Coin flipping
Coin flipping, coin tossing, or heads or tails is the practice of throwing a coin in the air and checking which side is showing when it lands, in order to choose between two alternatives, sometimes used to resolve a dispute between two parties. It is a form of sortition; the party who calls the side wins. The historical origin of coin flipping is the interpretation of a chance outcome as the expression of divine will. Coin flipping was known to the ancient Chinese as 撒大苏打, as some coins had a ship on one side and the head of the emperor on the other. In England, this was referred to as pile; the expression Heads or Tails results from heads and tails being considered complementary body parts. During a coin toss, the coin is thrown into the air such that it rotates edge-over-edge several times. Either beforehand or when the coin is in the air, an interested party calls "heads" or "tails", indicating which side of the coin that party is choosing; the other party is assigned the opposite side. Depending on custom, the coin may be caught.
When the coin comes to rest, the toss is complete and the party who called or was assigned the upper side is declared the winner. It is possible for a coin to land on its edge by landing up against an object or by getting stuck in the ground; however on a flat surface it is possible for a coin to land on its edge, with a chance of about 1 in 6000 for an American nickel. Angular momentum prevents most coins from landing on their edges unsupported if flipped; such cases in which a coin does land on its edge are exceptionally rare and in most cases the coin is re-flipped. The coin may be any type. Larger coins tend to be more popular than smaller ones; some high-profile coin tosses, such as the Cricket World Cup and the Super Bowl, use custom-made ceremonial medallions. Three-way coin flips are possible, by a different process – this can be done either to choose two out of three, or to choose one out of three. To choose two out of three, three coins are flipped, if two coins come up the same and one different, the different one loses, leaving two players.
To choose one out of three, either reverse this, or add a regular two-way coin flip between the remaining players as a second step. Note that the three-way flip is 75% to work each time it is tried, does not require that "heads" or "tails" be called. A famous example of such a three-way coin flip is dramatized in Friday Night Lights, three high school football teams use a three-way coin flip. A legacy of this coin flip was to reduce the use of coin flips to break ties in Texas sports, instead using point-systems to reduce the frequency of ties. Coin tossing is a simple and unbiased way of settling a dispute or deciding between two or more arbitrary options. In a game theoretic analysis it provides odds to both sides involved, requiring little effort and preventing the dispute from escalating into a struggle, it is used in sports and other games to decide arbitrary factors such as which side of the field a team will play from, or which side will attack or defend initially. Factors such as wind direction, the position of the sun, other conditions may affect the decision.
In team sports it is the captain who makes the call, while the umpire or referee oversees such proceedings. A competitive method may be used instead of a toss in some situations, for example in basketball the jump ball is employed, while the face-off plays a similar role in ice hockey. Coin flipping is used to decide which end of the field the teams will play to and/or which team gets first use of the ball, or similar questions in football matches, American football games, Australian rules football and other sports requiring such decisions. In the U. S. a specially minted coin is flipped in National Football League games. The XFL, a short-lived American football league, attempted to avoid coin tosses by implementing a face-off style "opening scramble," in which one player from each team tried to recover a loose football; because of the high rate of injury in these events, it has not achieved mainstream popularity in any football league, coin tossing remains the method of choice in American football.
In an association football match, the team winning the coin toss chooses which goal to attack in the first half. For the second half, the teams switch ends, the team that won the coin toss kicks off. Coin tosses are used to decide which team has the pick of going first or second in a penalty shoot-out. Before the early-1970s introduction of the penalty shootout, coin tosses were needed to decide the outcome of tied matches; the most famous instance of this was the semifinal game of the 1968 European Championship in Italy between Italy and the Soviet Union, which finished 0-0 after extra time. Italy won, went on to become European champions. In cricket the toss is significant, as the decision whether to
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association, as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 1946 in Philadelphia, the Warriors relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1962 and took the city's name, before changing its geographic moniker to Golden State in 1971, they play their home games at the Oracle Arena. The Warriors won the inaugural Basketball Association of America championship in 1947, won its second championship in 1956, led by Hall of Fame trio Paul Arizin, Tom Gola, Neil Johnston. However, the Warriors would not return to similar heights in Philadelphia, after a brief rebuilding period following the trade of star Wilt Chamberlain, the team moved to San Francisco. With star players Jamaal Wilkes and Rick Barry, the Warriors returned to title contention, won their third championship in 1975, in what is considered one of the biggest upsets in NBA history.
