1.
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
2.
Free throw
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In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points from a restricted area on the court, and are generally awarded after a foul on the shooter by the opposing team. Each successful free throw is one point. Free throws can normally be shot at a percentage by good players. In the NBA, most players make 70–80% of their attempts, the leagues best shooters can make roughly 90% of their attempts over a season, while notoriously poor shooters may struggle to make 50% of them. During a foul shot, a players foot must be completely behind the foul line, if a player lines up with part of his or her foot on the line, a violation is called and the shot doesnt count. Foul shots are worth one point, Rick Barry and youngest Canyon Barry, both career 90% shooters who used an unusual underhand method, believes that 80% is the minimum for a player to be considered good at the free throw. Mark Price, who broke Barrys career record, states that 75% is the minimum, tall players often shoot free throws poorly, though theoretically taller players should be better at making them. One possible explanation for this is that the release point of their shots can cause them to stand overly erect. Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain made just 51, on the other hand, there have also been big men who have been prolific scorers from free throws, who not surprisingly also have good outside shooting range. Some examples include Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki who, at 7 ft 0 in, has an average of 88% and Yao Ming who. There are many situations when free throws can be awarded, The first and most common is when a player is fouled while in the act of shooting. If the player misses the shot during the foul, the player receives two or three free throws depending on whether the shot was taken in front of or behind the three-point line. If, despite the foul, the still makes the attempted shot, the number of free throws is reduced to one. This is known as a three-point or four-point play, depending on the value of the made basket, the second is when the fouling team is in the team bonus situation. This happens when, in a period, a team commits a set number of fouls whether or not in the act of shooting. In the WNBA, the player shoots two free throws starting with the opponents fifth foul, or second team foul in the final minute if that team has committed under 5 fouls in a period. In NCAA mens basketball, beginning with the foul of the half, one free throw is awarded, if the player makes the free throw. This is called shooting a one-and-one, starting with the tenth foul of the half, two free throws are awarded
3.
Three-point field goal
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A three-point field goal is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two points awarded for field goals made within the three-point line and the one point for each made free throw. In international FIBA and WNBA play, the three-point line is 6.75 m away from the basket on the arc part and 6.6 m from the straight parts. In both mens and womens National Collegiate Athletics Association basketball, the three-point line is simply a 180° circular arc centered on the basket,20 ft 9 in in radius. The three-point line was first tested at the level in a 1945 NCAA game between Columbia and Fordham but it was not kept as a rule. At the direction of Abe Saperstein, the American Basketball League became the first basketball league to institute the rule in 1961 and its three-point line was a radius of 25 feet from the baskets, except along the sides. The Eastern Professional Basketball League followed in its 1963–64 season, the three-point shot later became popularized by the American Basketball Association after its introduction in the 1967–68 season. Then commissioner of the ABA George Mikan stated the three-pointer would give the player a chance to score. During the 1970s, the ABA used the three-point shot, along with the slam dunk, in the 1979–80 season, the NBA adopted the three-point line despite the view of many that it was a gimmick. Chris Ford of the Boston Celtics is widely credited with making the first three-point shot in NBA history on October 12,1979, kevin Grevey of the Washington Bullets also made one on the same day. The sports international governing body, FIBA, introduced the three-point line in 1984, the NCAAs Southern Conference became the first collegiate conference to use the three-point rule, adopting a 22-foot line for the 1980–81 season. Ronnie Carr of Western Carolina University was the first to score a three-point field goal in basketball history on November 29,1980. Over the following five years, NCAA conferences differed in their use of the rule, used in conference play, it was adopted by the NCAA for the 1986–87 season at 19 ft 9 in, and was first used in the NCAA Tournament in 1987. In 2007, the NCAA lengthened the mens three point distance to 20 ft 9 in, with the coming into effect at the beginning of the 2008–09 season. American high schools, along with elementary and middle schools, adopted a 19 ft 9 in line nationally in 1987, a year after the NCAA. During the 1994–95, 1995–96, and 1996–97 seasons, the NBA attempted to address decreased scoring by shortening the distance of the line from 23 ft 9 in to a uniform 22 ft around the basket. From the 1997–98 season on, the NBA reverted the line to its distance of 23 ft 9 in. Ray Allen is currently the NBA all-time leader in career made three-pointers with 2,973, in 2008, FIBA announced that the distance would be increased by 50 cm to 6.75 m, with the change being phased in beginning in October 2010
4.
