1.
Kinston, North Carolina
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Kinston is a city in Lenoir County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 21,677 at the 2010 Census and it has been the county seat of Lenoir County since its formation in 1791. Kinston is located in the plains region of Eastern North Carolina. In 2009, it was announced that Kinston was a recipient of the prestigious All-America City Award and this marks the second time in twenty years the city has won the title, the last time being in 1988. At the time of English settlement, the area was inhabited by the Neusiok Indians, preceding the historic tribe, indigenous peoples of a variety of cultures had lived in the area for thousands of years. Before the English colonists established the city, they called the area Atkins Bank, Atkins Bank was the site of farms, a tobacco warehouse, and a Church of England mission. Kinston was created by an act of the North Carolina General Assembly in December 1762 as Kingston, the bill to incorporate it was introduced by Richard Caswell, who made his home there and later served as the first Governor of the State of North Carolina from 1776 to 1780. After victory in the American Revolution, the renamed the city Kinston in 1784 to show the populations disavowal of royalty. In 1833, Kinston briefly became Caswell, in honor of governor Richard Caswell, commissioners appointed to design the town began to accept subscriptions for numbered lots. To keep a lot, subscribers were required to build homes of specific dimensions within three years or lose their rights to the property. The town was out with border streets named East, North. The two principal roads within these borders were named for King George and Queen Charlotte and they remain King and Queen Street to this day. Other streets were named in honor of Governor Dobbs and the commissioners, in December 1791, an act was passed in the General Assembly to abolish Dobbs County and form Lenoir and Glasgow counties. At that time, Kinston was designated the county seat for Lenoir County, throughout this period, Kinston was an unincorporated town. It finally became incorporated through an act of the legislature in January 1849, following incorporation, the population grew rapidly. In 1850, the population was estimated at 455 people, and just ten years later, there was also a factory for the production of shoes for the military located in Kinston. The Battle of Kinston took place in and around the city on December 14,1862, the Battle of Wyse Fork aka Battle of Southwest Creek also occurred very near the city. It was at this battle that the Confederate Ram Neuse was scuttled to avoid capture by Union troops
2.
Charlotte 49ers men's basketball
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The Charlotte 49ers mens basketball team represents the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in NCAA Division I basketball. The 49ers are a member of Conference USA, which they were a member of. Charlotte returned to C-USA in 2013 after having left the conference to join the Atlantic 10 Conference in 2005, the 49ers have also played in the Sun Belt Conference and were a member of the Metro Conference, which merged with the Great Midwest Conference to form Conference USA. The basketball team has spent the part of its short history in the shadow of the states four Atlantic Coast Conference teams. However, the 49ers have carved out a niche of their own, in their first appearance, in 1977, they advanced all the way to the Final Four—at the time, the deepest run for a first-time tournament participant. They have also earned regular and post-season championships in three different conferences, the 49ers current head coach is Mark Price, who took over on March 26,2015. Price succeeded Alan Major, who left the following the 2014-15 season. The 49ers play their games in Dale F. Halton Arena. UNC Charlotte first fielded a basketball program in 1965. Chancellor Bonnie Cone appointed Harvey Murphy, previously a physical education instructor and head of the education program at the university. Murphy coached the 49ers in the NAIA as a member of the Dixie Conference from 1965 through 1970, Bill Foster was hired to succeed Harvey Murphy after the 1969–1970 season as the 49ers moved from the NAIA to Division I as an independent. Foster notched two twenty win seasons in 1973–1974 and 1974–1975 before moving on to coach at Clemson, fosters lasting legacy on the program was bringing in two of the most notable players on the team which would advance to the 1977 Final Four, Cedric Maxwell and Melvin Watkins. After Bill Foster left for Clemson, Lee Rose was hired as the coach in 1975. Rose inherited a team coming off of two twenty win seasons and led them to the NIT championship game in his first year, the following season the 49ers became a charter member of the Sun Belt Conference. In their first year in the Sun Belt, the 49ers tallied what is still the best season in school history and they swept the regular season and tournament titles, earning the programs first NCAA Tournament berth. The ensuing NCAA tournament run is one of the most successful ever for a first-time participant. After beating Central Michigan in the first round 91–86, the 49ers dispatched Syracuse 81–59 to advance to the Elite Eight. The 49ers then took out heavily favored Michigan by a score of 75–68 to advance to the programs first, Charlotte would fall to eventual champions Marquette in the national semifinals 51–49
3.
1977 NBA draft
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The 1977 NBA draft was the 31st annual draft of the National Basketball Association. The draft was held on June 10,1977, before the 1977–78 season, in this draft,22 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U. S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Milwaukee Bucks won the flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Kansas City Kings. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in order of their win–loss record in the previous season. A player who had finished his college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his class graduated. Before the draft, six college underclassmen were declared eligible for selection under the hardship rule and these players had applied and gave evidence of financial hardship to the league, which granted them the right to start earning their living by starting their professional careers earlier. Prior to the start of the season, the Nets relocated to New Jersey, the draft consisted of 8 rounds comprising the selection of 170 players. Kent Benson from Indiana University was selected first overall by the Milwaukee Bucks, walter Davis from the University of North Carolina, who went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award in his first season, was selected fifth by the Phoenix Suns. Davis was also selected to both the All-NBA Team and the All-Star Game in his first season and he collected a total of six All-NBA Team selections and two All-Star Game selections. Three other players from this draft, second pick Otis Birdsong, third pick Marques Johnson, Jack Sikma, the eight pick, won the NBA championship with the Seattle SuperSonics in 1979 and was selected to seven consecutive All-Star Games. Rickey Green, the 16th pick, Norm Nixon, the 22nd pick, and Eddie Johnson, two players drafted went on to have coaching careers in the NBA, 33rd pick Eddie Jordan and 53rd pick John Kuester. Jordan has coached three teams in nine seasons, including five seasons with the Washington Wizards, in the seventh round, the New Orleans Jazz selected Lusia Harris, a female college basketball star from Delta State University, with the 137th pick. She became the second woman ever drafted by an NBA team, after Denise Long, however, the league voided the Warriors selection, thus Harris became the first and only woman ever officially drafted. Harris did not express an interest to play in the NBA and it was later revealed that she was pregnant at the time, which made her unable to attend the Jazzs training camp, even if she had wanted to. She never played in the NBA but she played briefly in the Womens Professional Basketball League. In 1992, she was inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame and became the first women ever inducted to the Hall of Fame and she was also part of the inaugural class of inductees of the Womens Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999
4.
Boston Celtics
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The Boston Celtics are an American professional basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association as a club of the leagues Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 and one of eight NBA teams to survive the leagues first decade, the Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which they share with the National Hockey League s Boston Bruins. The franchises 17 championships are the most of any NBA franchise, as a percentage of championships won, the Celtics are the most successful franchise to date in the major four traditional North American professional sports leagues. The Celtics have played the Lakers a record 12 times in the Finals, including their most recent appearances in 2008 and 2010, four Celtics players have won the NBA Most Valuable Player Award for an NBA record total of 10 MVP awards. Their mascot Lucky the Leprechaun is a nod to the teams Irish heritage, in 1950, the Celtics signed Chuck Cooper, becoming the first NBA franchise to draft a black player. The Celtics struggled during their years, until the hiring of coach Red Auerbach. In the franchises early days, Auerbach had no assistants, ran all the practices, did all the scouting—both of opposing teams and college draft prospects—and scheduled all the road trips. One of the first great players to join the Celtics was Bob Cousy, Cousy eventually became the property of the Chicago Stags, but when that franchise went bankrupt, Cousy went to the Celtics in a dispersal draft. After the 1955–56 season, Auerbach made a stunning trade and he sent perennial All-Star Ed Macauley to the St. Louis Hawks along with the draft rights to Cliff Hagan in exchange for the second overall pick in the draft. Auerbach also acquired Holy Cross standout, and 1957 NBA Rookie of the Year, Russell and Heinsohn worked extraordinarily well with Cousy, and they were the players around whom Auerbach would build the champion Celtics for more than a decade. With Bill Russell, the Celtics advanced to the NBA Finals and defeated the St. Louis Hawks in seven games, Russell went on to win 11 championships, making him the most decorated player in NBA history. In 1958, the Celtics again advanced to the NBA Finals, however, with the acquisition of K. C. Jones that year, the Celtics began a dynasty that would last for more than a decade. In 1959, the Celtics won the NBA Championship after sweeping the Minneapolis Lakers, during that time, the Celtics met the Lakers in the Finals five times, starting an intense and often bitter rivalry that has spanned generations. In 1964, the Celtics became the first NBA team to have an all African-American starting lineup. On December 26,1964, Willie Naulls replaced an injured Tommy Heinsohn, joining Tom Satch Sanders, K. C. Jones, Sam Jones, the Celtics defeated St. Louis 97–84. Boston won its next 11 games with Naulls starting in place of Heinsohn, the Celtics of the late-1950s–60s are widely considered as one of the most dominant teams of all time. Auerbach retired as coach after the 1965–66 season and Russell took over as player-coach, with his appointment, Russell also became the first African-American coach in any U. S. pro sport
5.
