1.
Riverside, California
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Riverside is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, located in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. Riverside is the county seat of the county and named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire and in Riverside County and it is also part of the Greater Los Angeles area. Riverside is the 59th most populous city in the United States, as of the 2010 Census, Riverside had a population of 303,871. Riverside was founded in the early 1870s and it is the birthplace of the California citrus industry and home of the Mission Inn, the largest Mission Revival Style building in the United States. It is also home to the Riverside National Cemetery, the University of California, Riverside, is located in the northeastern part of the city. The university also hosts the Riverside Sports Complex, in the late 1700s and early 1800s, the area was inhabited by Cahuilla and the Serrano people. Californios such as Bernardo Yorba and Juan Bandini established ranches during the first half of the 19th century, in the 1860s, Louis Prevost launched the California Silk Center Association, a short-lived experiment in sericulture. In the wake of its failure, John W. North purchased some of its land, in March 1870, North distributed posters announcing the formation of a colony in California. North, a staunch temperance-minded abolitionist from New York State, had formerly founded Northfield, a few years later, some navel orange trees were planted and found to be such a success that full-scale planting began. Riverside was temperance minded, and Republican, there were four saloons in Riverside when it was founded. The license fees were raised until the saloons moved out of Riverside, investors from England and Canada transplanted traditions and activities adopted by prosperous citizens. As a result, the first golf course and polo field in Southern California were built in Riverside. C, the trees came from Bahia, Brazil. The Bahia orange did not thrive in Florida, but its success in Southern California was phenomenal, the three trees were planted on the Tibbetts property. One of the trees died after it was trampled by a cow during the first year it was planted, after the trampling, the two remaining trees were transplanted to property belonging to Sam McCoy to receive better care than L. C. That tree still stands to this day inside a protective fence abutting what is now a major intersection, the trees thrived in the Southern California climate and the navel orange industry grew rapidly. Many growers purchased bud wood and then grafted the cuttings to root stock, by 1882, there were more than half a million citrus trees in California, almost half of which were in Riverside. The development of refrigerated cars and innovative irrigation systems established Riverside as the richest city in the United States by 1895
2.
Riverside Polytechnic High School
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Riverside Polytechnic High School is a four-year public high school in Riverside, California, United States, and part of the Riverside Unified School District. Riverside Polytechnic High School traces its heritage from 1887, when the newly formed city of Riverside needed higher education for the community, the first joint elementary and high schools first graduating class in 1890 comprised seven students—four girls and three boys. In 1910, Riverside High Schools enrollment was approximately 500 students, in 1911, the genders were separated, creating a Girls High School at the Ninth Street building, and the Polytechnic High School for boys at a newly constructed campus on Terracina Avenue. Fuller continued as principal of the Girls High School, and Mr. J. E. McKown was appointed principal of the Riverside Polytechnic High School, in 1916, the Polytechnic High School began offering postgraduate classes. The Riverside Junior College District was formed in 1920, and the Riverside Junior College moved out of the school to an adjacent property. World War I brought changes to high school campuses. The earlier enrollment explosion waned as young men joined the armed forces, in 1924, the school board created a junior high school level and consolidated the senior high schools into one co-educational school. A new Applied Arts Building provided Home Economics and other facilities for the girls, the old Girls High School now served as a Girls Junior High School, while the Boys Junior High School was located at the old Grant School. 1924–25 saw the Junior College and the Senior High School with growing enrollments, There were 202 seniors in 1924. During World War II, many Poly girls worked with a federal government–sponsored group called the High School Victory Corps, the girls helped make bandages and other needed items, or worked in essential industries after school. All who took part in these activities were volunteers, in 1944, the Victory Corps was discontinued at Poly. In the 1940s, there was a tradition that each incoming class at the school would be given a nickname that would remain with the class until their graduation. For example, the class of 1951 was dubbed the Geeks, in 1956, double sessions at Poly were needed until a second high school, Ramona High, could be built. As high school enrollment continued to grow, it was evident that a high school would be needed in Riverside. In 1960, a new school, Rubidoux, shared the Poly campus until its campus could be completed in 1961. Both high schools opened their doors in September 1965, with the Victoria site keeping the name of Riverside Polytechnic High School. Since that time, Poly High School classes have taken place on the present site and it is the oldest JROTC program west of the Mississippi River, and second oldest in the United States. In 1970 it was among the first JROTC units to offer a girls program There were 51 young men making up the Class of 1916 and this class was the first to complete the four-year course offered in the new building
3.