FIBA
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A total of 213 national federations are now members, organized since 1989 into five zones or commissions, Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. The FIBA Basketball World Cup is a tournament for mens national teams held every four years. Teams compete for the Naismith Trophy, named in honor of basketballs Canadian creator James Naismith. A parallel event for teams, the FIBA Womens Basketball World Cup, is also held quadrennially, from 1986 through 2014, it was held in the same year as the mens event. The womens tournament will continue to be held in the year as the FIFA World Cup. In 2009 FIBA announced three new tournaments, two 12-team U-17 World Championships to be played in July 2010, and an eight-team FIBA World Club Championship to be launched in October 2010, however, the FIBA World Club Championship did not materialize. In its place, FIBA instead relaunched its original world club championship for men, the newest worldwide FIBA tournaments for national teams are in the three-player half-court variation, 3x3. The FIBA 3x3 U-18 World Championships were inaugurated in 2011, all events include separate tournaments for mens, womens, and mixed teams. The U-18 championships, held annually, feature 32 teams in each individual tournament, the senior championships have 24 teams in each individual tournament, and are held in even-numbered years. The association was founded in Geneva in 1932, two years after the sport was recognized by the IOC. Its original name was Fédération internationale de basket-ball amateur, eight nations were founding members, Argentina, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Portugal, Romania, and Switzerland. During the 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin, the Federation named James Naismith, FIBA has organized a World Championship, now known as World Cup, for men since 1950 and a Womens World Championship, now known as the Womens World Cup, since 1953. From 1986 through 2014, both events were held four years, alternating with the Olympics. As noted above, the mens World Cup will be moved to a new cycle, with tournaments in the year before the Summer Olympics. The Federation headquarters moved to Munich in 1956, then returned to Geneva in 2002, in 1991, it founded the FIBA Hall of Fame, the first induction ceremony was held on 12 September 2007, during EuroBasket 2007. During its 81st anniversary in 2013, FIBA moved into its new headquarters, The House of Basketball, patrick Baumann is the current Secretary General of FIBA. Up until that point, even players from some fully registered and licensed professional leagues could qualify to compete at the Olympics, after making this monumental rules change, the Fédération internationale de basket-ball amateur became the Fédération internationale de basket-ball, but it retained FIBA as an abbreviation. The 1994 FIBA World Championship was the first time that the FIBA World Cup allowed current American NBA players that had played in an official NBA regular season game to play
5.
3x3 (basketball)
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3x3,3 on 3 basketball is a form of the game played three a side on one hoop. It is the largest urban team sport of the world and this basketball discipline is currently being promoted and structured by FIBA the sports governing body. Its main competition is an annual FIBA 3X3 World Tour, comprising a series of Masters, the FIBA 3x3 World Championships is the highest tournament for national 3x3 teams. 3×3 has been a basketball format long played in streets and gyms across the world, adidas launched its now-discontinued streetball competition in 1992. Since then, the number of 3×3 events and competitions has been steadily growing all around the world, FIBA took the decision to first test 3x3 at the 2007 Asian Indoor Games in Macau. Further test events were held in April 2008 in the Dominican Republic, the international debut was at the 2009 Asian Youth Games,19 teams in the boys tournament and 16 teams in the girls tournament. All games were held at Anglican High School, Singapore, finally, 3x3 made its worldwide competitive debut at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics in Singapore. The competition featured 20 teams in boys and girls categories. The competition was held at the Youth Space, Singapore, since then World Championships in both open and U18 categories are held on a regular basis. FIBA releases from time-to-time a 3x3 supplement to its official basketball rules, the rules state that regular FIBA rules apply to all situations not specifically addressed in the FIBA 3x3 rules. The current set, both in a version and longer format, was published in January 2015 and a video has been posted on YouTube. Under the 2015 rules, the departures from regular full-court basketball are as follows, the game is played on a half-court, with one basket. The basketball is unique to 3x3, and is used in all competitions, whether mens, womens and its circumference of 727–734 mm/28. 5–29.0 in is that of the size 6 basketball used in the womens full-court game. However, its weight is that of the size 7 standard used in the mens full-court game, a jump ball is not used to start the game. Instead, a coin toss is held immediately before the game, the winning team can choose to take possession of the ball at the start of the game, or take the first possession of a potential overtime period. There are no jump balls at any time in the game, in any held ball situation, the defensive team is granted possession. Every successful shot inside the arc is awarded one point, while every successful shot behind the arc is awarded two points, the game is a single period of 10 minutes with sudden death at 21 points. The winner is the first team to score 21 or the team with the highest score at the end of the 10 minutes, a tie in regulation leads to an untimed overtime period, which is won by the first team to score two points in overtime
6.