This would precede another period of struggle in the 1980s, before becoming playoff regulars at the turn of the decade with stars Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond, Chris Mullin, colloquially referred to as "Run TMC". After failing to capture a championship, the team entered another rebuilding phase in the 2000s; the Warriors' fortunes changed in the 2010s. After drafting perennial All-Stars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, the team returned to championship glory in 2015, before winning another two in 2017 and 2018 with the help of former league MVP Kevin Durant. Nicknamed the Dubs as a shortening of "W's", the Warriors hold several NBA records. With the combined shooting of Curry and Thompson, they are credited as one of the greatest backcourts of all time; the team's six NBA championships are tied for third-most in NBA history with the Chicago Bulls. According to Forbes, the Warriors are the seventh highest valued sports franchise in the United States, joint-tenth in the world, with an estimated value of $3.1 billion.
The Warriors were founded in 1946 as the Philadelphia Warriors, a charter member of the Basketball Association of America. They were owned by Peter A. Tyrrell, who owned the Philadelphia Rockets of the American Hockey League. Tyrrell hired Eddie Gottlieb, a longtime basketball promoter in the Philadelphia area, as coach and general manager; the owners named the team after the Philadelphia Warriors, an old basketball team who played in the American Basketball League in 1925. Led by early scoring sensation Joe Fulks, the team won the championship in the league's inaugural 1946–47 season by defeating the Chicago Stags, four games to one; the NBA, created by a 1949 merger recognizes that as its own first championship. Gottlieb bought the team in 1951; the Warriors won its next championship in Philadelphia in the 1955–56 season, defeating the Fort Wayne Pistons four games to one. The Warrior stars of this era were future Hall of Tom Gola and Neil Johnston. In 1959, the team signed draft pick Wilt Chamberlain.
Known as "Wilt the Stilt", he led the team in scoring six times began shattering NBA scoring records and changed the NBA style of play forever. On March 2, 1962, in a Warrior "home" game played on a neutral court in Hershey, Chamberlain scored 100 points against the New York Knicks, a single-game record the NBA ranks among its finest moments. In 1962, Franklin Mieuli purchased the majority shares of the team and relocated the franchise to the San Francisco Bay Area, renaming them the San Francisco Warriors; the Warriors played most of their home games at the Cow Palace in Daly City from 1962 to 1964 and the San Francisco Civic Auditorium from 1964 to 1966, though playing home games in nearby cities such as Oakland and San Jose. Prior to the 1963–64 NBA season, the Warriors drafted big man Nate Thurmond to go along with Chamberlain; the Warriors won the Western Division crown that season, but lost the 1964 NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics, four games to one. In the 1964–65 season, the Warriors traded Chamberlain to the Philadelphia 76ers for Connie Dierking, Lee Shaffer, Paul Neumann and $150,000 and won only 17 games.
In 1965, they drafted Rick Barry in the first round who went on to become NBA Rookie of the Year that season and led the Warriors to the NBA Finals in the 1966–67 season, losing to Chamberlain's new team that had replaced the Warriors in Philadelphia, the 76ers. Angered by management's failure to pay him certain incentive bonuses he felt were due him, Barry sat out the 1967–68 season and signed with the Oakland Oaks of the rival American Basketball Association for the following year, but after four seasons in the ABA rejoined the Warriors in 1972. During Barry's absence, the Warriors were no longer title contenders, the mantle of leadership fell to Thurmond, Jeff Mullins and Rudy LaRusso, they began scheduling more home games in Oakland with the opening of the Oakland Coliseum Arena in 1966 and the 1970–71 season would be the team's last as the San Francisco Warriors. The franchise adopted its brand name Golden State Warriors prior to the 1971–72 season, in order to suggest that the team represented the entire state of California.
