but soon traded him to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for a future draft pick. In the off-season, the Hawks acquired Isaiah Rider and Jim Jackson from the Portland Trail Blazers, acquired Bimbo Coles from the Golden State Warriors, and acquired Lorenzen Wright from the Los Angeles Clippers.
Jordan Trennie Bell is an American professional basketball player for the Guangdong Southern Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks. As a junior in 2017, Bell earned second-team all-conference honors in the Pac-12, when he was also named the conference's Defensive Player of the Year. He was drafted in the second round of the 2017 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls. Bell won his first championship in his rookie season when the Warriors defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2018.