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
7.
National Collegiate Athletic Association
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The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a non-profit association which regulates athletes of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations, and individuals. It also organizes the programs of many colleges and universities in the United States and Canada. The organization is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 2014, the NCAA generated almost a billion dollars in revenue. 80 to 90% of this revenue was due to the Division I Mens Basketball Tournament and this revenue is then distributed back into various organizations and institutions across the United States. In August 1973, the current three-division setup of Division I, Division II, under NCAA rules, Division I and Division II schools can offer scholarships to athletes for playing a sport. Division III schools may not offer any athletic scholarships, generally, larger schools compete in Division I and smaller schools in II and III. Division I football was divided into I-A and I-AA in 1978. Subsequently, the term Division I-AAA was briefly added to delineate Division I schools which do not field a football program at all, in 2006, Divisions I-A and I-AA were respectively renamed the Football Bowl Subdivision and Football Championship Subdivision. Inter-collegiate sports began in the US in 1852 when crews from Harvard University, as other sports emerged, notably football and basketball, many of these same concepts and standards were adopted. Football, in particular, began to emerge as a marquee sport, the IAAUS was officially established on March 31,1906, and took its present name, the NCAA, in 1910. For several years, the NCAA was a group and rules-making body, but in 1921, the first NCAA national championship was conducted. Gradually, more rules committees were formed and more championships were created, a series of crises brought the NCAA to a crossroads after World War II. The Sanity Code – adopted to establish guidelines for recruiting and financial aid – failed to curb abuses, postseason football games were multiplying with little control, and member schools were increasingly concerned about how the new medium of television would affect football attendance. The complexity of problems and the growth in membership and championships demonstrated the need for full-time professional leadership. Walter Byers, previously an executive assistant, was named executive director in 1951. Byers wasted no time placing his stamp on the Association, as college athletics grew, the scope of the nations athletics programs diverged, forcing the NCAA to create a structure that recognized varying levels of emphasis. In 1973, the Associations membership was divided into three legislative and competitive divisions – I, II, and III, five years later in 1978, Division I members voted to create subdivisions I-A and I-AA in football. Until the 1980s, the association did not offer womens athletics, instead, the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women, with nearly 1000 member schools, governed womens collegiate sports in the United States
8.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is an American retired professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. During his career as a center, Abdul-Jabbar was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player, a record 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA selection, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. A member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two as an assistant coach, Abdul-Jabbar twice was voted NBA Finals MVP, in 1996, he was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. NBA coach Pat Riley and players Isiah Thomas and Julius Erving have called him the greatest basketball player of all time, drafted by the one-season-old Bucks franchise in the 1969 NBA draft with the first overall pick, Alcindor spent six seasons in Milwaukee. After winning his first NBA championship in 1971, he adopted the Muslim name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar at age 24, using his trademark skyhook shot, he established himself as one of the leagues top scorers. In 1975, he was traded to the Lakers, with whom he played the last 14 seasons of his career, Abdul-Jabbars contributions were a key component in the Showtime era of Lakers basketball. Over his 20-year NBA career his team succeeded in making the playoffs 18 times and past the 1st round in 14 of them and he remains the all-time leading scorer in the NBA, and is ranked 3rd all-time in both rebounds and blocks. In 2007, ESPN voted him the greatest center of all time, in 2008, they named him the greatest player in basketball history. Abdul-Jabbar has also been an actor, a coach. In 2012, he was selected by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to be a U. S. global cultural ambassador, in 2016, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama. Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr. was born in New York City, the child of Cora Lillian, a department store price checker. At birth, he weighed 12 pounds 11 ounces and was 22 1⁄2 inches long and he was raised as a Roman Catholic and attended Power Memorial Academy, a Catholic high school in Manhattan. From an early age, Lew Alcindor began his record-breaking basketball accomplishments and this earned him a nickname—The tower from Power. His 2,067 total points were a New York City high school record, the team won the national high school boys basketball championship when Alcindor was in 11th grade, and was runner-up his senior year. Alcindor played on the UCLA freshman team only because the rule was in effect. In his first college game, Lew set a UCLA single game record with 56 points, in 1967 and 1968, he also won USBWA College Player of the Year which later became the Oscar Robertson Trophy. Alcindor became the player to win the Helms Foundation Player of the Year award three times. The 1965–66 UCLA Bruin team was the preseason #1, but on November 27,1965, the freshman team led by Alcindor defeated the varsity team 75–60 in the first game in the new Pauley Pavilion
9.
Wilt Chamberlain
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Wilton Norman Wilt Chamberlain was an American basketball player. The 7 foot 1 inch Chamberlain weighed 250 pounds as a rookie before bulking up to 275 and he played the center position and is widely considered one of the greatest and most dominant players in NBA history. Chamberlain holds numerous NBA records in scoring, rebounding, and durability categories and he is the only player to score 100 points in a single NBA game or average more than 40 and 50 points in a season. He also won seven scoring, eleven rebounding, nine field goal percentage titles, Chamberlain is the only player in NBA history to average at least 30 points and 20 rebounds per game in a season, a feat he accomplished seven times. He is also the player to average at least 30 points and 20 rebounds per game over the entire course of his NBA career. Chamberlain was known by various nicknames during his playing career. He hated the ones that called attention to his height such as Goliath and Wilt the Stilt and he preferred The Big Dipper, which was inspired by his friends who saw him dip his head as he walked through doorways. Chamberlain was also a businessman, authored several books. He was a bachelor, and became notorious for his claim to have had sexual intercourse with as many as 20,000 women. He was a child, nearly dying of pneumonia in his early years. In his early years Chamberlain was not interested in basketball, because he thought it was a game for sissies, but according to Chamberlain, basketball was king in Philadelphia, so he eventually turned to the sport. According to ESPN journalist Hal Bock, Chamberlain was scary, flat-out frightening, before he came along, most basketball players were mortal-sized men. It was also in this period of his life when his three lifelong nicknames Wilt the Stilt, Goliath, and his favorite, The Big Dipper, were allegedly born. He scored 34 points, won Overbrook the Public League title, in that game, West Catholic quadruple-teamed Chamberlain the entire game, and despite the centers 29 points, the Panthers lost 54-42. In his second Overbrook season, Chamberlain continued his scoring, among them scoring a high school record 71 points against Roxborough. The Panthers comfortably won the Public League title after again beating Northeast in which Chamberlain scored 40 points, Chamberlain scored 32 points and led Overbrook to a flawless 19–0 season. During summer vacations Chamberlain worked as a bellhop in Kutshers Hotel, subsequently, owners Milton and Helen Kutsher kept up a lifelong friendship with Wilt, and according to their son Mark, They were his second set of parents. In Chamberlains third and final Overbrook season, he continued his high scoring, the Panthers won the Public League a third time, beating West Philadelphia 78-60, and in the city championship game, they met West Catholic once again
10.
