Larry Joe Bird is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time. He is the only person in NBA history to be named Rookie of the Year, Most Valuable Player, Finals MVP, All-Star MVP, Coach of the Year, and Executive of the Year.
Peter Press Maravich, known by his nickname Pistol Pete, was an American professional basketball player. He starred in college at Louisiana State University's Tigers basketball team; his father, Press Maravich, was the team's head coach. Maravich is the all-time leading NCAA Division I men's scorer with 3,667 points scored and an average of 44.2 points per game. All of his accomplishments were achieved before the adoption of the three-point line and shot clock, and despite being unable to play varsity as a freshman under then-NCAA rules.
Oscar Palmer Robertson, nicknamed "the Big O", is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Robertson played point guard and was a 12-time All-Star, 11-time member of the All-NBA Team, and one-time winner of the MVP award in 14 seasons. In 1962, he became the first player in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season. In the 1970–71 NBA season, he was a key player on the team that brought the Bucks their first NBA title. His playing career, especially during high school and college, was plagued by racism.
Walter Ray Allen Jr. is an American former professional basketball player. He played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in 2018. Allen is widely considered to be one of the greatest three-point shooters of all-time, and he held the record for most three-pointers made in a career from 2011 until 2021, when he was surpassed by Stephen Curry.
Patrick Joseph Garrity is an American former professional basketball player who played from 1998 to 2008 in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A power forward who was known as a three-point marksman, Garrity played for the Phoenix Suns and the Orlando Magic. Garrity served as an assistant general manager of the Detroit Pistons from 2016 to 2020.
Charles Edward Macauley was a professional basketball player and coach. His playing nickname was "Easy Ed". Macauley played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1949 to 1959 for the St. Louis Bombers, Boston Celtics, and St. Louis Hawks. During his career, Macauley earned seven All-Star selections and won a championship with the Hawks in 1958. He played college basketball for Saint Louis.
Lindsey Benson Hunter Jr. is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1993 to 2010, spending most of his career with the Detroit Pistons. He was also the interim head coach of the Phoenix Suns in 2013. Most recently, he served as the head coach at Mississippi Valley State.
James Clifford Pollard was an American professional basketball player and coach. As a player in the National Basketball Association (NBA), Pollard was considered one of the best forwards in the 1950s and was known for his leaping ability, earning him the nickname "The Kangaroo Kid". A five-time NBA champion and four-time NBA All-Star, Pollard spent his entire eight-year professional career with the Minneapolis Lakers.
John Brian Moore is an American former professional basketball player. Moore played college basketball for The University of Texas at Austin under head coaches Leon Black and Abe Lemons from 1975 to 1979. He spent his entire NBA career playing point guard for the San Antonio Spurs, save one game for the New Jersey Nets. A rare illness caused Moore to have his career put on hold in early 1986.
Clinton Renard "Mikki" Moore is an American former professional basketball player.
Clifford Ralph Robinson was an American professional basketball player who played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Selected in the second round of the 1989 NBA draft, he played the first eight seasons of his career with the Portland Trail Blazers, followed by stints with the Phoenix Suns, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, and New Jersey Nets. Robinson received the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award in 1993 and was selected as an NBA All-Star in 1994. He played college basketball for the UConn Huskies.
Trajan Shaka Langdon is an American basketball executive and former professional player. He is the current president of basketball operations for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) and 211 lb (96 kg) shooting guard, he first gained fame in the U.S. while playing college basketball at Duke University.
John Francis Egan was an American professional basketball player and coach. He played for the Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, Baltimore Bullets, Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, and San Diego / Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association from 1961 to 1972. He coached the Rockets from 1973 to 1976.
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.
Ulysses Lee "Junior" Bridgeman is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Bridgeman played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for twelve years from 1975 until 1987, beginning with the Milwaukee Bucks. Bridgeman is the current owner of Ebony and Jet magazines. Despite never making more than $350,000 a season during his NBA career, Bridgeman has a net worth of over $600 million, making him one of the wealthiest former athletes in the world.
The 1947 BAA draft was the 1st draft of the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which later merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) to become the National Basketball Association (NBA). The fledgling BAA held a joint draft with the established NBL. Both leagues wanted to control salaries by stamping out competitive bidding by assigning exclusive rights to the team selecting a player. The NBL had already signed 11 players, whom they did not feel should be exposed to the draft. The players included college stars Jack Smiley, Ralph Hamilton, Harry Boykoff, John Hargis, Frank Brian, and Charlie Black. As a trade-off, the BAA teams were allowed to select players before the NBL.
Howard Henry Schultz, nicknamed "Stretch" and "Steeple", was an American baseball and basketball player from St. Paul, Minnesota. Schultz won an NBA title with the Minneapolis Lakers in 1952. Schultz played in both Major League Baseball and in the National Basketball Association, one of thirteen athletes to do so.
Otto George Moore is a retired American professional basketball player.
Dominic Ivan Pressley was an American professional basketball player. He was a point guard who played one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Washington Bullets and the Chicago Bulls (1988–89). He attended Boston College where he was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics during the fifth round of the 1986 NBA draft, but he was released before playing for them.