Small forward
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The small forward, also known as the three, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers. The small forward position is considered to be perhaps the most versatile of the five basketball positions. In the NBA, small forwards usually range from 66 to 69, the ideal position for a small forward would be between the key and three-point line. Many small forwards in professional basketball, however, are prolific scorers, therefore, accurate foul shooting is an imperative skill for small forwards, many of whom record a large portion of their points at the foul line. Small forwards who are defensive specialists are very versatile as they can often guard multiple positions using their size, speed, and strength such as Kawhi Leonard and Paul George
6.
Los Angeles Clippers
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The Los Angeles Clippers, often abbreviated as the LA Clippers, are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association as a club of the leagues Western Conference Pacific Division. The franchise was founded in 1970 as the Buffalo Braves, one of three teams to join the NBA that year. The Braves moved from Buffalo, New York to San Diego in 1978, in 1984, the Clippers moved to Los Angeles. Through much of its history, the failed to see significant regular season or playoff success. The Clippers fortunes turned in the early 2010s with the acquisition of core players Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, and Chris Paul. In 2013, the franchise won its first division title, as the made the playoffs for the ninth time in franchise history. They repeated as champions in 2014. They played their games at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, along with another Buffalo team that would begin play that year. After two bad seasons, the Braves fortunes started to change under coach Jack Ramsay and star forward/center Bob McAdoo, McAdoo led the NBA in scoring three consecutive seasons and was named the leagues MVP in the 1974–75 season. The Braves qualified for the three times in a row, losing thrice to the eventual Eastern Conference champions. As a result, after an attempt to sell the team to an owner who intended to move it to South Florida. Brown, Jr. who decimated the roster, traded away all of its stars. Eventually in 1978, Brown dealt with Celtics owner Irv Levin so they would trade franchise ownerships, southern California resident Levin then decided to move the Braves to San Diego, something the league would have never allowed him to do with the Celtics. In 1978, San Diego welcomed the relocation of the Buffalo Braves franchise because the city had lost their Rockets to Houston seven years earlier, when the Clippers moved to Los Angeles in 1984, they kept their nickname. Playing at the San Diego Sports Arena, the Clippers posted a record of 43–39 in their first season in California under new head coach Gene Shue and it would be the Clippers last winning season for 13 years. It was also in that first season in southern California that long-time announcer Ralph Lawler began his association with the club. The 1979–80 season saw the Clippers begin to struggle despite adding center Bill Walton, Walton missed 68 games due to foot injuries
7.
Houston Rockets
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The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association, as a club of the leagues Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its games at the Toyota Center, located in downtown Houston. The Rockets have won two NBA championships and four Western Conference titles, the team was established as the San Diego Rockets, an expansion team originally based in San Diego, in 1967. In 1971, the Rockets moved to Houston, the Rockets won only 15 games in their debut season as a franchise in 1967. In the 1968 NBA draft, the Rockets, picking first overall, selected power forward Elvin Hayes, the Rockets did not finish a season with a winning record until the 1976–77 season, when they traded for center Moses Malone. Malone went on to win the NBA Most Valuable Player award twice and he also led the Rockets to the NBA Finals in 1981 where they were defeated in six games by the Boston Celtics, led by Larry Bird and future Rockets coach Kevin McHale. In 1984, the Rockets drafted center Hakeem Olajuwon, who would be paired with 7 feet 4 inches Ralph Sampson, nicknamed the Twin Towers, they led the team to the 1986 NBA Finals—the second NBA Finals appearance in franchise history—where Houston was again defeated by the Boston Celtics. The Rockets continued to reach the playoffs throughout the 1980s, Rudy Tomjanovich took over as head coach midway through the 1991–92 season, ushering in the most successful period in franchise history. Olajuwon-led Rockets went to the 1994 NBA Finals and won franchises first championship against Patrick Ewing, Houston became the lowest-seeded team in NBA history to win the title. After Yaos early retirement in 2011, the Rockets entered a period of rebuilding, the acquisition of franchise player James Harden in 2012 has launched the Rockets back into championship contention in the mid-2010s. The Rockets, under general manager Daryl Morey, are notable for popularizing the use of advanced statistical analytics in player acquisitions and style of play. The Rockets were founded in 1967 in San Diego by Robert Breitbard, Breitbard brought in Jack McMahon, then coach of the Cincinnati Royals, to serve as the Rockets coach and general manager. The Rockets lost 67 games in their season, which was an NBA record for losses in a season at the time. Because of the low performance and attendance, Breitbard looked to sell the team, and in 1971, Texas Sports Investments bought the franchise for $5.6 million, and moved the team to Houston. The franchise became the first NBA team in Texas, and the nickname Rockets took on greater relevance after the move. It was also around this time that the Rockets would unveil their classic yellow and red logo, winter left soon after, being fired in January 1973 following a ten-game losing streak, and was replaced by Johnny Egan. Egan led the Rockets back to the playoffs in 1975, where the franchise also managed to win their first round against the New York Knicks, subsequently losing to the veteran Boston Celtics in 5 games
8.
Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award
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The Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award is an annual National Basketball Association award given since the 1969 NBA Finals. The award is decided by a panel of nine media members, the person with the highest votes wins the award. In at least one NBA Finals, fans balloting on NBA. com accounted for the tenth vote, the award was originally a black trophy with a gold basketball-shaped sphere at the top, similar to the Larry OBrien Trophy, until a new trophy was introduced in 2005. Since its inception, the award has given to 30 different players. Michael Jordan is a record six-time award winner, magic Johnson, Shaquille ONeal, Tim Duncan and LeBron James won the award three times in their careers. Jordan and ONeal are the players to win the award in three consecutive seasons. Johnson is the only ever to win the award, as well as the youngest at 20 years old. Andre Iguodala is the winner to have not started every game in the series. Jerry West, the first ever awardee, is the person to win the award while being on the losing team in the NBA Finals. Willis Reed, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Hakeem Olajuwon, Olajuwon, Bryant, and James have won the award in two consecutive seasons. Abdul-Jabbar and James are the players to win the award for two different teams. Olajuwon of Nigeria, who became a naturalized U. S. citizen in 1993, Tony Parker of France, cedric Maxwell is the only Finals MVP winner eligible for the Hall of Fame who has not been voted in. NBA Most Valuable Player Award NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award General Specific
9.
United Press International
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At its peak, it had more than 6,000 media subscribers. It was headed by Hugh Baillie from 1935 to 1955, at the time of his retirement, UP had 2,900 clients in the United States, and 1,500 abroad. In 1958 it became United Press International after absorbing the International News Service, at its peak, UPI had more than 2,000 full-time employees, and 200 news bureaus in 92 countries, it had more than 6,000 media subscribers. With the rising popularity of news, the business of UPI began to decline as the circulation of afternoon newspapers, its chief client category. Its decline accelerated after the 1982 sale of UPI by the Scripps company, the E. W. Scripps Company controlled United Press until its absorption of William Randolph Hearsts smaller competing agency, INS, in 1958 to form UPI. With the Hearst Corporation as a minority partner, UPI continued under Scripps management until 1982, since its sale in 1982, UPI has changed ownership several times and was twice in Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. With each change in ownership came deeper service and staff cutbacks and changes of focus, since the 1999 sale of its broadcast client list to its one-time major rival, the AP, UPI has concentrated on smaller information market niches. It no longer services media organizations in a major way, in 2000, UPI was purchased by News World Communications, an international news media company founded in 1976 by Unification Church leader Sun Myung Moon. It now maintains a website and photo service and electronically publishes several information product packages. It also sells a premium service, which has deeper coverage and analysis of emerging threats, the security industry, UPIs content is presented in text, video and photo formats, in the English, Spanish and Arabic languages. UPIs main office is in the Miami metropolitan area and it maintains office locations in five countries and uses freelance journalists in other major cities. Beginning with the Cleveland Press, publisher E. W. Scripps created the first chain of newspapers in the United States, Scripps also hoped to make a profit from selling that news to papers owned by others. At that time and until World War II, most newspapers relied on news agencies for stories outside their geographic areas. Despite strong newspaper industry opposition, UP started to sell news to the new and competitive radio medium in 1935, years before competitor AP, controlled by the newspaper industry, Scripps United Press was considered a scrappy alternative news source to the AP. UP reporters were called Unipressers and were noted for their aggressive and competitive streak. UP became a training ground for generations of journalists. Walter Cronkite, who started with United Press in Kansas City, gained fame for his coverage of World War II in Europe and that was part of the spirit. But we knew we could do a good job despite that
10.
