The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at Capital One Arena, in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. an arena they share with the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Georgetown University men's basketball team. The team is owned by Ted Leonsis through Monumental Sports & Entertainment.
Detlef Schrempf is a German-American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Washington Huskies from 1981 to 1985, and was drafted into the National Basketball Association (NBA) by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the 1985 NBA draft, with the eighth overall pick. He was an All-NBA Third Team member in 1995, a three-time NBA All-Star, the first European player ever to achieve this award, and the NBA Sixth Man of the Year twice.
Ronald Eugene Mercer is an American former professional basketball player. After his career at the University of Kentucky, Mercer played for several teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA); he ended his career with the New Jersey Nets in 2005.
Antawn Cortez Jamison is an American former professional basketball player who played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He serves as director of pro personnel for the Washington Wizards. Jamison played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels, being named national player of the year in 1998.
Jeffrey Nigel Malone is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball at Mississippi State, and is mostly known for his time with the Washington Bullets (1983–1990) of the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was an NBA All-Star twice, playing the shooting guard position. He also played for the Utah Jazz, Philadelphia 76ers, and Miami Heat.
The 1996 NBA draft was the 50th draft in the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 26, 1996 at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In this draft, NBA teams took turns selecting college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, such as players from high schools and non-North American leagues. The Vancouver Grizzlies had the highest probability to win the NBA draft lottery, but since they were an expansion team along with the Toronto Raptors, they were not allowed to select first in this draft. The team with the second-highest probability, the Philadelphia 76ers, won the lottery and obtained the first selection. The Toronto Raptors and the Vancouver Grizzlies were second and third, respectively. The Raptors won the first overall pick in 1996, but they had to give that up due to the expansion agreement with the league.
The 1997 NBA draft took place on June 25, 1997, at Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Vancouver Grizzlies had the highest probability to win the NBA draft lottery, but since they were an expansion team along with the Toronto Raptors they were not allowed to select first in this draft. Although the Boston Celtics had the second-worst record in the 1996–97 season and the best odds of winning the lottery with two picks, the Spurs lost David Robinson and Sean Elliott to injury early in the season, finished with the third-worst record, and subsequently won the lottery. Leading up to the draft, there was no doubt that Tim Duncan would be selected at No. 1 by the Spurs as he was considered to be far and away the best prospect. After Duncan, the rest of the draft was regarded with some skepticism. The Celtics had the third and sixth picks, selecting Chauncey Billups and Ron Mercer, both of whom were traded in the next two years.
Theophalus Curtis Ratliff is an American former professional basketball player who played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Predrag "Peđa" Drobnjak is a Montenegrin professional basketball scout and former player. At 2.11 m, he played at the power forward and center positions. Throughout his nineteen-year career, Drobnjak has spent three full seasons playing in the NBA.
Eric Snow is an American basketball coach and former professional player. He played the point guard position in the National Basketball Association from 1995 to 2008 and appeared in three NBA Finals. Known for his defense, Snow was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 2003. Following his playing career, Snow served as an assistant coach at Florida Atlantic for two years (2014-2016) after having worked two seasons at SMU (2012–14) as the director of player development under Larry Brown, his former coach.
Eric C. Williams is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1995 to 2007. He played for seven teams during his career, including two stints with the Boston Celtics.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the 52nd season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls winning their third straight championship and sixth in the last eight years, beating the Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 in the 1998 NBA Finals. It also marked the departure of Michael Jordan and the end of the dynasty for the Chicago Bulls.
Eric Scott Montross was an American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for eight seasons with the Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, New Jersey Nets, Philadelphia 76ers, Detroit Pistons, and Toronto Raptors. Born in Indianapolis, he played for Lawrence North High School before enrolling at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to play for the Tar Heels.
Eric Lloyd Murdock is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Utah Jazz in the first round of the 1991 NBA draft.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the 51st season for the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association. Celebrating its 50th anniversary as one of the NBA's original franchises, the Celtics selected Antoine Walker from the University of Kentucky with the sixth overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft. During the off-season, the team signed free agents Frank Brickowski and Marty Conlon. However, after a 4–8 start to the season, the Celtics lost 13 of their next 14 games as players like Dino Radja, Dana Barros, Dee Brown, Greg Minor and Pervis Ellison were all out for long stretches of the season with injuries. The team suffered through their worst season, holding an 11–35 record at the All-Star break, then posting a 13-game losing streak between February and March, and losing ten straight games near the end of the season. The Celtics lost 34 of their final 38 games, finishing last place in the Atlantic Division with a dreadful 15–67 record, which is the team's worst record in franchise history.
The Washington Huskies men's basketball team represents the University of Washington in NCAA Division I college basketball competing in the Big Ten Conference. Their home games are played at Hec Edmundson Pavilion, located in Seattle, and they are currently led by head coach Danny Sprinkle.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the Nuggets’ 22nd season in the National Basketball Association, and 31st season as a franchise. The Nuggets received the fifth overall pick in the 1997 NBA draft, and selected Tony Battie out of Texas Tech University. During the off-season, the team acquired Eric Williams from the Boston Celtics, acquired Johnny Newman, Joe Wolf and top draft pick Danny Fortson out of the University of Cincinnati from the Milwaukee Bucks, first round draft pick Bobby Jackson from the Seattle SuperSonics, second round draft pick Eric Washington from the Orlando Magic, and signed free agent Dean Garrett. However, Williams suffered a devastating knee injury after only just four games, and was out for the remainder of the season, averaging 19.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, while Bryant Stith only played just 31 games due to ankle and foot injuries. At midseason, the team signed free agent Cory Alexander, who was previously released by the San Antonio Spurs.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the Pistons' 50th season in the National Basketball Association, and 41st season in the city of Detroit. During the off-season, the Pistons signed free agents Brian Williams, and Malik Sealy. After winning their first two games, the Pistons lost five straight and struggled with a 6–11 start, as Joe Dumars missed ten games due to a shoulder injury during the first month of the season. In late December, the team traded Theo Ratliff and Aaron McKie to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Jerry Stackhouse and Eric Montross. At midseason, head coach Doug Collins was fired after a 21–24 start, and was replaced with assistant Alvin Gentry; Collins would later on get a job as color analyst for the NBA on NBC. The Pistons held a 22–25 record at the All-Star break, then later on posted a 7-game losing streak between March and April, missing the playoffs finishing sixth in the Central Division with a disappointing 37–45 record.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the 76ers 49th season in the National Basketball Association, and 35th season in Philadelphia. The 76ers had the second overall pick in the 1997 NBA draft, and selected Keith Van Horn from the University of Utah, but soon traded him to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Jim Jackson, Eric Montross, top draft pick Tim Thomas out of Villanova University, and first round draft pick Anthony Parker out of Bradley University. and signed free agent and former All-Star forward Terry Cummings during the off-season. In November, the Sixers acquired former All-Star forward Tom Chambers from the Phoenix Suns. However, after only playing just one game for the team, Chambers retired in December.
The 2002–03 NBA season was the 76ers 54th season in the National Basketball Association, and 40th season in Philadelphia. During the off-season, the Sixers acquired Keith Van Horn and former 76ers center Todd MacCulloch from the New Jersey Nets; Van Horn was originally drafted by the Sixers as the second pick in the 1997 NBA draft. The Sixers got off to a fast start winning 15 of their first 19 games, but would then lose 14 of their next 18 games, holding a 25–24 record at the All-Star break. In December, the team acquired Kenny Thomas from the Houston Rockets in a three-team trade. The Sixers improved on their last season posting a nine-game winning streak at midseason, finishing second in the Atlantic Division with a 48–34 record, with the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