All home games were played in Oakland that season. Oakland Arena became the team's exclusive home court in 1971; the Warriors made the playoffs from 1971 to 1977 except in 1974, won their first NBA championship on t
Gold medal
A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have been awarded in the arts, for example, by the Royal Danish Academy as a symbol of an award to give an outstanding student some financial freedom. Others offer only the prestige of the award. Many organizations now award gold medals either annually or extraordinarily, including UNESCO and various academic societies. While some gold medals are solid gold, others are gold-plated or silver-gilt, like those of the Olympic Games, the Lorentz Medal, the United States Congressional Gold Medal and the Nobel Prize medal. Nobel Prize medals consist of 18 karat green gold plated with 24 karat gold. Before 1980 they were struck in 23 karat gold. Before the establishment of standard military awards, e.g. the Medal of Honor, it was common practice to have a medal specially created to provide national recognition for a significant military or naval victory or accomplishment.
In the United States, Congress would enact a resolution asking the President to reward those responsible. The commanding officer would receive his officers silver medals. Medals have been given as prizes in various types of competitive activities athletics. Traditionally, medals are made of the following metals: Gold Silver BronzeOccasionally, Platinum medals can be awarded; these metals designate the first three Ages of Man in Greek mythology: the Golden Age, when men lived among the gods, the Silver Age, where youth lasted a hundred years, the Bronze Age, the era of heroes. The custom of awarding the sequence of gold and bronze medals for the first three highest achievers dates from at least the 18th century, with the National Association of Amateur Athletes in the United States awarding such medals as early as 1884; this standard was adopted for Olympic competition at the 1904 Summer Olympics. At the 1896 event, silver was awarded to winners and bronze to runners-up, while at 1900 other prizes were given, not medals.
At the modern Olympic Games, winners of a sporting discipline receive a gold medal in recognition of their achievement. At the Ancient Olympic Games only one winner per event was crowned with kotinos, an olive wreath made of wild olive leaves from a sacred tree near the temple of Zeus at Olympia. Aristophanes in Plutus makes a remark why victorious athletes are crowned with wreath made of wild olive instead of gold. Herodotus describes a story that explains why there were only a few Greek men at the Battle of Thermopylae since "all other men were participating in the Olympic Games" and that the prize for the winner was "an olive-wreath"; when Tigranes, an Armenian general learned this, he uttered to his leader: "Good heavens! What kind of men are these against whom you have brought us to fight? Men who do not compete for possessions, but for honour". Hence medals were not awarded at the ancient Olympic Games. At the 1896 Summer Olympics, winners received a silver medal and the second-place finisher received a bronze medal.
In 1900, most winners received trophies instead of medals. The next three Olympics awarded the winners solid gold medals, but the medals themselves were smaller; the use of gold declined with the onset of the First World War and with the onset of the Second World War. The last series of Olympic medals to be made of solid gold were awarded at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. Olympic Gold medals are required to be made from at least 92.5% silver, must contain a minimum of 6 grams of gold. All Olympic medals must be at least 60mm in diameter and 3mm thick. Minting the medals is the responsibility of the Olympic host. From 1928 through 1968 the design was always the same: the obverse showed a generic design by Florentine artist Giuseppe Cassioli of Greek goddess Nike with Rome's Colloseum in the background and text naming the host city. From the 1972 Summer Olympics through 2000, Cassioli's design remained on the obverse with a custom design by the host city on the reverse. Noting that Cassioli's design showed a Roman amphitheater for what were Greek games, a new obverse design was commissioned for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.