Rebound (basketball)
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In basketball, a rebound, colloquially referred to as a board, is a statistic awarded to a player who retrieves the ball after a missed field goal or free throw. Rebounds are also given to a player who tips in a shot on his teams offensive end. Rebounds in basketball are a part in the game, as all possessions change after a shot is successfully made. A rebound can be grabbed by either a player or a defensive player. The majority of rebounds are defensive because the team on defense tends to be in position to recover missed shots. Offensive rebounds give the team another opportunity to score whether right away or by resetting the offense. A block is not considered a rebound, a ball does not need to actually rebound off the rim or backboard for a rebound to be credited. Rebounds are credited after any missed shot, including air balls, if a player takes a shot and misses and the ball bounces on the ground before someone picks it up, then the person who picks up the ball is credited for a rebound. Rebounds are credited to the first player that gains possession of the ball or to the player that successfully deflects the ball into the basket for a score. A rebound is credited to a team when it gains possession of the ball after any missed shot that is not cleared by a single player, great rebounders tend to be tall and strong. Because height is so important, most rebounds are made by centers and power forwards, the lack of height can sometimes be compensated by the strength to box out taller players away from the ball to capture the rebound. For example, Charles Barkley once led the league in rebounding despite usually being much shorter than his counterparts, also, some shorter guards can be excellent rebounders as well such as point guard Jason Kidd who led the New Jersey Nets in rebounding for several years. Great rebounders must also have a sense of timing and positioning. Great leaping ability is an important asset, but not absolutely necessary, players such as Larry Bird and Moses Malone were excellent rebounders, but were never known for their leaping ability. Bird has stated, Most rebounds are taken below the rim, the action can also be called blocking out. A team can be boxed out by players using this technique to stop the other team from rebounding. Because fighting for a rebound can be physical, rebounding is often regarded as grunt work or a hustle play. Overly aggressive boxing out or preventing being boxed out can lead to personal fouls, statistics of a players rebounds per game or rebounding average measure a players rebounding effectiveness by dividing the number of rebounds by the number of games played
11.
Basketball
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Basketball is a non-contact team sport played on a rectangular court by two teams of five players each. The objective is to shoot a ball through a hoop 18 inches in diameter and 10 feet high that is mounted to a backboard at each end of the court. The game was invented in 1891 by Dr. James Naismith, a team can score a field goal by shooting the ball through the basket being defended by the opposition team during regular play. A field goal scores three points for the team if the player shoots from behind the three-point line. A team can also score via free throws, which are worth one point, the team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but additional time is mandated when the score is tied at the end of regulation. The ball can be advanced on the court by passing it to a teammate and it is a violation to lift, or drag, ones pivot foot without dribbling the ball, to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands then resume dribbling. The game has many techniques for displaying skill—ball-handling, shooting, passing, dribbling, dunking, shot-blocking. The point guard directs the on court action of the team, implementing the coachs game plan, Basketball is one of the worlds most popular and widely viewed sports. Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as the Euroleague, the FIBA Basketball World Cup attracts the top national teams from around the world. Each continent hosts regional competitions for teams, like EuroBasket. The FIBA Womens Basketball World Cup features the top womens basketball teams from continental championships. The main North American league is the WNBA, whereas the EuroLeague Women has been dominated by teams from the Russian Womens Basketball Premier League, in early December 1891, Canadian Dr. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied, after rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums, he wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto a 10-foot elevated track. Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball and these laces could cause bounce passes and dribbling to be unpredictable. Eventually a lace-free ball construction method was invented, and this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith, dribbling was not part of the original game except for the bounce pass to teammates. Passing the ball was the means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the shape of early balls. Dribbling only became a part of the game around the 1950s
12.
Radio broadcasting
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Radio broadcasting is a unidirectional wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a radio format. Audio broadcasting also can be done via radio, local wire television networks, satellite radio. The signal types can be either analog audio or digital audio, the earliest radio stations were simply radiotelegraphy systems and did not carry audio. For audio broadcasts to be possible, electronic detection and amplification devices had to be incorporated, the thermionic valve was invented in 1904 by the English physicist John Ambrose Fleming. He developed a device he called an oscillation valve, the heated filament, or cathode, was capable of thermionic emission of electrons that would flow to the plate when it was at a higher voltage. Electrons, however, could not pass in the direction because the plate was not heated. Later known as the Fleming valve, it could be used as a rectifier of alternating current and this greatly improved the crystal set which rectified the radio signal using an early solid-state diode based on a crystal and a so-called cats whisker. However, what was required was an amplifier. The triode was patented on March 4,1906, by the Austrian Robert von Lieben independent from that, on October 25,1906 and it wasnt put to practical use until 1912 when its amplifying ability became recognized by researchers. By about 1920, valve technology had matured to the point where radio broadcasting was quickly becoming viable, however, an early audio transmission that could be termed a broadcast may have occurred on Christmas Eve in 1906 by Reginald Fessenden, although this is disputed. Charles Herrold started broadcasting in California in 1909 and was carrying audio by the next year, in The Hague, the Netherlands, PCGG started broadcasting on November 6,1919, making it, arguably the first commercial broadcasting station. In 1916, Frank Conrad, an engineer employed at the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, began broadcasting from his Wilkinsburg. Later, the station was moved to the top of the Westinghouse factory building in East Pittsburgh, Westinghouse relaunched the station as KDKA on November 2,1920, as the first commercially licensed radio station in America. The commercial broadcasting designation came from the type of broadcast license, the first licensed broadcast in the United States came from KDKA itself, the results of the Harding/Cox Presidential Election. In 1920, wireless broadcasts for entertainment began in the UK from the Marconi Research Centre 2MT at Writtle near Chelmsford, England. A famous broadcast from Marconis New Street Works factory in Chelmsford was made by the famous soprano Dame Nellie Melba on 15 June 1920 and she was the first artist of international renown to participate in direct radio broadcasts. The 2MT station began to broadcast regular entertainment in 1922, the BBC was amalgamated in 1922 and received a Royal Charter in 1926, making it the first national broadcaster in the world, followed by Czech Radio and other European broadcasters in 1923
13.
National Basketball Association
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The National Basketball Association is the major mens professional basketball league in North America, and is widely considered to be the premier mens professional basketball league in the world. It has 30 teams, and is a member of USA Basketball. The NBA is one of the four professional sports leagues in the United States. NBA players are the worlds best paid athletes by average annual salary per player, the league was founded in New York City on June 6,1946, as the Basketball Association of America. The league adopted the name National Basketball Association on August 3,1949, the leagues several international as well as individual team offices are directed out of its head offices located in the Olympic Tower at 645 Fifth Avenue in New York City. NBA Entertainment and NBA TV studios are directed out of offices located in Secaucus, the Basketball Association of America was founded in 1946 by owners of the major ice hockey arenas in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Canada. On November 1,1946, in Toronto, Canada, the Toronto Huskies hosted the New York Knickerbockers at Maple Leaf Gardens, the first basket was made by Ossie Schectman of the Knickerbockers. During its early years, the quality of play in the BAA was not significantly better than in competing leagues or among leading independent clubs such as the Harlem Globetrotters. For instance, the 1948 ABL finalist Baltimore Bullets moved to the BAA and won that leagues 1948 title, Following the 1948–49 season, the BAA took in the remainder of the NBL, Syracuse, Anderson, Tri-Cities, Sheboygan, Denver, and Waterloo. The new league had seventeen franchises located in a mix of large and small cities, as well as arenas and smaller gymnasiums. The process of contraction saw the leagues smaller-city franchises move to larger cities, the Hawks shifted from the Tri-Cities to Milwaukee in 1951, and then to St. Louis in 1955. The Rochester Royals moved from Rochester, New York, to Cincinnati in 1957, japanese-American Wataru Misaka broke the NBA color barrier in the 1947–48 season when he played for the New York Knicks. He remained the only player in league history prior to the first African-American, Harold Hunter. During this period, the Minneapolis Lakers, led by center George Mikan, won five NBA Championships, to encourage shooting and discourage stalling, the league introduced the 24-second shot clock in 1954. If a team does not attempt to score a goal within 24 seconds of obtaining the ball, play is stopped. In 1957, rookie center Bill Russell joined the Boston Celtics, who already featured guard Bob Cousy and coach Red Auerbach, and went on to lead the club to eleven NBA titles in thirteen seasons. Center Wilt Chamberlain entered the league with the Warriors in 1959 and became a dominant individual star of the 1960s, russells rivalry with Chamberlain became one of the greatest rivalries in the history of American team sports. The 1960s were dominated by the Celtics, led by Russell, Bob Cousy and coach Red Auerbach, Boston won eight straight championships in the NBA from 1959 to 1966
14.