Michael Jordan
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Michael Jeffrey Jordan, also known by his initials, MJ, is an American retired professional basketball player, businessman, and principal owner and chairman of the Charlotte Hornets. Jordan played 15 seasons in the National Basketball Association for the Chicago Bulls and his biography on the NBA website states, By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time. Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s, Jordan played three seasons for coach Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina. As a freshman, he was a member of the Tar Heels national championship team in 1982, Jordan joined the Bulls in 1984 as the third overall draft pick. He quickly emerged as a star, entertaining crowds with his prolific scoring. His leaping ability, demonstrated by performing slam dunks from the throw line in slam dunk contests, earned him the nicknames Air Jordan. He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball, in 1991, he won his first NBA championship with the Bulls, and followed that achievement with titles in 1992 and 1993, securing a three-peat. Jordan retired for a time in January 1999, but returned for two more NBA seasons from 2001 to 2003 as a member of the Wizards. Among his numerous accomplishments, Jordan holds the NBA records for highest career regular season scoring average and highest career playoff scoring average. In 1999, he was named the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century by ESPN and he became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2015. Jordan is also known for his product endorsements and he fueled the success of Nikes Air Jordan sneakers, which were introduced in 1985 and remain popular today. Jordan also starred in the 1996 feature film Space Jam as himself, in 2006, he became part-owner and head of basketball operations for the then-Charlotte Bobcats, buying a controlling interest in 2010. In 2015, Jordan became the first billionaire NBA player in history as a result of the increase in value of NBA franchises and he is the third richest African American, behind Oprah Winfrey and Robert F. Smith. Jordan was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Deloris, who worked in banking and his family moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, when he was a toddler. Jordan is the fourth of five children and he has two older brothers, Larry Jordan and James R. Jordan, Jr. one older sister, Deloris, and a younger sister, Roslyn. Jordans brother James retired in 2006 as the Command Sergeant Major of the 35th Signal Brigade of the XVIII Airborne Corps in the U. S. Army. Jordan attended Emsley A. Laney High School in Wilmington, where he highlighted his athletic career by playing basketball, baseball and he tried out for the varsity basketball team during his sophomore year, but at 511, he was deemed too short to play at that level. His taller friend, Harvest Leroy Smith, was the only sophomore to make the team, motivated to prove his worth, Jordan became the star of Laneys junior varsity squad, and tallied several 40-point games
11.
Shaquille O'Neal
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Shaquille Rashaun Shaq ONeal, nicknamed Shaq, is a retired American professional basketball player and former rapper who is currently an analyst on the television program Inside the NBA. Listed at 7 ft 1 in tall and weighing 325 pounds, ONeal played for six teams throughout his 19-year NBA career. Following his career at Louisiana State University, ONeal was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft. He quickly became one of the best centers in the league, winning Rookie of the Year in 1992–93, after four years with the Magic, ONeal signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers. They won three championships in 2000,2001, and 2002. Amid tension between ONeal and Kobe Bryant, ONeal was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004, midway through the 2007–2008 season he was traded to the Phoenix Suns. After a season-and-a-half with the Suns, ONeal was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2009–10 season, ONeal played for the Boston Celtics in the 2010–11 season before retiring. He is one of three players to win NBA MVP, All-Star game MVP and Finals MVP awards in the same year. He ranks 7th all-time in points scored, 5th in field goals, 13th in rebounds, largely due to his ability to dunk the basketball, ONeal also ranks 3rd all-time in field goal percentage. ONeal was elected into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016, in addition to his basketball career, ONeal has released four rap albums, with his first, Shaq Diesel, going platinum. He has appeared in films and has starred in his own reality shows, Shaqs Big Challenge. He currently hosts The Big Podcast with Shaq, ONeal was born on March 6,1972 in Newark, New Jersey, to Lucille ONeal and Joe Toney, an All-State guard in high school who was offered a basketball scholarship to play at Seton Hall. Toney struggled with addiction and was imprisoned for drug possession when ONeal was an infant. Upon his release, he did not resume a place in ONeals life and instead agreed to relinquish his rights to ONeals stepfather, Phillip A. Harrison. ONeal remained estranged from his father for decades, ONeal had not spoken with Toney or expressed an interest in establishing a relationship. On his 1994 rap album, Shaq Fu, The Return, ONeal voiced his feelings of disdain for Toney in the song Biological Didnt Bother, dismissing him with the line Phil is my father. However, ONeals feelings toward Toney mellowed in the years following Harrisons death in 2013, ONeal credits the Boys and Girls Club of America in Newark with giving him a safe place to play and keeping him off the streets. It gave me something to do, he said, id just go there to shoot
12.