For the 2008 Beijing Olympics medals had a diameter of 70mm and were 6mm thick, with the front displaying a winged figure of victory and the back showed a Beijing Olympics symbol surrounded by an inset jade circle. Winter Olympics medals have been of more varied design; the silver and bronze medals have always borne the same designs. The award of a gold medal coupled with the award of silver and bronze medals to the next place finishers, has been adopted in other sports competitions and in other competitive fields, such as music and writing, as well as some competitive games. Bronze medals are awarded only to third place, but in some contests there is some variety, such as International barbershop music contests where bronze medals are awarded for third and fifth place. List of gold medal awards Medals: Going For Gold! - Minerals Council of Australia Royal Canadian Mint Interactive 3D Tour of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Medals
United States men's national basketball team
The USA Basketball Men's National Team known as the United States Men's National Basketball Team, is the most successful team in international competition, winning medals in all eighteen Olympic tournaments it has entered, coming away with fifteen golds. In the professional era, the team won the Olympic gold medal in 1992, 1996, 2000, 2008, 2012, 2016. Two of its gold medal-winning teams were inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in August 2010 – the 1960 team, which featured six Hall of Famers, the 1992 "Dream Team", featuring 14 Hall of Famers; the team is ranked first in the FIBA World Rankings. Traditionally composed of amateur players, the U. S. dominated the first decades of international basketball, winning a record seven consecutive Olympic gold medals. However, by the end of the 1980s, American amateurs were no longer competitive against seasoned professionals from the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. In 1989, FIBA modified its rules and allowed USA Basketball to field teams with National Basketball Association players.
The first such team, known as the "Dream Team", won the gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, being superior in all matches. With the introduction of NBA players, the team was able to spark a second run of dominance in the 1990s. Facing increased competition, the U. S. failed finishing sixth. The 2004 Olympic team, being depleted by a number of withdrawals, lost three games on its way to a bronze medal, a record that represented more losses in a single year than the country's Olympic teams had suffered in all previous Olympiads combined. Determined to put an end to these failures, USA Basketball initiated a long-term project aimed at creating better, more cohesive teams; the U. S. won its first seven games at the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan before losing against Greece in the semi-finals. The team won gold two years – at the 2008 Summer Olympics – in a dominant fashion; this success was followed up at the 2010 FIBA World Championship, where despite fielding a roster featuring no players from the 2008 Olympic team, the U.
S. did not lose a single game en route to defeating host Turkey for the gold medal. The Americans continued this streak of dominance in the 2010s by going undefeated and capturing gold at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2014 FIBA World Cup. At the 2016 Summer Olympics, the team, led by Mike Krzyzewski for a record third time, won its fifteenth gold medal, making him the most decorated coach in USA Basketball history; the US men were dominant from the first Olympic tournament to hold basketball, held in Berlin in 1936, going 5–0 to win the gold, joined by continental neighbors Canada and Mexico on the medal platform. Through the next six tournaments, the United States went undefeated, collecting gold while not losing a single contest in the games held in London, Melbourne, Rome and Mexico City. Participation in these tournaments were limited to amateurs, but the US teams during this period featured players who would go on to become superstars in professional basketball, including all-time greats Bill Russell, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, Jerry Lucas.
S. roster until the formation of the 1992 Dream Team. Alex Groza and Ralph Beard, both NBA stars, made the 1948 squad as Kentucky Wildcats, with 3-time Oklahoma State All-American and 6-time AAU All-American, Hall of Famer Bob Kurland leading the way; the 1952 team included big man Clyde Lovellette of the University of Kansas, a future Hall of Famer and NBA star. Kurland once again led the team to victory; the 1956 team was led by San Francisco Dons Bill Russell and K. C. Jones; the 1960 team included nine future NBA players, including not just Robertson and West, but Bob Boozer, Adrian Smith, Jay Arnette, Terry Dischinger, Rookie of the Year in 1963, another Hall of Famer in Walt Bellamy. The 1972 Olympic men's basketball gold medal game, marking the first loss for the USA in Olympic play, is arguably the most controversial in Olympic history; the United States rode their seven consecutive gold medals and 63–0 Olympic record to Munich for the 1972 Summer Olympics. The team won its first eight games in convincing fashion, setting up a final against the Soviet Union, holding a 6–0 advantage over the Soviets in Olympic play.