Basketball positions
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The five basketball positions normally employed by organized basketball teams are the point guard, the shooting guard, the small forward, the power forward, and the center. While these position names are used, most modern teams use a point guard. The rules of basketball do not mandate them, and they are not used. Typically, the point guard is the leader of the team when on the court and this position requires substantial ball handling skills and the ability to facilitate the team during a play. The shooting guard, as the name implies, is often the best shooter and they are probably capable of shooting accurately from longer distances. Generally, they also have good ball-handling skills, the small forward often has an aggressive approach to the basket when handling the ball. The center is typically the larger of the two, during the 1980s, as team strategy evolved, more specialized roles developed, resulting in the five position designations utilized today. Team strategy and available personnel, however, still dictates the positions used by a particular team, for example, the Dribble drive motion offense and the Princeton offense utilize four interchangeable guards and one center. The point guard, also known as the one, is typically the teams best ball handler and passer, therefore, they often lead their team in assists and steals. They are often quick and are able to hit shots either outside the three-point line or in the paint, point guards are looked upon as the floor general or the coach on the floor. They should study the game and game film to be able to recognize the weaknesses of the defense, good point guards increase team efficiency and generally have a high number of assists. They are often referred to as dribblers or play-makers, in the NBA, point guards are usually the shortest players on the team and are mostly 6 feet 5 inches or shorter. The shooting guard is known as the two or the off guard. Along with the forward, a shooting guard is often referred to as a wing because of its use in common positioning tactics. As the name suggests, most shooting guards are good shooters from three-point range, besides being able to shoot the ball, shooting guards tend to have good ball handling skills and the ability to drive the ball to the basket, often creating their own shots off the dribble. A versatile shooting guard will have good passing skills, allowing them to point guard responsibilities known as combo guards. In the NBA, shooting guards usually range from 6 feet 4 inches to 6 feet 7 inches, the small forward is considered to be perhaps the most versatile of the main five basketball positions. Versatility is key for small forwards because of the nature of their role and this is why the small forward and shooting guard positions are often interchangeable and referred to as wings
15.
Center (basketball)
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The center, also known as the five or the big man, is one of the five positions in a regular basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a deal of strength. The tallest player to ever be drafted in the NBA was the 78 Yasutaka Okayama from Japan, the tallest players to ever play in the NBA, at 77, are centers Gheorghe Mureșan and Manute Bol. Standing at 72, Margo Dydek is the tallest player to have played in the WNBA. The center is considered a component for a successful team. But recently, the NBA has turned into a point guard league, great centers have been the foundation for most of the dynasties in both the NBA and NCAA. In the 1960s, Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain further transformed basketball by combining height with a level of athleticism than previous centers. Following the retirement of George Mikan, the rivalry of the two big men came to dominate the NBA, many of the records set by these two players have endured today. Most notably, Chamberlain and Russell hold the top eighteen season averages for rebounds, Bill Russell led the University of San Francisco to two consecutive NCAA Championships. He joined the Boston Celtics and helped make them one of the greatest dynasties in NBA history, Russell revolutionized defensive strategy with his shot-blocking, rebounding and physical man-to-man defense. His principal rival, Wilt Chamberlain, listed at 71,275 pounds, Chamberlain played college ball for the Kansas Jayhawks, leading them to the 1957 title game against the North Carolina Tar Heels. Although the Jayhawks lost by one point in overtime, Chamberlain was named the tournaments Most Outstanding Player. He also won seven scoring titles, eleven rebounding titles, and four regular season Most Valuable Player awards, including the distinction, in 1960, stronger than any player of his era, he was usually capable of scoring and rebounding at will. Most notably, Chamberlain is the player in NBA history to average more than 50 points in a season. He also holds the NBAs all-time records for rebounding average, rebounds in a single game, in contrast to the Celtics dynasty of the 1960s, the 1970s were a decade of parity in the NBA, with eight different champions and no back-to-back winners. At the college level, the UCLA Bruins, under Coach John Wooden, built the greatest dynasty in NCAA basketball history, UCLA had already won two consecutive titles in 1964 and 1965 with teams that pressed and emphasized guard play. After not winning in 1966, Woodens teams changed their style when Lew Alcindor became eligible and he led UCLA to three championships-in 1967,68 and 69-while winning the first Naismith College Player of the Year Award. During his college career, the NCAA enacted a ban on dunking primarily because of Alcindors dominant use of the shot
16.
Charlotte 49ers
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The Charlotte 49ers represent the NCAA Division I sports teams of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. A founding member of Conference USA, Charlotte rejoined the conference in 2013 after spending eight years as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference, previously, Charlotte was a charter member of the Sun Belt Conference and was a member of the Metro Conference. A member of Conference USA, Charlotte currently sponsors teams in nine mens and eight womens NCAA sanctioned sports, notes The athletics department officially changed its name to simply Charlotte in 2000. The schools identity suffered from years of constant confusion before then, but, frankly, we are tired of being confused with other institutions or having our own identity misused and misconstrued. Its harder to make a name for yourself, when your name keeps getting confused, not only will this logo simplify matters, but it gives the program an exciting new look that better captures our essence. The official school name remains the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, the fact that the site of the U. S. s first major gold discovery, Reeds Gold Mine, is located nearby may also be a contributing factor to the nickname. That the Universitys Main Campus front entrance is located on North Carolina Highway 49 is pure coincidence, prior to the 49ers moniker, the athletic teams were known as the Owls due to CCUNCs beginnings as a night school. Charlotte 49ers Fight Song Hail, Char-lotte 49ers, proud as we can be, Well stand to fight for the green and white Til we win the vic-to-ry, GO NINERS. We pledge our trust in you And wave your colors high, the primary athletics logo contains a miners hand and pick-axe as a reference to the Gold Rush. The arm of the Miner forms a C representing Charlotte and this logo is frequently used to replace the C in Charlotte when referenced to the university or the athletics programs. Three secondary logos are also present, The C as a logo, a 4-9-e-r-s word mark. In addition, each sport has a logo, consisting of the C with the specific icon contained inside. The new logos replaced the face of a grizzly old Miner, Charlotte has had its fair share of intense rivalries. In mens basketball, one of their most heated rivalries was with Conference USA rival Cincinnati, from 1995-96 to 2004-05, after which Charlotte and Cincinnati left C-USA, Charlotte managed to upset Cincinnati teams ranked #3, #8, #18, #20 in the country. In what became known as the Cincinnati Incident, a brawl broke out between Cincinnati and the Charlotte student section, when a Cincinnati player threw the basketball into the stands and this led to the creation of a buffer zone being implemented behind the visiting teams bench. They get up for this more than any other. Charlottes 29-year mens basketball rivalry with the Davidson Wildcats sees Mecklenburg Countys only two Division I schools go head-to-head for the Hornets Nest Trophy, due to a scheduling conflict, the series was on hiatus until the 2010-11 season. During Charlottes move to the Atlantic 10, Charlotte has also had some newer non-conference rivals, such as Tennessee Volunteers, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Clemson Tigers and baseball rivals North Carolina Tar Heels, Wake Forest Demon Deacons and the Duke Blue Devils
17.
