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.
Jerome Alan West is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "the Logo", in reference to his silhouette being the basis for the NBA logo; "Mr. Clutch", for his ability to make a big play in a key situation such as his famous buzzer-beating 60-foot shot that tied Game 3 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the New York Knicks; "Mr. Outside", in reference to his perimeter play with the Los Angeles Lakers and "Zeke from Cabin Creek" for the creek near his birthplace of Chelyan, West Virginia. West played the small forward position early in his career: he was a standout at East Bank High School and at West Virginia University, where he led the Mountaineers to the 1959 NCAA championship game. He earned the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player honor despite the loss. He then embarked on a 14-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers and was the co-captain of the 1960 U.S. Olympic gold medal team, a squad that was inducted as a unit into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.
Robert Joseph Cousy is an American former professional basketball player. Cousy played point guard for the Boston Celtics from 1950 to 1963, and briefly with the Cincinnati Royals during the 1969–70 season. A 13-time NBA All-Star and 1957 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), he was a core piece during the early half of the Celtics dynasty winning six NBA championships during his 13-year tenure with the Celtics. Nicknamed "The Houdini of the Hardwood", Cousy was the NBA assists leader for eight consecutive seasons, introducing a new blend of ball-handling and passing skills to the NBA. He is regarded as the first great point guard of the NBA.
William Felton Russell was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) and a 12-time NBA All-Star, he was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won 11 NBA championships during his 13-year career. Russell and Henri Richard of the National Hockey League are tied for the record of the most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league. Russell is widely considered to be one of the greatest basketball players of all time. He led the San Francisco Dons to two consecutive NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956, and he captained the gold-medal winning U.S. national basketball team at the 1956 Summer Olympics.
Thomas William Heinsohn was an American professional basketball player. He was associated with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) for six decades as a player, coach and broadcaster. He played for the Celtics from 1956 to 1965, and also coached the team from 1969 to 1978. He spent over 30 years as the color commentator for the Celtics' local broadcasts alongside play-by-play commentator Mike Gorman. He is regarded as one of the most iconic Celtics figures in the franchise's history, known during his lifetime for his charisma and loyalty to the team and its traditions. From this, he earned the nickname "Mr. Celtic".
Jacques Dominique Wilkins is an American former professional basketball player who primarily played for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Wilkins was a nine-time NBA All-Star, a seven-time All-NBA Team member and is widely viewed as one of the most acrobatic slam dunkers in NBA history, earning the nickname "the Human Highlight Film". In October 2021, he was honored as one of the league’s greatest players of all-time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.
The National Basketball Association's Sixth Man of the Year Award is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1982–83 NBA season to the league's best performing player for his team coming off the bench as a substitute. A panel of sportswriters and broadcasters from throughout the United States and Canada votes on the recipient. Since the 2022–23 NBA season, winners receive the John Havlicek Trophy, named after the eight-time NBA champion.
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.
Paul Anthony Pierce is an American former professional basketball player. He played 19 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), predominantly with the Boston Celtics. He was most recently an analyst on ESPN's basketball programs The Jump and NBA Countdown.
Kevin Edward McHale is an American former professional basketball player, coach and analyst who played his entire professional career for the Boston Celtics. He is a Basketball Hall of Fame inductee and is regarded as one of the greatest power forwards of all time.
Robert Lee Parish is an American former professional basketball player who played 21 seasons as a center in the National Basketball Association (NBA), tied for second most in league history. He played an NBA-record 1,611 games in his career. Parish was known for his strong defense, high arcing jump shots, and clutch rebounding late in games.
David William Cowens is an American former professional basketball player and NBA head coach. At 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), he played the center position and occasionally played power forward. Cowens spent most of his playing career with the Boston Celtics. He was the 1971 NBA Rookie of the Year and the 1973 NBA Most Valuable Player. Cowens won NBA championships as a member of the Celtics in 1974 and 1976. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991. Cowens has also held coaching positions in the NBA, CBA, and WNBA.
Dennis Wayne Johnson, nicknamed "DJ", was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's (NBA) Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns, and Boston Celtics. He was a coach of the Los Angeles Clippers and an alumnus of Dominguez High School, Los Angeles Harbor College and Pepperdine University.
Michael John Smith is an American former basketball player and television commentator. During his college years, he played for Brigham Young University, where he was a consensus second team All-American. As a professional player, he spent two seasons in the NBA with the Boston Celtics and part of one season with the Los Angeles Clippers. He also spent several years playing in Liga ACB and Lega Basket. After retiring from professional basketball, he worked for several years as the television color analyst for the Los Angeles Clippers.
Dana Bruce Barros is an American former professional basketball player from the National Basketball Association (NBA). In college, he played at Boston College, finishing as one of the school's all-time leading scorers. He was the head men's basketball coach at Newbury College in Massachusetts. He is now the owner of AAU Basketball organization, the "Dana Barros Gladiators", based in Avon, Massachusetts, and now Stoughton, Massachusetts. He is of Cape Verdean descent.
Malcolm Iseiah Thomas is an American professional basketball player for Wonju DB Promy of the Korean Basketball League. He played college basketball for the San Diego State Aztecs, where he twice earned All-Mountain West Conference (MWC) second-team honors.
Erik Murphy is a French-born Finnish-American professional basketball player for the Fukushima Firebonds of the Japanese B.League. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 2013, he also represents the Finnish national team.
Malcolm Moses Brogdon is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Virginia Cavaliers under Tony Bennett. As a senior in 2015–16, he was a consensus first-team All-American. He was also named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the first player in conference history to earn both honors in the same season. He was selected in the second round of the 2016 NBA draft by the Bucks with the 36th overall pick. He went on to win the NBA Rookie of the Year Award, becoming the first second-round pick in the NBA to win the award since 1965. In 2019, Brogdon became the eighth player in NBA history to achieve a 50–40–90 season. In the 2019 offseason, he was traded to the Indiana Pacers before being traded to the Boston Celtics in 2022, where he won the NBA Sixth Man of the Year in 2023.
Malcolm Miller is an American professional basketball player who last played for Limoges CSP of the LNB Pro A. He played college basketball for the Holy Cross Crusaders.
Aaron Joshua Nesmith is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Vanderbilt Commodores before being drafted 14th overall in the 2020 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics. He helped the Celtics reach the 2022 NBA Finals before being traded to the Indiana Pacers in a package surrounding Malcolm Brogdon.