UCLA Bruins men's basketball
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The UCLA Bruins mens basketball program represents the University of California, Los Angeles in mens college basketball. Established in 1919, UCLA has won a record 11 NCAA Mens Division I Basketball Championships, UCLA teams coached by John Wooden won 10 national titles in 12 seasons, from 1964 to 1975, including seven straight from 1967 to 1973. UCLA went undefeated a record four times, in 1964,1967,1972, Coach Jim Harrick led the team to another NCAA title in 1995. Former coach Ben Howland led UCLA to three consecutive Final Four appearances from 2006 to 2008, UCLA won 13 consecutive regular season conference titles between 1967 and 1979, an NCAA record they currently share with Kansas, whose streak is currently active. On March 30,2013, Steve Alford was named the schools 13th head mens basketball coach, UCLA mens basketball has set several NCAA records. 11 NCAA titles 7 consecutive NCAA titles 12 NCAA title game appearances*10 consecutive Final Four appearances 25 Final Four wins*38 game NCAA Tournament winning streak 134 weeks ranked No, cozens coached the basketball team for two seasons, finishing with an overall record of 21–4. Caddy Works was the coach of the Bruins from 1921 to 1939. Works was a lawyer by profession and coached the only during the evenings. According to UCLA player and future Olympian Frank Lubin, Works was more of a coach with little basketball knowledge. Wilbur Johns was the UCLA basketball head coach from 1939 to 1948, from 1948 to 1975, John Wooden, nicknamed the Wizard of Westwood, served as head coach at UCLA. He won ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period, seven of those in a row, within this period, his teams won a mens basketball-record 88 consecutive games. Prior to Woodens arrival, UCLA had only won two championship seasons in the previous 18 years. By 1962, with the no longer in place, Wooden had returned the Bruins to the top of their conference. This time, however, they would take the next step, a narrow loss, due largely to a controversial foul call, in the semifinal of the 1962 NCAA Tournament convinced Wooden that his Bruins were ready to contend for national championships. The result was a increase in scoring, giving UCLA a powerhouse team that went undefeated on its way to the schools first basketball national championship. Woodens team repeated as champions the following season before the 1966 squad fell briefly. UCLA was ineligible to play in the NCAA tournament that year, in January 1968, UCLA took its 47-game winning streak to the Astrodome in Houston, where Lew Alcindor squared off against Elvin Hayes in the Game of the Century before a national television audience. Houston upset UCLA 71-69 as Hayes scored 39 points, in a post-game interview, Wooden said, We have to start over
4.
1987 NBA draft
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The 1987 NBA draft was held on June 22,1987, in New York City. This draft is notable for the selection of two members of the NBA50 Greatest Players list, David Robinson and Scottie Pippen. Other notable selections include Kevin Johnson, Kenny Smith, Horace Grant, Reggie Lewis, Muggsy Bogues, Mark Jackson, and Šarūnas Marčiulionis. Also in this draft, former Florida Gators head mens basketball coach Billy Donovan, note that David Robinson did not join the NBA until the 1989–90 season due to his service commitment with the United States Navy. This was the last NBA draft to go three rounds, as it was reduced to exactly three next year and later to two since 1989. These draft picks played at least one game in the NBA but were selected after the second round and these players were not selected in the draft but still appeared in at least one regular or postseason NBA game
5.
Indiana Pacers
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The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association as a club of the leagues Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first established in 1967 as a member of the American Basketball Association and they play their home games at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The team is named after Indianas history with the Indianapolis 500s pace cars, the Pacers have won three championships, all in the ABA. The Pacers were Eastern Conference champions in 2000, the team has won nine division titles. Five Hall of Fame players – Reggie Miller, Chris Mullin, Alex English, Mel Daniels, in early 1967, a group of six investors pooled their resources to purchase a franchise in the proposed American Basketball Association. For their first seven years, they played in the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum, in 1974, they moved to the plush new Market Square Arena in downtown Indianapolis, where they played for 25 years. Early in the Pacers second season, former Indiana Hoosiers standout Bob Slick Leonard became the head coach. Leonard quickly turned the Pacers into a juggernaut and his teams were buoyed by the great play of superstars such as Mel Daniels, George McGinnis, Bob Netolicky, Rick Mount and Roger Brown. The Pacers were – and ended – as the most successful team in ABA history, in all, they appeared in the ABA Finals five times in the leagues nine-year history, a feat that was never bettered by any other ABA franchise. The Pacers were one of four ABA teams that joined the NBA in the ABA–NBA merger in 1976, for the 1976–77 season the Pacers were joined in the merged league by the Denver Nuggets, New York Nets, and San Antonio Spurs. The league charged a $3.2 million entry fee for each former ABA team, as a result of the merger, the four teams dealt with financial troubles. Additionally, the Pacers had some financial troubles which dated back to their days in the ABA. The new NBA teams also were barred from sharing in national TV revenues for four years, the Pacers finished their inaugural NBA season with a record of 36–46. Billy Knight and Don Buse represented Indiana in the NBA All-Star Game, however, this was one of the few bright spots of the Pacers first 13 years in the NBA. During this time, they had only three non-losing seasons and only two playoff appearances, a lack of continuity became the norm for most of the next decade, as they traded away Knight and Buse before the 1977–78 season even started. They acquired Adrian Dantley in exchange for Knight, but Dantley was traded in December, while the Pacers second-leading scorer, the early Pacers came out on the short end of two of the most one-sided trades in NBA history. In 1980, they traded Alex English to the Nuggets in order to reacquire former ABA star George McGinnis, McGinnis was long past his prime, and contributed very little during his two-year return
6.
