Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time, Johnson spent his entire career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). After winning a national championship with the Michigan State Spartans in 1979, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by the 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.
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.
Patrick Aloysius Ewing Sr. is a Jamaican-American basketball coach and former professional player who is a basketball ambassador for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) where he played most of his career as the starting center before ending his playing career with brief stints with the Seattle SuperSonics and Orlando Magic. Ewing is regarded as one of the greatest centers of all time, playing a dominant role in the New York Knicks' 1990s success.
John Houston Stockton is an American former professional basketball player. Regarded as one of the greatest point guards of all time, he spent his entire NBA career (1984–2003) with the Utah Jazz, and the team made the playoffs in all of his 19 seasons. In 1997 and 1998, together with his longtime teammate Karl Malone, Stockton led the Jazz to the franchise's only two NBA Finals appearances, both of which were losses to the Chicago Bulls.
William Mark Price is an American former basketball player and coach. He was most recently the head coach of the Charlotte 49ers. As a player, he played for 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), from 1986 to 1998. Spending the majority of his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers, his last three years consisted of one season each with the Washington Bullets, Golden State Warriors, and Orlando Magic.
Chauncey Ray Billups is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After playing college basketball with the Colorado Buffaloes, he was selected third overall in the 1997 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics. Billups spent the majority of his 17-year basketball career playing for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he won the NBA Finals MVP in 2004 after helping the Pistons beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the Finals. He was given the nickname "Mr. Big Shot" for making late-game shots with Detroit. A five-time NBA All-Star, a three-time All-NBA selection and two-time NBA All-Defensive selection, Billups also played for the Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, and Los Angeles Clippers during his NBA career.
Anfernee Deon "Penny" Hardaway is an American college basketball coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the Memphis Tigers men's team in the American Athletic Conference (AAC). Hardaway played college basketball at Memphis and 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a four-time NBA All-Star and a three-time All-NBA Team member.
Jonathan Clay "JJ" Redick is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He most recently served as an analyst for ESPN. Redick played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils, winning many individual awards, including the Naismith College Player of the Year. Selected 11th overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2006 NBA draft, he played for 15 seasons in the NBA with six different teams. In 2024, Redick was appointed head coach of the Lakers.
Kenneth Smith, is an American sports commentator and former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Jet", he played in the NBA from 1987 to 1997 as a member of the Sacramento Kings, Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, and Denver Nuggets. Smith won back-to-back NBA championships with Houston.
Glenn Anton "Doc" Rivers is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). An NBA player for 14 seasons, he was an NBA All-Star and was named one of the 15 Greatest Coaches in NBA History.
K.C. Jones was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is best known for his association with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA), with whom he won 11 of his 12 NBA championships. As a player, he is tied for third for most NBA championships in a career, and is one of three NBA players with an 8–0 record in NBA Finals series. He is the only African-American coach other than Bill Russell to have won multiple NBA championships, and one of eight players to ever achieve the basketball Triple Crown. Jones was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1989.
Mario Antoine Elie is an American former professional basketball coach and player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Elie grew up in New York City and played college basketball at American International College, before being drafted in the seventh round of the 1985 NBA draft as the 160th overall pick by the Milwaukee Bucks.
Scott Allen Skiles Sr. is an American former basketball coach and player. He coached the Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic. A first-round draft pick out of Michigan State University, Skiles played ten seasons as a point guard in the NBA. He holds the NBA record for assists in one game with 30, set in his fifth season in the league and second with Orlando, in which he also earned the 1990–91 NBA Most Improved Player Award.
David Vanterpool is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He currently serves as an assistant coach for the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA). During his playing career, he earned an All-EuroLeague Second Team selection during the 2003–04 season, while playing with Montepaschi Siena.
Corliss Mondari Williamson is an American basketball coach who serves as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is also a former player who played for four teams during his 12-year career. He previously served as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns. His nickname is "Big Nasty", a moniker he received from his AAU coach when he was 13. Williamson was a dominating power forward in college at Arkansas, but an undersized power forward in the NBA and mostly played at the small forward position.
Jason Chandler Williams is an American former professional basketball player who was a point guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for twelve seasons from 1998 to 2011. In 2006, Williams won his first and only NBA championship as the starting point guard for the Miami Heat. Nicknamed "White Chocolate", Williams is known for his unorthodox streetball style of playing throughout his career in the NBA.
Reginald Wayne Theus is an American basketball coach and former player. He played 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a two-time NBA All-Star. He is currently the men's basketball head coach and athletic director at Bethune–Cookman. He was the head coach for the NBA's Sacramento Kings and in college with the New Mexico State Aggies and the Cal State Northridge Matadors men's teams. He was also an assistant coach for the Louisville Cardinals under Rick Pitino.
Wayne Monte "Tree" Rollins is an American former professional basketball player who played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets, and Orlando Magic.
John Dewitt Kuester Jr. is an American basketball coach and scout. As a player he spent three seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1977 to 1980 and then coached in the college ranks before moving on to the NBA sidelines as an assistant. Kuester was named head coach of the Detroit Pistons in July 2009 and coached the team for two seasons.
Scott Perry is an American basketball executive and former coach. He served as the general manager for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 2017 to 2023. His contract expired at the end of the 2023 season, and the Knicks decided not to bring him back.