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
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The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, also known as UNC Charlotte, UNCC, or Charlotte, is a public research university located in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. UNC Charlotte has three campuses, Charlotte Research Institute Campus, Center City Campus, and the main campus, the main campus sits on 1,000 wooded acres with approximately 85 buildings about 8 miles from Uptown Charlotte. The university is the largest institution of education in the Charlotte region. The city of Charlotte had sought a public university since 1871 but was never able to sustain one, for years, the nearest state-supported university was 90 miles away. The city submitted a bid in the late 1880s for what would become North Carolina State University, in 1946, the city sought a state-run medical school, instead, the state expanded the existing two-year school at UNC-Chapel Hill. On September 23,1946, the State of North Carolina opened the Charlotte Center of the University of North Carolina with an enrollment of 278 students and it was founded to serve the education needs of returning World War II veterans. Like many of the United States post–World War II universities, it owes its inception to the G. I, bill and its effects on public education. In 1949, when the state began closing the centers, the Charlotte Center was taken over by the city district and became Charlotte College. It was first funded by student tuition payments, then by local property taxes, classes were held at Central High School near uptown Charlotte, but by 1957, enrollment increased to 492, and the schools leaders began searching for a permanent site for the campus. They decided on a 250-acre tract of land northeast of the city near the Cabarrus County border, the college became state-supported in 1958 upon joining the newly formed North Carolina Community College System and moved to its current location in 1961. In 1963, Charlotte College became a four-year college and it adopted its current name July 1,1965, upon becoming part of the Consolidated University of North Carolina, since 1972 called the University of North Carolina. In 1969, the university offering programs leading to masters degrees. In 1992, it was authorized to offer programs leading to doctoral degrees, the University operates several campuses in Charlotte. The Main Campus is situated on just under 1,000 acres of rolling land between U. S. Route 29 and N. C, highway 49, about 10 miles from Uptown Charlotte in the University City neighborhood. The campus is self-contained, meaning that no major roads run through the campus, the campus boasts several man-made lakes, and is heavily wooded. Near the center of campus are two gardens that attract over 300,000 visitors a year, starting in 2014, these buildings are being renovated to todays standards. Under the campus third chancellor, James Woodward, the campus underwent major changes which continue today, the newest buildings, funded from state bonds, are being constructed in brick with neoclassical architecture. Concrete and asphalt sidewalks have largely replaced by brick
18.
Boston
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Boston is the capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. Boston is also the seat of Suffolk County, although the county government was disbanded on July 1,1999. The city proper covers 48 square miles with a population of 667,137 in 2015, making it the largest city in New England. Alternately, as a Combined Statistical Area, this wider commuting region is home to some 8.1 million people, One of the oldest cities in the United States, Boston was founded on the Shawmut Peninsula in 1630 by Puritan settlers from England. It was the scene of several key events of the American Revolution, such as the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston. Upon U. S. independence from Great Britain, it continued to be an important port and manufacturing hub as well as a center for education, through land reclamation and municipal annexation, Boston has expanded beyond the original peninsula. Its rich history attracts many tourists, with Faneuil Hall alone drawing over 20 million visitors per year, Bostons many firsts include the United States first public school, Boston Latin School, first subway system, the Tremont Street Subway, and first public park, Boston Common. Bostons economic base also includes finance, professional and business services, biotechnology, information technology, the city has one of the highest costs of living in the United States as it has undergone gentrification, though it remains high on world livability rankings. Bostons early European settlers had first called the area Trimountaine but later renamed it Boston after Boston, Lincolnshire, England, the renaming on September 7,1630 was by Puritan colonists from England who had moved over from Charlestown earlier that year in quest of fresh water. Their settlement was limited to the Shawmut Peninsula, at that time surrounded by the Massachusetts Bay and Charles River. The peninsula is thought to have been inhabited as early as 5000 BC, in 1629, the Massachusetts Bay Colonys first governor John Winthrop led the signing of the Cambridge Agreement, a key founding document of the city. Puritan ethics and their focus on education influenced its early history, over the next 130 years, the city participated in four French and Indian Wars, until the British defeated the French and their Indian allies in North America. Boston was the largest town in British America until Philadelphia grew larger in the mid-18th century, Bostons harbor activity was significantly curtailed by the Embargo Act of 1807 and the War of 1812. Foreign trade returned after these hostilities, but Bostons merchants had found alternatives for their investments in the interim. Manufacturing became an important component of the economy, and the citys industrial manufacturing overtook international trade in economic importance by the mid-19th century. Boston remained one of the nations largest manufacturing centers until the early 20th century, a network of small rivers bordering the city and connecting it to the surrounding region facilitated shipment of goods and led to a proliferation of mills and factories. Later, a network of railroads furthered the regions industry. Boston was a port of the Atlantic triangular slave trade in the New England colonies
19.
Larry Bird
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Larry Joe Bird is an American professional basketball executive, former coach and former player, currently serving as president of the Indiana Pacers in the National Basketball Association. Since retiring as a player for the Boston Celtics, he has been a mainstay in the Indiana Pacers organization, Bird was a 12-time NBA All-Star and was named the leagues Most Valuable Player three consecutive times. He played his professional career for Boston, winning three NBA championships and two NBA Finals MVP awards. He was a member of the 1992 United States mens Olympic basketball team won the gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics. Bird was voted to the NBAs 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996 and he served as head coach of the Indiana Pacers from 1997 to 2000. In 2003, he assumed the role of president of operations for the Pacers. After a year away from the position, he announced he would return to the Pacers as president of operations in 2013. In addition to being part of the 50–40–90 club, he is the person in NBA history to be named Most Valuable Player, Coach of the Year. Bird was born in West Baden Springs, Indiana to Georgia and Claude Joseph Joe Bird and he was raised in nearby French Lick, where his mother worked two jobs to support Larry and his five siblings. Bird has said that being poor as a child still motivates him to this day, Georgia and Joe divorced when Larry was in high school, and Joe committed suicide about a year later. Bird received a scholarship to college basketball for the Indiana University Hoosiers in 1974. After less than a month on campus he dropped out of school and he returned to French Lick, enrolling at Northwood Institute in nearby West Baden, and working municipal jobs for a year before enrolling at Indiana State University in Terre Haute in 1975. Indiana State would lose the game 75–64, with Bird scoring 19 points, despite failing to win the championship, Bird earned numerous year-end awards and honors for his outstanding play, including the Naismith College Player of the Year Award. For his college career, he averaged 30.3 points,13.3 rebounds, Bird also appeared in one game for the baseball team, going 1-for-2 with 2 RBI. Bird was selected by the Boston Celtics with the sixth pick in the 1978 NBA draft. He did not sign with the Celtics immediately, instead, he played out his season at Indiana State. After protracted negotiations, Bird inked a five-year, $3.25 million contract with the team, shortly afterwards, NBA draft eligibility rules were changed to prevent teams from drafting players before they were ready to sign, a rule known as the Bird Collegiate Rule. Bird immediately transformed the Celtics into a contender, helping them improve their win total by 32 games from the year before he was drafted
20.
Power forward (basketball)
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The power forward, also known as the four, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. It has also referred to as the post position. Power forwards play a similar to that of center in what is called the post or low blocks. They typically play offensively with their backs towards the basket and position themselves defensively under the basket in a defense or against the opposing power forward in man-to-man defense. The power forward position entails a variety of responsibilities, one of which is rebounding, many power forwards are noted for their mid-range jump-shot, and several players have become very accurate from 12 to 18 feet. Earlier, these skills were more typically exhibited in the European style of play, some power forwards, known as stretch fours, have since extended their shooting range to three-point field goals. In the NBA, power forwards usually range from 68 to 611, despite the averages, a variety of players fit tweener roles which finds them in the small forward and/or center position depending upon matchups and coaching decisions. Some natural power forwards often play the position and have the skills
21.
