The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a men's professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams. It is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and is considered the premier professional basketball league in the world.
The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a men's professional basketball major league from 1967 to 1976. The ABA merged into the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1976, resulting in four ABA teams joining the NBA and the introduction of the NBA 3-point shot in 1979.
Emanuel David Ginóbili Maccari is an Argentine former professional basketball player. Widely credited for changing the game of basketball by popularizing the Euro step move in the NBA, he is regarded as one of the greatest shooting guards and sixth men in the league's history and as the greatest Latin American player of all time. He notably led Argentina to a gold medal in the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics. Over a 23-year professional career, he became one of only two players to have won a EuroLeague title, an NBA championship, and an Olympic gold medal. A four-time NBA champion, Ginóbili was a member of the San Antonio Spurs for his entire 16-year NBA career. Along with Spurs teammates Tim Duncan and Tony Parker, he was known as one of the "Big Three" during the Spurs' era of success. During their playing years together, the Spurs became a "model franchise" for other NBA teams. Since September 2021, Ginóbili had been appointed as special advisor to basketball operations for the San Antonio Spurs.
The American Basketball League played one full season, 1961–1962, and approximately one-third of the next season until the league folded on December 31, 1962. The ABL was the first basketball league to have a three-point field goal for shots attempted from longer distance. Other rules that set the league apart from the National Basketball Association (NBA) were a 30-second shooting clock, as opposed to 24, and a wider free throw lane of 18 feet instead of the NBA's then-standard 12.
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 each 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.
Elgin Gay Baylor was an American professional basketball player, coach, and executive. He played 14 seasons as a forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers. Baylor was a gifted shooter, a strong rebounder, and an accomplished passer, who was best known for his trademark hanging jump shot. The No. 1 draft pick in 1958, NBA Rookie of the Year in 1959, 11-time NBA All-Star, and a 10-time member of the All-NBA first team, Baylor is regarded as one of the game's all-time greatest players. In 1977, Baylor was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In 1996, Baylor was named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Baylor was again honored as one of the league's greatest players of all time by being named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team. Baylor is the leader for most career rebounds in Lakers franchise history with 11,463.
The NBA draft is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual event, dating back to 1947, in which the teams in the league can draft players who declare for the draft and that are eligible to join their organization. The current NBA consists of 30 teams, and all thirty teams have at least one draft pick throughout the two draft rounds. Historically, the vast majority of players drafted into the NBA are college basketball players.
John Joseph Havlicek was an American professional basketball player who spent his entire career with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
The All-NBA Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The voting is conducted by a global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. The team has been selected in every season of the league's existence, dating back to its inaugural season in 1946. The All-NBA Team originally had two teams, but since 1988 it is typically composed of three five-man lineups—a first, second, and third team.
The Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team represents the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas in NCAA Division I men's basketball competition. The team competes in the Southeastern Conference and is coached by John Calipari. Arkansas plays its home games in Bud Walton Arena on the University of Arkansas campus. The Razorbacks are a top-twenty-five program all-time by winning percentage (.641), top-twenty program by NCAA tournament games played, top-twenty program by NCAA Tournament games won, top-fifteen program by Final Four appearances, and despite playing significantly fewer seasons than most programs in major conferences, top-thirty by all-time wins. Under the coaching leadership of Nolan Richardson, the Hogs won the national championship in 1994, defeating Duke, and appeared in the championship game the following year, finishing as runner-up to UCLA. The Razorbacks have made six NCAA Final Four appearances.
John Anthony "Rabbit" Barnhill was an American professional basketball player.
The 1968 NBA expansion draft was the fourth expansion draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 6, 1968, so that the newly founded Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns could acquire players for the upcoming 1968–69 season. Milwaukee and Phoenix had been awarded the expansion teams on January 22, 1968. In an NBA expansion draft, new NBA teams are allowed to acquire players from the previously established teams in the league. Not all players on a given team are available during an expansion draft, since each team can protect a certain number of players from being selected. In this draft, each of the twelve other NBA teams had protected seven players from their roster. After each round, where each the Suns and the Bucks had selected one player, the existing teams added another player to their protected list. The draft continued until both teams had selected eighteen unprotected players each, while the existing teams had lost three players each.
The 1967 NBA expansion draft was the third expansion draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 1, 1967, so that the newly founded San Diego Rockets and Seattle SuperSonics could acquire players for the upcoming 1967–68 season. Seattle and San Diego had been awarded the expansion teams on December 20, 1966, and January 11, 1967, respectively. The Rockets moved to Houston, Texas, in 1971 and are currently known as the Houston Rockets. The SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City, in 2008 and are currently known as the Oklahoma City Thunder. In an NBA expansion draft, new NBA teams are allowed to acquire players from the previously established teams in the league. Not all players on a given team are available during an expansion draft, since each team can protect a certain number of players from being selected. The Rockets and the Sonics selected fifteen unprotected players each, while the ten other NBA teams lost three players each.
The 1966 NBA expansion draft was the second expansion draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held from April 30 to May 1, 1966, so that the newly founded Chicago Bulls could acquire players for the upcoming 1966–67 season. Chicago had been awarded the expansion team on January 16, 1966. The Bulls were the third NBA franchise to play in Chicago, following the Chicago Stags, which folded in 1950, and the Chicago Packers–Zephyrs, which moved to Baltimore and became the Baltimore Bullets in 1963.
The East Carolina Pirates men's basketball team represents East Carolina University in NCAA Division I college basketball and competes in the American Athletic Conference. The Pirates are coached by Mike Schwartz.
The 1991–92 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team represented the University of Arkansas in the 1991–92 college basketball season. The head coach was Nolan Richardson, serving for his seventh year. The team played its home games in Barnhill Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas. In their first year of competition in the Southeastern Conference, Arkansas won the SEC West Division and SEC regular season championships. After beating Murray State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the Hogs were upset in the second round by Memphis State, led by Penny Hardaway.
The Tennessee State Tigers basketball team represents Tennessee State University (TSU) in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. The school's team currently competes in the NCAA Division I's Ohio Valley Conference. They play their home games at the Gentry Complex and are led by sixth-year head coach Brian "Penny" Collins.
The 1957–58 Tennessee A&I State Tigers basketball team represented Tennessee A&I State College in National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) men's basketball during the 1957–58 season. Coached by fourth-year head coach John McLendon, the Tigers finished the season with a 31–3 record and were crowned NAIA national champions by winning the 1958 NAIA tournament. This marked the second of three consecutive national championships, a feat that no other team at any level of college basketball had previously accomplished. In 2019, all three national championship teams were inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
The 1958–59 Tennessee A&I State Tigers basketball team represented Tennessee A&I State College in National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) men's basketball during the 1958–59 season. Coached by fifth-year head coach John McLendon, the Tigers finished the season with a school-record 32 wins and were crowned NAIA national champions by winning the 1959 NAIA tournament. This marked the third of three consecutive national championships, a feat that no other team at any level of college basketball had previously accomplished. In 2019, all three national championship teams were inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
