Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop, while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play (overtime) is mandated.
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and preserving the history of basketball. Dedicated to Canadian-American physician James Naismith, who invented the sport in Springfield, the Hall of Fame inducted its first class in 1959, before opening its first facility on February 17, 1968.
James Naismith was a Canadian-American physical educator, physician, Christian chaplain, and sports coach, best known as the inventor of the game of basketball. After moving to the United States, he wrote the original basketball rule book and founded the University of Kansas basketball program in 1898. Naismith lived to see basketball adopted as an Olympic demonstration sport in 1904 and as an official event at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, as well as the birth of the National Invitation Tournament (1938) and the NCAA Tournament (1939).
Thomas William Heinsohn was an American professional basketball player, coach, and broadcaster. 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".
The Naismith College Player of the Year is an annual basketball award given by the Atlanta Tipoff Club to the top men's and women's collegiate basketball players. It is named in honor of James Naismith, the inventor of basketball.
Hubert "Hubie" Jude Brown is an American retired basketball coach and player and active television analyst. Brown is a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, the honors separated by 26 years. Brown was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005.
The National Basketball Association's Executive of the Year Award is an annual award given since the 1972–73 NBA season, to the league's best general manager, president of basketball/business operations, or another high-ranking executive. Before 2009, the Executive of the Year was presented annually by Sporting News, but was officially recognized by the NBA. Since 2009, the award has been awarded by the NBA. Voting is conducted by executives from the league's 30 teams. The person with the most votes wins the award.
Walter Pearl Davis was an American basketball player. After his college years with the North Carolina Tar Heels he played professionally as a forward/guard for 15 years in the National Basketball Association (NBA), spending the majority of his career with the Phoenix Suns. Davis was a six-time NBA All-Star, a two-time All-NBA Second Team member, and the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1978. In 1994, the Suns retired his No. 6 jersey and in 2004 he was enshrined in the team's Ring of Honor. Davis' 15,666 points during his time with the Suns is the most in franchise history. In 2024, it was announced that Davis would be posthumously inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
John B. McLendon Jr. was an American basketball coach who is recognized as the first African American basketball coach at a predominantly white university and the first African American head coach in any professional sport. He was a major contributor to the development of modern basketball and coached on both the college and professional levels during his career. He has been enshrined three times in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and also inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
Ray Michael McCallum Sr. is an American college basketball coach who is currently an assistant coach for Tulane. He previously served as the head coach for the men's basketball team at the University of Houston and the University of Detroit Mercy. He is also a former player and head coach of Ball State University. From 2016 to 2018 McCallum served as assistant coach at Georgia State. Previously, he also served as an assistant coach at Oklahoma and Indiana.
Robert Hughes Sr. was an American high school basketball coach. Hughes was the United States' all-time winningest high school basketball coach from February 11, 2003, to December 7, 2010, and as of June 2024, is the most successful boys' high school basketball coach in the United States with 1,333 wins. He was passed in wins by Leta Andrews of Granbury High School in Granbury, Texas, who compiled a national record 1,416 career victories in girls' high school basketball before retiring in 2014.
Herb Magee, commonly referred to as the Shot Doctor, is an American former men's college basketball coach, who coached for 54 seasons at NCAA Division II Thomas Jefferson University. The school was established in its current form when Philadelphia University, Magee's alma mater, merged with the original Thomas Jefferson University in 2017. The former Philadelphia University was known as Philadelphia College of Textiles & Science and athletically branded as "Philadelphia Textile" when Magee first became head coach in 1967, becoming Philadelphia University in 1999. He has spent 54 years as head coach, and 62 years as either a player or coach at the school as of 2021. In 2015, he achieved his 1,000th win as a head coach, becoming one of only four college coaches to achieve that milestone. On August 12, 2011, Magee was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
The Nancy Lieberman Award, named for Basketball Hall of Fame legend Nancy Lieberman, was given annually by the Rotary Club of Detroit in the Award's first 14 years to the nation's top collegiate point guard in women's Division I basketball. Sue Bird won the inaugural award in 2000, making her the first of only three players to have won three Lieberman Awards. Paige Bueckers is the first freshman to win the award in 2021, and only three players have won as sophomores —Bird in 2000 and the other two three-time winners, Sabrina Ionescu in 2018 and Caitlin Clark in 2022.
Mr. Basketball USA, formerly known as the ESPN RISE National Player of the Year and EA SPORTS National Player of the Year, is an award presented to the United States boys' high school basketball national player of the year by Ballislife.com. Before 1996, retroactive recognition was determined for honorees going back to 1955's selectee Wilt Chamberlain, determined by National High School Hall of Fame member Doug Huff, who has been a McDonald's All-American Game selection committee member since the game's inception, CalHiSports.com Editor Mark Tennis and Ballislife.com National Editor Ronnie Flores. From 1996–2002 the selections were made by Student Sports and from 2003–2009 by EA Sports. From 2010–2012 the award was determined by ESPN HS until the award was taken over and executed by Flores in 2013 after his tenure with ESPN ended.
Greg Brown was an American basketball player and high school coach. He was known for his standout college career at the University of New Mexico, where he was Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Player of the Year in 1994 and won the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award as the nation's best player under six feet tall.
Leroy Jevon Carter is an American professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the West Virginia Mountaineers. A point guard for the Mountaineers, Carter was known as one of the top defensive players in college basketball, winning the NABC Defensive Player of the Year and the Lefty Driesell Award after both his junior and senior seasons, and winning the inaugural Naismith Defensive Player of the Year in his final season.
The 1995–96 NCAA Division I men's basketball season concluded in the 64-team 1996 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament whose finals were held at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Kentucky Wildcats earned their sixth national championship by defeating the Syracuse Orangemen 76–67 on April 1, 1996. They were coached by Rick Pitino and the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player was Kentucky's Tony Delk.
The 1994–95 NCAA Division I men's basketball season concluded in the 64-team 1995 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament whose finals were held at the Kingdome in Seattle, Washington. The UCLA Bruins earned their eleventh national championship by defeating the Arkansas Razorbacks 89–78 on April 3, 1995. They were coached by Jim Harrick and the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player was UCLA's Ed O'Bannon.
The Cheryl Miller Award is an award presented annually to the best women's basketball small forward in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I competition. It is named after Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller. While at Riverside (CA) Polytechnic High School, Miller set a single game scoring record of 105 points in a game in 1982. She was a four-time All-America, a three-time Naismith Player of the Year and a Wade Trophy winner while accumulating 3,018 career points at USC from 1982 to 1986. Miller is a 1984 Olympic gold medalist and was named the best college basketball player, both male and female, in 1986 by Sports Illustrated.