Artis Gilmore
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Artis Gilmore is an American retired basketball player who played in the American Basketball Association and National Basketball Association. Gilmore was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on August 12,2011, Gilmore remains the top player in rebounds per game in the history of NCAA Division I basketball. In Gilmores complete pro basketball career, he was an eleven-time All-Star, the ABA Rookie of the Year, and an ABA MVP, nicknamed The A-Train, the 72 Gilmore once played in 670 consecutive games. Gilmore was born in Chipley, Florida, and reared there and in Dothan, Alabama and he graduated from Dothans Carver High School in 1967. During the two years that Gilmore played NCAA basketball at Jacksonville, he one of only five college basketball players ever to average at least 20 points and 20 rebounds over his career. Gilmore led the NCAA in rebounding both years at Jacksonville, and his average of 22.7 rebounds per game is still the highest in NCAA Division I history. When departing from college, Gilmore was drafted by the Kentucky Colonels in the 1971 American Basketball Association draft, — Gilmore began his professional career with the Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association for the 1971–72 season, signing a record high-paying contract. He was so dominant that he earned the rare distinction of being selected both the Rookie of the Year award and the league Most Valuable Player award for his first season. Over his five-year ABA career, Gilmore led the ABA four times in rebounding average and he was named to the All-ABA First team five straight seasons, and the All-Defense team four times. He played in the ABA All-Star Game all five years he was in the league, the capstone of his time in the ABA was leading the 1974–75 Kentucky Colonels to the 1975 ABA championship and being named the ABA Playoffs Most Valuable Player. In the final game of the series, Gilmore had scored 28 points, during his days as an ABA dominator, Gilmore established league records for career blocked shots, blocked shots in a season, and rebounds in a game. The ABA ended its existence after the 1976 season, with four of its teams joining the NBA in the ABA–NBA merger, and the remaining teams, including the Kentucky Colonels, folding. Since his team, the Kentucky Colonels, had folded, Gilmore went into the special 1976 ABA dispersal draft, and he was chosen with the first overall pick by the Chicago Bulls. While not the force that he had been in the ABA, after four All-Star selections in five solid basketball seasons in Chicago. Twice again an All-Star in San Antonio through 1987, he rejoined the Bulls for part of the 1988 season before finishing his NBA career with the Boston Celtics in 1988. Gilmore played the 1988–89 season with Arimo Bologna of the Italian league, Gilmore played in a total of six NBA All-Star Games. He led the NBA in field goal percentage in four seasons, including a career-best 67% during the 1980–81 season — at the time. At the time of his retirement, Gilmore was the NBAs career leader in field goal percentage with 59. 9%, Gilmore was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011
13.