With three seconds left in the gold medal game, American forward Doug Collins sank two free throws to put the Americans up 50–49. Following Collins' free throws, the Soviets inbounded the ball and failed to score. Soviet coaches claimed; the referees ordered the clock reset to three seconds and the game's final seconds replayed. The horn sounded as a length-of-the-court Soviet pass was being released from the inbounding player, the pass missed its mark, the American players began celebrating. Final three seconds were replayed for a third time; this time, the Soviets' Alexander Belov and the USA's Kevin Joyce and Jim Forbes went up for the pass, Belov caught the long pass from Ivan Edeshko near the American basket. Belov laid the ball in for the winning points as the buzzer sounded; the US players voted unanimously to refuse their silver medals, at least one team member, Kenny Davis, has directed in his will that his heirs are never to accept the medals posthumously. It was revealed that game officials might have been bribed by the Communist party.
After the controversial loss in Munich, 1976 saw Dean Smith coach the USA to a 7–0 record and its eighth Olympic gold medal in Montreal. The success at this tou
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver, Colorado. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association as a member club of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division; the team was founded as the Denver Larks in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association, but changed its name to Rockets before the first season. It changed its name again to the Nuggets in 1974. After the name change, the Nuggets played for the final ABA Championship title in 1976, losing to the New York Nets; the team has had some periods of success, qualifying for the ABA Playoffs for all seasons from 1967 to the 1976 ABA playoffs where it lost in the finals. The team joined the NBA in 1976 after the ABA–NBA merger and qualified for the NBA playoffs in nine consecutive seasons in the 1980s and ten consecutive seasons from 2004 to 2013. However, it has not made an appearance in a championship round since its last year in the ABA; the Nuggets play their home games at Pepsi Center, which they share with the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League and the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League.
The original Denver Nuggets was founded in the National Basketball League prior to the 1948–49 season. Following that season, the NBL was absorbed into the BAA, renamed to the NBA; the Denver Nuggets played the 1949–50 season as one of the charter NBA teams before folding. In 1967, one of the ABA's charter franchises was awarded to a group in Kansas City, headed by Southern Californian businessman James Trindle. However, Trindle was unable to find a suitable arena in the Kansas City area. League commissioner George Mikan suggested moving the team to Denver. After agreeing to name Denver resident and former NBA player Vince Boryla as general manager, Trindle moved his team to Denver as the Denver Larks, named after Colorado's state bird; the Trindle group was undercapitalized, leading Mikan to order the Larks to post a $100,000 performance bond or lose the franchise. Hours before the deadline, Trindle sold a ⅔ controlling interest to Denver trucking magnate Bill Ringsby for $350,000. Ringsby renamed the team the Rockets, after his company's long-haul trucks.
Playing at the Denver Auditorium Arena, the Rockets had early successes on the court, developing a solid fan base along the way. However, the team had a history of early playoff exits and failed to play in an ABA championship series. Early, they had a solid lineup led by Byron Beck and Larry Jones later by Beck and Ralph Simpson. Lonnie Wright of the American Football League's Denver Broncos signed with the Rockets during that first season and became the first player to play professional football and basketball in the same season. Wright played four seasons with Denver. Controversial rookie Spencer Haywood joined the team for the 1969–70 season. Haywood was one of the first players to turn pro before graduating from college, the NBA refused to let him play in the league. Haywood averaged nearly 30 points and 19.5 rebounds per game in his only ABA season, being named ABA MVP, ABA rookie of the year, as well as the All-Star Game MVP. The team finished 51–33, winning their division, before exiting the playoffs in the 2nd round.