Los Angeles Lakers
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The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association, as a club of the leagues Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers are one of the most successful teams in the history of the NBA, as of 2015, the Lakers are the second most valuable franchise in the NBA according to Forbes, having an estimated value of $2.7 billion. The franchise began with the 1947 purchase of a disbanded team, the new team began playing in Minneapolis, calling themselves the Minneapolis Lakers in honor of the states nickname, Land of 10,000 Lakes. The team was propelled by center George Mikan, who is described by the NBAs official website as the leagues first superstar, after struggling financially in the late 1950s following Mikans retirement, they relocated to Los Angeles before the 1960–61 season. Led by Hall of Famers Elgin Baylor and Jerry West, Los Angeles made the NBA Finals six times in the 1960s, but lost each series to the Boston Celtics, beginning their long and storied rivalry. After the retirement of West and Chamberlain, the team acquired another center, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who had won multiple MVP awards and this team featured Hall of Famers in Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar, and James Worthy, and a Hall of Fame coach, Pat Riley. After Abdul-Jabbar and Johnsons retirement, the team struggled in the early 1990s before acquiring Shaquille ONeal, led by ONeal, Bryant, and another Hall of Fame coach, Phil Jackson, Los Angeles won three consecutive titles between 2000 to 2002, securing the franchise its second three-peat. After losing both the 2004 and 2008 NBA Finals, the Lakers won two championships by defeating the Orlando Magic in 2009 and Boston in 2010. The Lakers hold the record for NBAs longest winning streak,33 straight games,21 Hall of Famers have played for Los Angeles, while four have coached the team. Four Lakers—Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, ONeal, and Bryant—have won the NBA MVP Award for a total of eight awards, Minneapolis sportswriter Sid Hartman played a key behind the scenes role in helping put together the deal and later the team. Inspired by Minnesotas nickname, Land of 10,000 Lakes, Hartman helped them hire John Kundla from College of St. Thomas, to be their first head coach, by meeting with him and selling him on the team. The Lakers had a roster which featured forward Jim Pollard, playmaker Herm Schaefer, and center George Mikan. In their first season, they led the league with a 43–17 record, in 1948, the Lakers moved from the NBL to the Basketball Association of America, and Mikans 28.3 point per game scoring average set a BAA record. In the 1949 BAA Finals they won the championship, beating the Washington Capitols four games to two, the following season, the team improved to 51–17, repeating as champions. In the 1950–51 season, Mikan won his third straight scoring title at 28.4 ppg, one of those games, a 19–18 loss against the Fort Wayne Pistons, became infamous as the lowest scoring game in NBA history. In the playoffs, they defeated the Indianapolis Olympians in three games but lost to the Rochester Royals in the next round, during the 1951–52 season, the Lakers won 40 games, finishing second in their division. They faced the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals, which won in seven games
22.
James Worthy
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James Ager Worthy is an American retired Hall of Fame professional basketball player. A former basketball commentator, television host, and analyst, he now works as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association. Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, Big Game James was a seven-time NBA All-Star, three-time NBA champion and the 1988 NBA Finals MVP. A standout at the University of North Carolina, the 6 ft 9 in small forward shared College Player of the Year honors en route to leading the Tar Heels to the 1982 NCAA Championship. Named the tournaments Most Outstanding Player, he was #1 pick of the 1982 NBA draft of the reigning NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers, Worthy was born in Gastonia, North Carolina. His 21.5 points,12.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game during his season at Ashbrook High led the team to the state championship game. After graduating high school, Worthy attended the University of North Carolina, an immediate standout, his freshman year was cut short near mid-season by a broken ankle. As a sophomore, he was a key member of that schools 1981 NCAA runner-up team, starring alongside Al Wood, a consensus first team All-American, Worthy shared College Player of the Year honors with Virginia Cavalier Ralph Sampson. His 13–17 shooting,28 point,4 rebound finale capped a standout performance throughout the NCAA tournament, a tip dunk in front of Patrick Ewing captioned James Worthy slams the door on Georgetown made the cover of Sports Illustrated. In the wake of this success Worthy elected to forgo his senior year and he completed his degree later, via summer school. He is one of eight UNC players to have their numbers retired, the Los Angeles Lakers had received the Cleveland Cavaliers 1982 first-round draft pick in a 1979 exchange for Don Ford. The Lakers won the flip, the first and only time for a league champion. The lanky small forward immediately made an impact as a rookie, averaging 13.4 points per game, with his speed, dynamic ability to score with either hand, and dazzling play above the rim, Worthy thrived in the Lakers high-octane Showtime offense. His rookie year ended just when he was hitting his stride, breaking his leg on April 10,1983 and he was still named to the 1983 All-Rookie First Team but missed the rest of the season and playoffs. Back and healthy for the opening of the 1983–84 season, Worthys effective play soon had him replacing All-Star, the Lakers dominated throughout the Western Conference Playoffs and faced the Boston Celtics in the Finals. Late in Game 2 Worthy made an errant cross-court pass that was picked off, the Lakers dropped the game in overtime, but pushed the series to the limit before being bested in seven games. With hard driving coach Pat Riley demanding nothing but a championship ring, once again they met the Celtics in the Finals, this time decided in LAs favor on the famed parquet floor of the Boston Garden. During the play-off run to title Worthy emerged as a clutch performer
23.
Kurt Rambis
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Darrell Kurt Rambis is an American basketball associate head coach for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association. A former player, he won four NBA championships while playing power forward for the Los Angeles Lakers, Rambis played college basketball for the Santa Clara Broncos. As a senior in 1980, he was named the player of the year in the West Coast Conference, Rambis was selected by the Knicks in the third round of the 1980 NBA draft, but began his career in Greece with AEK Athens. He joined the Lakers and won four championships during their Showtime era and he also played for the Charlotte Hornets, Phoenix Suns, and Sacramento Kings. Rambis became a coach, and has served as coach for the Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves. Rambis was born in Terre Haute, Indiana and his family moved to Cupertino, California in his preschool years, his number is retired at Cupertino High School. He graduated from Santa Clara University, where he played from 1976 to 1980, becoming its second leading rebounder, during his Santa Clara years he was awarded the WCC Freshman of the Year and Conference Player of the Year as a senior. His jersey #34 was retired on December 29,2008, Rambis was drafted by the New York Knicks as the 58th pick in the 1980 NBA draft, but he was subsequently waived by the Knicks. He played in Greece in the Greek League for the club AEK Athens, being of Greek descent, he also acquired Greek citizenship. AEK won the Greek Cup in 1981 and he was re-signed by the Knicks in 1981 but never played a game for them. His success as an NBA player started when he was signed as an agent by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1981. Rambis spent most of his 14 seasons in the NBA with the Lakers, winning championships in 1982,1985,1987, Rambis also played for the Charlotte Hornets, Phoenix Suns, and Sacramento Kings before returning to the Lakers in 1993. During his playing days, Rambis was a favorite among the Lakers fans because of his status as an overachieving underdog and ultimate team-player. Known for his defensive and rebounding skills, Rambis also was an efficient clean-up man on offense and he was remembered in both Santa Clara and Los Angeles for his all-out effort and willingness to do the dirty work that many players do not embrace. Rambis usually wore a moustache and thick-rimmed black glasses, prompting Lakers announcer Chick Hearn to nickname him Superman. He finally retired with the Lakers in 1995 after 14 years in the NBA, Rambis began working as a special assistant coach for the Lakers in 1994, but eventually returned to the active playing roster. He was waived at the beginning of the 1995–96 season, and he served as head coach of the Lakers during the 1999 lockout season after coach Del Harris was fired. He achieved moderate success, registering a 24–13 record in the season before being swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the 1999 Western Conference Semifinals
24.
Kevin McHale (basketball)
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Kevin Edward McHale is an American retired professional basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Boston Celtics. He is also a Basketball Hall of Fame inductee and he was named to the NBAs 50th Anniversary Team, and also to the official list of the NBAs best 50 players in 1996. McHale began working for the Minnesota Timberwolves immediately following his retirement in 1993, at different times, as a TV analyst, general manager and he was the head coach of the Houston Rockets from 2011-15, until being fired following a 4-11 start to the 2015–16 season. McHale currently works as an on-air analyst for NBA TV and Turner Sportss popular NBA on TNT studio show, McHale was born to Paul Austin McHale and Josephine Patricia Starcevic in Hibbing, Minnesota. In his senior season at Hibbing High School, he was named Minnesotas Mr. Basketball of 1976 and he is of Croatian descent on his mothers side. The 6 ft 10 in McHale played basketball at the forward position for the University of Minnesota from 1976 to 1980. He was named All-Big Ten in 1979 and 1980 and still second in school history in career points. In 1995, to coincide with the University of Minnesotas 100th anniversary, McHale is famous for an encounter with Chuck Foreman in the Gopher locker room. Foreman, a famous Minnesota Viking at the time, was congratulating the Gophers on a hard-fought victory, as Foreman was shaking all the players hands, when he arrived at the then-unknown power forward, McHale displayed his comic wit, Nice to meet you, Mr. Foreman. What do you do for a living, McHales stay in Boston got off to a rocky start as he held out for a large contract, even threatening to play in Italy, before signing a three-year deal with the Celtics. Backing up Larry Bird and Cedric Maxwell at forward, McHale made an impact and was named to the NBAs All-Rookie First Team in his rookie season. Boston finished McHales rookie season with a record of 62-20. In the playoffs, the Celtics swept the Chicago Bulls in the first round, in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Celtics faced a 3–1 deficit against the Philadelphia 76ers, but Boston won the last three games of the series, including Game 6 on Philadelphias home court. McHale helped save the Game 6 win by rejecting an Andrew Toney shot, in the NBA Finals, Boston defeated the Houston Rockets in six games to capture the teams fourteenth championship. The Celtics failed to advance to the NBA Finals the next two seasons, Philadelphia exacted a measure of revenge in the 1982 Eastern Conference Final, beating Boston at home in the seventh game. In the 1983 Eastern Conference semifinals, the Celtics were swept by the Milwaukee Bucks and this embarrassing defeat led to the firing of head coach Bill Fitch and a temporarily unhappy McHale. Following the 1982–83 season, McHales contract with the Celtics expired, auerbach retaliated by signing three of New Yorks top free agent players to offer sheets. The Knicks elected to re-sign their players and give up their pursuit of McHale, McHale eventually re-signed with Boston, his $1 million per season contract making him the fourth-highest paid player in the NBA
25.
NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award
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A panel of sportswriters and broadcasters from throughout the United States and Canada votes on the recipient. Each judge casts a vote for first, second and third place selections, each first-place vote is worth five points, each second-place vote is worth three points, and each third-place vote is worth one point. The player with the highest point total, regardless of the number of first-place votes, to be eligible for the award, a player must come off the bench in more games than he starts. Since its inception, the award has given to 26 different players. The most recent recipient is Jamal Crawford, who has won the three times. Kevin McHale, Ricky Pierce and Detlef Schrempf have each won the two times. Bobby Jones was the winner of the award for the 1982–83 NBA season. McHale and Bill Walton are the only Hall of Famers who have won the award, manu Ginóbili, Schrempf, Leandro Barbosa, Toni Kukoč and Ben Gordon are the only award winners not born in the United States. Gordon was the first player to win the award as a rookie, of the five foreign-born winners, three were trained completely outside the U. S. namely Ginóbili, Barbosa and Kukoč. National Basketball Association portal General Specific
26.
Bill Walton
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William Theodore Bill Walton III is an American retired basketball player and television sportscaster. He then went on to have a prominent career in the National Basketball Association where he was a league Most Valuable Player and his professional career was significantly hampered by multiple foot injuries. Walton was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on May 10,1993, Walton was born in La Mesa, California, the son of Gloria Anne and William Theodore Ted Walton. His listed adult playing height was 6 feet 11 inches, it has reported that Walton is actually taller. He played high school basketball at Helix High School, at age 17, Walton played for the United States mens national basketball team at the 1970 FIBA World Championship. The Walton-led 1971–72 UCLA basketball team had a record of 30–0 and he was the backbone of two consecutive 30–0 seasons and was also part of UCLAs NCAA mens basketball record 88-game winning streak. Walton was the 1973 recipient of the James E. Sullivan Award as the top athlete in the United States. Some college basketball historians rate Walton as the greatest who ever played the game at the college level, in Waltons senior year during the 1973–74 season, the schools 88-game winning streak ended with a 71–70 loss to Notre Dame. During the same season, UCLAs record seven consecutive national titles was broken when North Carolina State defeated the Bruins 80–77 in double overtime in the NCAA semi-finals. With Waltons graduation in 1974 and legendary Bruin coach John Woodens retirement after UCLAs 1975 national title, prior to joining the varsity team, Walton, along with Greg Lee and Keith Wilkes, was a member of the 20–0 UCLA Freshman team. He signed with the Trail Blazers but his first two seasons were marred by injury and the Blazers missed the playoffs both years. It was not until the 1976–77 season that he was enough to play 65 games and, spurred by new head coach Jack Ramsay. Walton led the NBA in both rebounds per game and blocked shots per game season, and he was selected to the NBA All-Star Game. Walton was named to the NBAs First All-Defensive Team and the All-NBA Second Team for his season accomplishments. Walton was named the Finals MVP and he nonetheless won the league MVP that season and the Sporting News NBA MVP, as well. He played in his only All-Star Game in 1978 and was named to both the NBAs First All-Defensive Team and the All-NBA First Team, Walton returned to action for the playoffs, but was reinjured in the second game of a series against the Seattle SuperSonics. Without Walton to lead them, Portland lost the series to Seattle in six games, as it turned out, Walton would never play for the Trail Blazers again. During the offseason, Walton demanded to be traded, citing unethical and incompetent treatment of his and he did not get his wish and sat out the 1978–79 season in protest, signing with the San Diego Clippers when he became a free agent in 1979
27.
WBZ-FM
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WBZ-FM is a sports radio station known as 98.5 The Sports Hub and broadcasting on 98.5 MHz in Boston, Massachusetts. Owned by CBS Radio, the current WBZ-FM began on August 8,2009 and competes with AM, WBZ-FM is home to the Boston Bruins, New England Patriots, Boston Celtics and New England Revolution radio networks. Its studios are located in Allston district of Boston, and its transmitter is in Newton, the call letters became WBZ-FM on November 2,1943. Initially, W67B/WBZ-FM was largely separately-programmed, though in later years it became a simulcast of its AM sister station, after the Federal Communications Commission moved the FM band to 88–106 MHz, WBZ-FM began to operate on 100.7 MHz on January 1,1946. The frequency again changed to 92.9 MHz on August 10,1947, after securing a new license for operation on 106.7 MHz, Westinghouse reactivated WBZ-FM on December 15,1957. The station initially operated only from 5 p. m, after live programming was replaced with tapes of classical music in January 1960, WBZ-FMs separate programming was expanded, with the simulcast continuing in mornings. On December 31,1971, WBZ-FM became a music station as Rockin Stereo 106.7 programming mostly top 40 with some album cuts. Although automated, it featured voice-tracked announcing from Clark Smidt and Ken Shelton, for a time in the mid-1970s, WBZ-FM was Bostons second most popular top 40 station, only trailing WRKO. In 1975, both Smidt and Shelton left to join WCOZ, which was changing formats from beautiful-music to album-oriented rock, by 1979, WBZ-FM had drifted into an automated album oriented rock format itself, which remained in place through 1981. As a rock station, WBZ-FM also simulcast the newscasts from the AM side. In 1981, WBZ-FM was sold to Greater Media, becoming that companys first Boston station, under the new ownership, the station signed off for a couple of weeks at the very end of 1981. Before signing back on as Magic in January 1982 with the call letters WMJX, a few years later, the transmission equipment was relocated to the Prudential Tower, giving 106.7 a great signal in downtown Boston. 98.5 The Sports Hub was created to go head to head against WEEI, two years later, WEEI would add an FM simulcast, a reaction to the success WBZ-FM was enjoying as an FM sports talker. The Sports Hub amended its slogan from Bostons New Home For Sports to Bostons Home For Sports, the call sign WBZ-FM was assigned to the station on August 5,2009. Boston Bruins games moved to WBZ-FM from WBZ, the Toucher and Rich Show and New England Patriots games came from WBCN. It was announced on September 26,2013, that the station has become the new flagship of the Boston Celtics Radio Network, with select games airing on WZLX due to conflicts
28.
