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 the 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 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.
Gus Johnson Jr. was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), 235-pound (107 kg) forward–center, he spent nine seasons with the Baltimore Bullets, and his final season was split between the Phoenix Suns and the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association (ABA).
Philip Chenier is an American former professional basketball player who was a shooting guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for ten seasons. He was also a television sports broadcaster for the NBA's Washington Wizards.
Jack Wayne Sikma is an American former professional basketball center. He was a seven-time NBA All-Star with the Seattle SuperSonics, who drafted him in the first round with the eighth overall pick of the 1977 NBA draft. In 1979, he won an NBA championship with Seattle. Sikma finished his playing career with the Milwaukee Bucks. He was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.
Gregory Ballard was an American professional basketball player and NBA assistant coach. A collegiate All-American at Oregon, Ballard averaged 12.4 points and 6.1 rebounds over an eleven season NBA career with the Washington Bullets, Golden State Warriors and briefly, the Seattle SuperSonics.
Robert J. Houbregs was a Canadian professional basketball player. Houbregs was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1987.
Haywoode Wilvon Workman is an American former basketball player who is a referee in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Lonnie Jewel Shelton was an American National Basketball Association (NBA) player who played from 1976 to 1985.
Darwin Louis Cook is an American basketball coach and former player.
Charles Norman Richardson is an American former professional basketball player and current coach, who serves as an assistant coach for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A 6'5" 195 lb shooting guard, he played college basketball at Hofstra University, and had a brief stint in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 2001-02.
Henry T. Akin was an American basketball player.
Richard Harvey Vertlieb was an American sports executive. He was the winner of the 1975 NBA Executive of the Year Award after serving as general manager for the NBA Champion Golden State Warriors. He also served as general manager for the Seattle SuperSonics and Indiana Pacers, as well as the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball. He died in Las Vegas, Nevada after a lengthy illness.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the 27th season of the National Basketball Association in Cleveland, Ohio. In the 1996 NBA draft, the Cavaliers selected Ukrainian center Vitaly Potapenko out of Wright State University with the 12th overall pick, and Lithuanian center Zydrunas Ilgauskas with the 20th overall pick. However, Ilgauskas would miss the entire season with a broken bone in his right foot. During the off-season, the team signed free agent Mark West. The Cavaliers started their season winning nine of their first twelve games, but after a 21–10 start, they lost six straight games in January while losing 11 of their next 14 games. The team played above .500 for the entire season, holding a 25–22 record at the All-Star break, but started to struggle down the stretch, losing 10 of their 16 games in March. On the final day of the regular season on April 20, 1997, the Cavaliers faced the Washington Bullets at the Gund Arena, as both teams were fighting for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Bullets won 85–81 as the Cavs missed the playoffs, finishing 5th in the Central Division with a 42–40 record. The Cavaliers had the fifth best team defensive rating in the NBA.
The 1992–93 NBA season was the fifth season for the Charlotte Hornets in the National Basketball Association. In the 1992 NBA draft, the Hornets selected Alonzo Mourning out of Georgetown University with the second overall pick. The team also signed free agent David Wingate during the first month of the regular season, then later on traded J.R. Reid to the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for Sidney Green in December, and released Tom Hammonds to free agency as he later on signed with the Denver Nuggets. With the addition of Mourning, along with second-year star Larry Johnson and Muggsy Bogues, the Hornets struggled losing four of their first six games, but then went on a five-game winning streak afterwards, held a 26–23 record at the All-Star break, and won 9 of their final 12 games, finishing their season third in the Central Division with a 44–38 record, and qualified for their first ever playoff appearance.
The 1992–93 NBA season was the 47th season for the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association. This marked the first season since the 1978–79 season that Hall of Fame player Larry Bird was not on the team. This was also the final season for long-time Celtics All-Star forward Kevin McHale, as he would retire the following off-season. During the off-season, the Celtics signed free agent Xavier McDaniel, and traded top draft pick Jon Barry to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Alaa Abdelnaby in December. However, the team got off to a bad start losing eight of their first ten games, as Celtics guard John Bagley would suffer from injuries and miss almost the entire season, and Ed Pinckney only played just seven games due to a knee injury. Despite the bad start, the Celtics would post a 7-game winning streak in January, hold a 26–24 record at the All-Star break, and would then post a nine-game winning streak in March to finish second in the Atlantic Division with a solid 48–34 record. The Celtics also qualified for the playoffs for the fourteenth consecutive season.
The 1994–95 NBA season was the Hawks' 46th season in the National Basketball Association, and 27th season in Atlanta. This was the team's first season since 1981–82 without All-Star forward Dominique Wilkins, as he signed as a free agent with the Boston Celtics in the off-season. During the off-season, the Hawks acquired Ken Norman from the Milwaukee Bucks, and Tyrone Corbin from the Utah Jazz. Early into the season, they traded Kevin Willis to the Miami Heat in exchange for Steve Smith and Grant Long after the first two games. The Hawks struggled losing their first four games, held a 12–19 record as of January 4, and later held a 22–26 record at the All-Star break. However, head coach Lenny Wilkens made history by becoming the NBA's all-time winningest coach, surpassing Red Auerbach on January 6, 1995, with 939 wins in a 112–90 home win over the Washington Bullets. The Hawks won seven of their final ten games, finishing fifth in the Central Division with a mediocre 42–40 record.
The 1993–94 NBA season was the Bullets' 33rd season in the National Basketball Association. The Bullets received the sixth overall pick in the 1993 NBA draft, and selected Calbert Cheaney out of Indiana University, and also selected 7' 7" Romanian center Gheorghe Mureșan with the 30th overall pick. In the off-season, the team acquired former All-Star center Kevin Duckworth from the Portland Trail Blazers, signed free agents Kenny Walker and undrafted rookie guard Mitchell Butler, and released LaBradford Smith to free agency after seven games, as he later on signed with the Sacramento Kings.
Oderah "O. D." Anosike is an American professional basketball player who last played for Manisa BB of the Turkish Basketbol Süper Ligi. He played college basketball for Siena College. In the 2011–12 NCAA Division I season, Anosike led Division I in rebounding, with a 12.5 per game average. He then repeated as the country's top rebounder in 2012–13, with an 11.4 per game average.