Just before the start of the 1970–71 season, Haywood signed with the Seattle SuperSonics, jumping to the NBA. The team tumbled to a 30–54 record and attendance suffered. Ringsby sold the team to San Diego businessmen Frank Goldberg and Bud Fischer in 1972. In 1974, in anticipation of moving into the NBA, the new McNichols Arena, the franchise held a contest to choose a new team nickname, as "Rockets" was in use by the Houston Rockets; the winning choice was "Nuggets", in honor of the original Nuggets team in Denver from 1948–50, the last year as a charter member of the NBA. Their new logo was a miner "discovering" an ABA ball. Goldberg and Fischer in turn sold the team to a local investment group in 1976. With the drafting and signing of future hall of fame player David Thompson out of North Carolina State, Marvin Webster and the acquisitions of Dan Issel and Bobby Jones and with Larry Brown coaching, they had their best seasons in team history in their first two seasons as the Nuggets. Playing in the Denver Auditorium Arena for the last season the 1974–75 team went 65–16, including a 40–2 record at home.
However, a quick playoff exit followed. In 1975–76, playing at their new arena, the Nuggets edged the reigning champion Kentucky Colonels four games to three to make the 1976 ABA finals for the first time, they lost to the New York Nets and Julius Erving. They did not get a second chance to win an ABA league championship, as the ABA–NBA merger took place after the 1975–76 season; the Nuggets, Indiana Pacers and San Antonio Spurs were merged into the NBA. The Spirits of St. Louis and Kentucky Colonels were disbanded; the Nuggets and Nets had applied to join the NBA in 1975, but were forced to stay in the ABA by a court order. The Nuggets continued their strong play early on in the NBA, as they won division titles in their first two seasons in the league, missed a third by a single game. However, neither of these teams were successful in the postseason. To the other new NBA teams, the Nuggets were given many financial issues including a $2 million entry fee. Red McCombs bought the team in 1978. In 1979, Brown left the team.
It ended in 1981. Moe brought with him a "motion offense" philosophy, a style of play focusing on attempting to move the ball until someone got open. Moe was known for not paying as much attention to defense as his colleagues; the offense helped the team become competitive. During the 1980s
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit, Michigan. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and plays its home games at Little Caesars Arena; the team was founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons in 1941, a member of the National Basketball League where it won two NBL championships: in 1944 and 1945. The Pistons joined the Basketball Association of America in 1948; the NBL and BAA merged to become the NBA in 1949, the Pistons became part of the merged league. Since moving to Detroit in 1957, the Pistons have won three NBA championships: in 1989, 1990 and 2004; the Detroit Pistons franchise was founded as the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons, a National Basketball League team, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Owner Fred Zollner's Zollner Corporation was a foundry that manufactured pistons for car and locomotive engines; the Zollner Pistons were NBL champions in 1944 and 1945.
They won the World Professional Basketball Tournament in 1944, 1945 and 1946. In 1948, the team became the Fort Wayne Pistons. In 1949, Fred Zollner brokered the formation of the National Basketball Association from the BAA and the NBL at his kitchen table. There are suggestions that Pistons players conspired with gamblers to shave points and throw various games during the 1953–54 and 1954–55 seasons. In particular, there are accusations that the team may have intentionally lost the 1955 NBA Finals to the Syracuse Nationals. In the decisive Game 7, the Pistons led 41–24 early in the second quarter before the Nationals rallied to win the game; the Nationals won on a free throw by George King with twelve seconds left in the game. The closing moments included a palming turnover by the Pistons' George Yardley with 18 seconds left, a foul by Frank Brian with 12 seconds left that enabled King's winning free throw, a turnover by the Pistons' Andy Phillip in the final seconds which cost them a chance to attempt the game winning shot.