Steve Nash
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Stephen John Steve Nash, OC, OBC, is a Canadian retired professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association. He was an eight-time NBA All-Star and a seven-time All-NBA selection, twice, Nash was named the NBA Most Valuable Player while playing for the Phoenix Suns. He currently serves as manager of the Canadian national team. After a successful high school career in British Columbia, Nash earned a scholarship to Santa Clara University in California. In his four seasons with the Broncos, the team made three NCAA Tournament appearances, and he was named the West Coast Conference Player of the Year. Nash graduated from Santa Clara as the teams leader in assists and was taken as the 15th pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the Phoenix Suns. He made minimal impact and was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in 1998, by his fourth season with the Mavericks, he was voted to his first NBA All-Star Game and had earned his first All-NBA selection. Together with Dirk Nowitzki and Michael Finley, Nash led the Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals the following season and he became a free agent after the 2003–04 season and returned to the Phoenix Suns. In the 2004–05 season, Nash led the Suns to the Western Conference Finals and was named the leagues MVP and he was named MVP again in the 2005–06 season and was runner-up for a third consecutive MVP to Nowitzki in 2006–07. Named by ESPN in 2006 as the ninth-greatest point guard of all time, Nash led the league in assists and he is also ranked as one of the top players in NBA league history in three-point shooting, free-throw shooting, total assists, and assists per game. Nash has been honoured for his contributions to various philanthropic causes, in 2006, he was named by Time as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. He was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2007 and invested to the order in 2016, Nash has been a co-owner of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC of Major League Soccer since the team entered the league in 2011. In 2012, he was named manager of the Canadian mens national basketball team. Nash was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, to a Welsh mother, Jean and his family moved to Regina, Saskatchewan when he was 18 months old, before settling in Victoria, British Columbia. He therefore holds British as well as Canadian citizenship, before the family settled in Canada, his father played professional soccer in various parts of the world. Nash often played soccer and ice hockey with his younger brother Martin, in grade eight, however, he told his mother that one day he would play in the NBA and would become a star. He was neighbour to future NHL stars Russ and Geoff Courtnall, there, he starred in basketball, soccer, and rugby union. While playing basketball during his season, Nash averaged 21.3 points,11.2 assists
14.
Slam dunk
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This is considered a normal field goal attempt, if successful it is worth two points. Such a shot was known as a shot until the term slam dunk was coined by former Los Angeles Lakers announcer Chick Hearn. The slam dunk is the most efficient basketball shot, thus, the maneuver is often extracted from the basketball game and showcased in slam dunk contests. Perhaps the most popular is the NBA Slam Dunk Contest held during the annual NBA All-Star Weekend, the first incarnation of the NBA Slam Dunk Contest was held during the half-time of the 1976 American Basketball Association All-Star Game. Dunking was banned in the NCAA from 1967 to 1976, many people have attributed this to the dominance of the then-college phenomenon Lew Alcindor, the no-dunking rule is sometimes referred to as the Lew Alcindor rule. The phrase slam dunk has since entered popular usage in American English, meaning a sure thing, during the 1940s and 50s, 7-foot center and Olympic Gold Medalist Bob Kurland was dunking regularly during games. Yet defenders viewed the execution of a slam dunk as an affront that deserved retribution, thus defenders often intimidated offensive players. Satch Sanders, a career Boston Celtic from 1960 to 1973, said. in the old days, still, by the late 1950s and early 60s players such as Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain had incorporated the move into their offensive arsenal. The dunk became a fan-favorite, as players began to aggressively intimidate defenders with the threat of vicious slams. Through the 1970s, the dunk was standard fare, David Thompson, Julius Erving, Darryl Dawkins. Dunk types reflect the various motions performed on the way to the basket and they start with the basic one- or two-hand forward-facing dunk and go on through various levels of athleticism and intricacy. At the onset of the jump, the ball is controlled by one or both hands and once in the air is typically brought to chest level. The player will then quickly thrust the ball downwards and fully extend their arms, finally the ball is brought above the head and dunked with one or both hands, and the double pump appears as one fluid motion. As a demonstration of athletic prowess, the ball may be held in the below-the-waist position for milliseconds longer, whether the result of a 180° spin or body angle at takeoff, the double pump is generally performed with the players back toward the rim. While this orientation is rather conducive to the double pump motion, additionally, Kenny Sky Walker, Tracy McGrady—in the 1989 and 2000 NBA Contests, respectively—and others, have performed 360° variation of the double pump. Circa 2007, independent slam dunker T-Dub performed the double pump with a 540° spin which he concluded by hanging on the rim, due to the undemanding body mechanics involved in execution, the tomahawk is employed by players of all sizes and jumping abilities. Because of the ball-security provided by the use of hands, the tomahawk is a staple of game situations—frequently employed in alley-oops and in offense-rebound put-back dunks. Additionally, the finish can exert tremendous force on the basket—Darryl Dawkins twice shattered NBA backboards with tomahawk dunks
15.
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