Weston, Massachusetts
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Weston is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States in the Boston metro area. The population of Weston, as of the 2010 U. S. Census, was 11,261. Weston is among the 10 most affluent towns with 1,000 or more households in the United States and is the third-most affluent town with a population of at least 10,000 in the United States. Weston is among the nations 100 most expensive ZIP codes, with a median price of well over $2 million. It is the town in the Boston Area to have private roads. Despite a population of just 11,261, Westons area is slightly smaller than that of its neighbor town, Newton. As a result, Westons houses are on much larger than those present in nearby towns. It has one of the lowest crime rates among Metro-west Boston suburbs, Weston was a dry town from 1838 until 2008. Incorporated in 1713, the town is located on an upland plateau. The town of Weston was originally established as the West Precinct of Watertown in 1698, the town was separately incorporated as the town of Weston in 1713. Weston is located on an upland plateau. Early settlers discovered that the amount of agricultural land was limited as was the waterpower potential in the town. By the 18th century, residents were profiting by the traffic on the Boston Post Road, taverns of great historic importance were established on the Road. The Golden Ball Tavern, built in 1750, and the Josiah Smith Tavern, built in 1757, unfortunately, commercial stagnation followed the loss of business after the opening of the Worcester Turnpike in 1810 drew commercial traffic from the Boston Post Road. Townspeople turned to boot and shoe making, and the manufacturing of cotton, by 1870, substantial country estates were being built in Weston by Bostonians, establishing a prosperous residential character for the town. Farming continued to be a significant support for the economy. The Weston Aqueduct and Reservoir were built in 1903 and the Hultman Aqueduct followed in 1938 to bring Quabbin Reservoir water into Boston, in exchange, Boston residents continued to build homes in Weston, many of them architect designed. Some famous architects such as McKim and Richardson designed luxurious houses in the town, which witnessed an increase in population from 1920 to 1935
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Massachusetts
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It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island to the south, New Hampshire and Vermont to the north, and New York to the west. The state is named for the Massachusett tribe, which inhabited the area. The capital of Massachusetts and the most populous city in New England is Boston, over 80% of Massachusetts population lives in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, a region influential upon American history, academia, and industry. Originally dependent on agriculture, fishing and trade, Massachusetts was transformed into a manufacturing center during the Industrial Revolution, during the 20th century, Massachusetts economy shifted from manufacturing to services. Modern Massachusetts is a leader in biotechnology, engineering, higher education, finance. Plymouth was the site of the first colony in New England, founded in 1620 by the Pilgrims, in 1692, the town of Salem and surrounding areas experienced one of Americas most infamous cases of mass hysteria, the Salem witch trials. In 1777, General Henry Knox founded the Springfield Armory, which during the Industrial Revolution catalyzed numerous important technological advances, in 1786, Shays Rebellion, a populist revolt led by disaffected American Revolutionary War veterans, influenced the United States Constitutional Convention. In the 18th century, the Protestant First Great Awakening, which swept the Atlantic World, in the late 18th century, Boston became known as the Cradle of Liberty for the agitation there that led to the American Revolution. The entire Commonwealth of Massachusetts has played a commercial and cultural role in the history of the United States. Before the American Civil War, Massachusetts was a center for the abolitionist, temperance, in the late 19th century, the sports of basketball and volleyball were invented in the western Massachusetts cities of Springfield and Holyoke, respectively. Many prominent American political dynasties have hailed from the state, including the Adams, both Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, also in Cambridge, have been ranked among the most highly regarded academic institutions in the world. Massachusetts public school students place among the top nations in the world in academic performance, the official name of the state is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. While this designation is part of the official name, it has no practical implications. Massachusetts has the position and powers within the United States as other states. Massachusetts was originally inhabited by tribes of the Algonquian language family such as the Wampanoag, Narragansett, Nipmuc, Pocomtuc, Mahican, and Massachusett. While cultivation of crops like squash and corn supplemented their diets, villages consisted of lodges called wigwams as well as longhouses, and tribes were led by male or female elders known as sachems. Between 1617 and 1619, smallpox killed approximately 90% of the Massachusetts Bay Native Americans, the first English settlers in Massachusetts, the Pilgrims, arrived via the Mayflower at Plymouth in 1620, and developed friendly relations with the native Wampanoag people. This was the second successful permanent English colony in the part of North America that later became the United States, the event known as the First Thanksgiving was celebrated by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World which lasted for three days
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WEEI (AM)
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Studios are located in Brighton, Massachusetts. The station currently broadcasts programming from ESPN Radio, until October 4,2012, the station aired a highly rated locally produced talk format. WEEI traces its roots to its owner, Edison Electric Illuminating Company of Boston. Edison placed the station on the air September 29,1924, the station broadcast on various frequencies over the next several years, settling on 590 kHz in 1927. In 1926, WEEI became a member of the NBC Red Network and remained an NBC Red affiliate until 1936. CBS bought WEEI outright from Boston Edison on August 31,1942, an FM sister station, WEEI-FM, went on the air in 1948. In the 1960s, the daily WEEIdea feature presented cleaning and cooking tips from housewives, by May 1972, WEEI had six full days of call-in talk programming. On weekdays, morning drive time from 6 am to 10 am was hosted by newsman Len Lawrence, Kimball was hired from WIOD in Miami, where she had replaced broadcaster Larry King after he was arrested on December 20,1971. Ellen is believed to be one of the first women to host a daily, four-hour, call-in talk show, originally called Boston Forum with Ellen Kimball, the name was eventually changed to The Ellen Kimball Show. Later, newsman Ben Farnsworth took over the Saturday call-in segment from 10 am to 2 pm. Paul Benzaquin handled 2 pm to 6 pm weekdays, although its talk radio format was popular, the station went all-news in 1974, following the lead of several other CBS-owned stations. But by the end of the 1970s, WEEI was all-news around the clock, a fire developed in the building following the crash. Although Metromedia canceled the sale of KRLD after it was granted permission to own both the station and KNBN-TV in Dallas–Fort Worth, the sale of WEEI still went forward. Helen Broadcasting continued the all-news format, the station was acquired by Boston Celtics Communications on May 10,1990, the Celtics also simultaneously purchased WFXT from Fox Television Stations. WEEI also carried Sports Byline USA and CBS Radio Sports broadcasts not cleared by WRKO, the all-news format continued in other dayparts until September 3,1991, when WEEI became an all-sports station. Upon the change to all-sports, WEEI featured the Andy Moes show and Glenn and Janet, also part of the roster was Boston sports talk pioneer Eddie Andelman. WEEI also began to carry Boston College Eagles football in 1992, however, the change was followed by a dramatic drop in its ratings, additionally, the station struggled financially, at one point losing $80,000 a week, leading to rumors of a sale of WEEI. Still, WEEI improved its morning ratings after it became one of the earliest affiliates of Imus in the Morning from WFAN in New York City on July 12,1993, sister station WFXT was sold back to Fox Television Stations soon afterward. The original occupant of 850 kHz, WHDH, had a long history, WHDH was founded June 20,1929 in Gloucester, Massachusetts by Ralph Matheson
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Violet Palmer
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Violet Renice Palmer is an American basketball referee in the NBA and WNBA and the first female official to reach the highest competitive tier in a major U. S. professional sport. She also earned recognition as a member of two NCAA Division II womens championship basketball teams, Palmer was the first woman to officiate an NBA playoff game when she did so in the April 25,2006 match between the Indiana Pacers and New Jersey Nets. In the NBA, Palmer wears uniform number 12, a native of Compton, California, Palmer grew up in the same neighborhood where Serena and Venus Williams lived as small children. She attended college at Cal Poly Pomona, where she played point guard on the 1985 and 1986 NCAA Division II womens championship teams, in 2001, Palmer established Violet Palmers Official Camp to train youths in the art of officiating games. The camp runs annually from July 9 to July 11, in 2010, Palmer was part of a family team on the game show Family Feud. Palmer has officiated hundreds of NBA games, as well as others in the WNBA, after years of refereeing at various levels, including NBA pre-season and exhibition games, Palmer was offered an opportunity to officiate the NCAA Division I mens tournament in 1996. She accepted, but the offer was retracted when NCAA members balked at the idea of having a female referee male players. In 1997, however, Palmer and Dee Kantner were signed by the NBA to together become the first top-level female officials in any major U. S. professional sport. On October 31,1997, Palmer made history when she officiated the NBA season opener between the Vancouver Grizzlies and the Dallas Mavericks, in British Columbia, Canada, as a woman, Palmers achievement was received with mixed feelings. While magazines such as Ebony and Sports Illustrated generally celebrated her achievement, charles Barkley, Violet, I was wrong about you. Former basketball player Dennis Scott, who played for the Phoenix Suns at the time, Scott, in particular, worried that female referees would feel verbally or physically abused. However, Palmer has been officiating without any major gender issues so far and she was one of three NBA referees who officiated the brawl-marred December 16,2006, game between the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks. The officiating crew, which consisted of Dick Bavetta and Robbie Robinson. On May 28,2009, Palmer was hired as coordinator of basketball officials for the West Coast Conference. On February 16,2014, Palmer became the first female to officiate an All-Star Game in any of the four major United States sports, on July 6,2015, Palmer was named coordinator of womens basketball officials for the Western Athletic Conference. On September 22,2016, Palmer retired from on-court duties with the NBA due to knee issues, afterward, she began work as a manager in the NBAs referee operations department. At the time of her retirement, she had refereed 919 NBA games, in July 2014, Palmer announced plans to marry her girlfriend of 20 years, celebrity hair stylist Tanya Stine