Though the Pistons enjoyed a solid local following, Fort Wayne's small size made it difficult for them to be profitable as other early NBA teams based in smaller cities started folding or relocating to larger markets. After the 1956–57 season, Zollner decided that Fort Wayne was too small to support an NBA team and announced the team would be playing elsewhere in the coming season, he settled on Detroit. Although it was the fifth largest city in the United States at the time, Detroit had not seen professional basketball in a decade, they lost the Detroit Eagles due to World War II, both the Detroit Gems of the NBL and the Detroit Falcons of the BAA in 1947, the Detroit Vagabond Kings in 1949. Zollner decided to keep the Pistons name, believing it made sense given Detroit's status as the center of the automobile industry; the Pistons played in Olympia Stadium for their first four seasons moved to Cobo Arena. During the 1960s and 1970s, the Pistons were characterized by strong individuals and weak teams.
Some of the superstars who played for the team included Dave DeBusschere, Dave Bing, Bob Lanier. At one point, DeBusschere was the youngest player-coach in the history of the NBA. A trade during the 1968–69 season sent DeBusschere to the New York Knicks for Howard Komives and Walt Bellamy, both of whom were in the stages of their careers. DeBusschere became a key player in leading the Knicks to two NBA titles. In 1974, Zollner sold the team to glass magnate Bill Davidson, who remained the team's principal owner until his death in 2009. While the Pistons did qualify for the postseason in four straight seasons from 1974 to 1977, they never had any real sustained success. In 1978, Davidson became displeased with Cobo Arena, but opted not to follow the Red Wings to the under-construction Joe Louis Arena. Instead, he moved the team to the suburb of Pontiac, where they played in the 82,000 capacity Silverdome, a structure built for professional football; the Pistons stumbled their way out of the 1970s and into the 1980s, beginning with a 16–66 record in 1979–80 and following up with a 21–61 record in 1980–81.
The 1979–80 team lost its last 14 games of the season which, when coupled with the seven losses at the start of the 1980–81 season, comprised a then-NBA record losing streak of 21 games. The franchise's fortunes began to turn in 1981, when they drafted point guard Isiah Thomas from Indiana University. In November 1981, the Pistons acquired Vinnie Johnson in a trade with the Seattle SuperSonics, they would acquire center Bill Laimbeer in a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers in February 1982. Another key move by the Pistons was the hiring of head coach Chuck Daly in 1983; the Pistons had a tough time moving up the NBA ladder. In 1984, the Pistons lost a tough five-game series to the underdog New York Knicks, 3–2. In the 1985 playoffs, Detroit won its first-round series and faced the defending champion Boston Celtics in the conference semifinals. Though Boston would prevail in six games, Detroit's surprise performance promised that a rivalry had begun. In the 1985 NBA draft, the team selected Joe Dumars 18th overall, a selection that would prove to be wise.
They acquired Rick Mahorn in a trade with the Washington Bullets. However, the team took a step backwards, losing in the first round of the 1986 playoffs to the more athletic Atlanta Hawks. After the series, changes were made in order to make the team more defensive-minded. Prior to the 1986–87 season, the Pistons acquired more key players: John Salley (
Bob Lanier (basketball)
Robert Jerry Lanier, Jr. is an American retired professional basketball player who played for the Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association. Lanier was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992. In his 14 NBA seasons, Lanier averaged 20.1 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.1 steals while shooting 51.4 percent from the field. He played in eight NBA All-Star Games, was named Most Valuable Player of the 1974 game, he has had his #16 jersey retired by both the Pistons and the Bucks and his #31 jersey retired by St. Bonaventure University. Lanier is an NBA ambassador. Robert Jerry Lanier Jr. was born on September 10, 1948, in Buffalo, New York, the son of Robert Sr. and Nannette Lanier. Growing up in Buffalo, Lanier was rejected in his basketball efforts. Trying out for his grammar school team, Lanier was told by a coach that his feet were too large for him to be a successful athlete. Although he was 6-foot-5 by age 16, Lanier was cut from the varsity basketball squad in his sophomore year at Bennett High by coach Nick Mogavero because he was too clumsy.
In his junior year, he was encouraged to try out again by new coach Fred Schwepker, who had Lanier in Biology class, Lanier tried out again. Lanier was named to the All-City team as a junior. In his senior year, he averaged 25.0 points and he earned All-Western New York State honors. Both years he led Bennett to Buffalo city titles. After his successes under coach Szwejbka, Lanier graduated in 1966. Lanier was rejected by his first college choice, because of his grades. But, he was recruited by more than 100 other schools and selected St. Bonaventure University, in Allegany, New York, with Coach Larry Weise.“There was recruiting competition, but the advantage I had, what I sold was that his parents could come watch him play,’’ Said Coach Weise. “He picked St. Bonaventure, his parents were at every game.’’ Lanier was a three-time Converse All-America selection, playing for coach Weise at St. Bonaventure. In 1970, he led the St. Bonaventure to the NCAA Final Four, he injured his knee near the end of the regional championship game in a collision with Villanova's Chris Ford and did not participate in St. Bonaventure's National Semifinal loss to Jacksonville University with center Artis Gilmore.
That year he was named Coach and Athlete Magazine player of the year, the ECAC Player of the Year. As a 6 ft 11 in sophomore in the 1967–68 season, after having played on the freshman team the previous year per NCAA rules at the time, Lanier made an immediate national impact, as he led the St. Bonaventure to an undefeated regular season and a no. 3 final poll ranking. Lanier averaged 15.6 rebounds. Against [, Lanier had 27 rebounds, leading St. Bonaventure to 94–78 victory. In the 23-team 1968 NCAA Tournament, Lanier led St. Bonaventure to a 102–93 victory over Boston College and coach Bob Cousy; the Bonies were defeated 91–72 by North Carolina and coach Dean Smith in the East Regional Semifinal, ending their undefeated season. Lanier had 32 points and 15 rebounds in the victory over Boston College and 23 points with 9 rebounds in the North Carolina loss. Lanier fouled out, scoring 18 points with 13 rebounds in the third-place East Region game, a 92–75 loss to Columbia. Lanier was named second-team All-American, behind Lew Alcindor at center.
In the 1968–69 season, St. Bonaventure finished 17–7 without any postseason invitations, after starting the season 3–5. Against Seton Hall, Lanier scored the single-game scoring record for St. Bonaventure. Lanier, averaged 15.6 rebounds in 24 games. Lanier was again named second-team All-American, behind Lew Alcindor at center. During his junior year, Lanier was approached by representatives of the American Basketball Association's New York Nets, who offered him $1.2 million to leave school early and join the ABA. However, following his father's advice, Lanier chose to remain in school. Lanier averaged 29.2 points and 16.0 rebounds as St. Bonaventure finished the 1969–70 regular season 25–1 and a no. 3 national ranking. In the 25-team 1970 NCAA Tournament, Lanier led St. Bonaventure to a 80–72 victory over Davidson College with 28 points and 15 rebounds. However, Lanier injured his knee near the end of the regional championship game in a collision with Villanova's Chris Ford, it was severe enough that he could not play in the Final Four and required surgery, the first of eight surgeries on Lanier's knees.
In the Final Four, the Bonnies lost to [NC State Wolfpack men's basketball with future Hall of Fame center Artis Gilmore. St. Bonaventure was whistled for 32 personal fouls and outscored 37–15 at the free throw line, in the 91–83 loss. In the third-place game, the Bonnies lost to NM State to finish the season 25–3."Every year at this time you start thinking about it and my players start thinking about it," reflected Coach Larry Weise at age 81. "We have a reunion every three, four years and it’s the same with them. It was a magical moment in no question. In our hearts, we knew we were good enough to win the championship.""I think I appreciate it more than my teammates," Lanier reflected on the Final Four in 1985, "because I had a basis for comparison. It wasn't the money, or who got the'numbers' like in the NBA. We weren't any big stars, it was a couple of guys from Buffalo and
United States