Shooting guard
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The shooting guard, also known as the two or off guard, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guards main objective is to score points for his team, some teams ask their shooting guards to bring up the ball as well, these players are known colloquially as combo guards. A player who can switch between playing shooting guard and small forward is known as a swingman, notable swing men include Jimmy Butler, Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter, Joe Johnson, Andre Iguodala, Andrew Wiggins, Evan Turner and Tyreke Evans. In the NBA, shooting guards usually range from 64 to 67, the Basketball Handbook by Lee Rose describes a shooting guard as someone whose primary role is to score points. As the name suggests, most shooting guards are good long-range shooters, typically, shooting guards are taller than point guards. Height at the position varies, many bigger shooting guards also play small forward, Shooting guards should be good ball handlers and be able to pass reasonably well, though passing is not their main priority. Since good shooting guards may attract double-teams, they are frequently the teams back-up ball handlers to the point guard, Shooting guards must be able to score in various ways, especially late in a close game when defenses are tighter. They need to have a free throw percentage too, to be reliable in close games. Because of the level of offensive skills shooting guards need, they are often a teams primary scoring option. Good shooting guards can usually play point guard to a certain extent, Lee H. Rose ISBN 0-7360-4906-1 Media related to Shooting guards at Wikimedia Commons
7.
1995 NBA All-Star Game
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The 1995 NBA All-Star Game was the 45th edition of the All-Star Game. The city of Phoenix hosted the event, mitch Richmond of the Sacramento Kings was voted MVP of the game. The 1995 NBA All-Star Game was broadcast by NBC the fifth consecutive year, ^INJ Cedric Ceballos did not participate due to injury. ^REP Dikembe Mutombo replaced Cedric Ceballos
8.
1996 NBA All-Star Game
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The 1996 NBA All-Star Game was the 46th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, an exhibition basketball game played on Sunday February 11,1996. The event was held at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas and was a part of the 50th season of the NBA, the game was televised nationally by the television providers TNT and TBS in the United States. As for Canada the game was televised nationally by TSN, there were 36,037 people in attendance. Michael Jordan put on a show for the fans in his first game back from retirement, phil Jackson from the Chicago Bulls coached the Eastern Conference and George Karl from the Seattle SuperSonics coached the Western Conference. The rosters for the All-Star game were chosen via a fan ballot, the fans would vote for every position, as well as the coaches, and the players that received the most votes would be placed on a team. If a player were unable to due to an injury. Grant Hill led the voting with 1,358,004 votes with Michael Jordan being right behind him with 1,341,422 votes. The rest of the Eastern conference starters were Anfernee Hardaway, Scottie Pippen, the reserves included Patrick Ewing, Reggie Miller, Vin Baker and Terrell Brandon. For the West, the person that led the voting was Charles Barkley with 1,268,195 votes. Clyde Drexler, after seven appearances with Portland Trail Blazers, appeared in the game for the first time as a Houston Rocket, the rest of the Western starters were Jason Kidd, Shawn Kemp, and Hakeem Olajuwon. The reserves included David Robinson, Gary Payton, Sean Elliott and this game was played after what is considered by many experts as one of greatest drafts in the NBA history due to the future hall of fame talent that was added that year. The anticipation for this game was compared to the years before. This game was the first All-Star game that Michael Jordan played in after returning from his first retirement and he scored 20 points,4 rebounds and 1 assist shooting at about a 73% average for the game. Shaquille O’Neal, scored 25 points with 10 rebounds to lead the East in scoring, for the West on the other hand, Jason Kidd was the assist leader with 10 assists in his first All-Star Game appearance. The scoring leaders for the West were David Robinson and Gary Payton with both players contributing 18 points respectively, the East won the game with a score of 129-118. Although there was a deal of controversy with fans saying that Shaquille O’Neal deserved the award
9.
2000 NBA All-Star Game
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The 2000 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game which was played on February 13,2000 at the Oakland Arena in Oakland, California, home of the Golden State Warriors. This game was the 49th edition of the North American National Basketball Association All-Star Game and was played during the 1999-2000 NBA season, the Western Conference won the game with the score of 137-126 while Shaquille ONeal and Tim Duncan were both named MVP of the game. ONeal took the All Star MVP trophy saying to Duncan, you already have one of those rings, Allen Iverson was the leading scorer of the game with 26 points. The coach for the Western Conference team was Los Angeles Lakers head coach Phil Jackson, the Lakers had a 37–11 record on February 13. The coach for the Eastern Conference team was New York Knicks head coach Jeff Van Gundy, the Knicks had a 29-18 record on February 13. The rosters for the All-Star Game were chosen in two ways, the starters were chosen via a fan ballot. Two guards, two forwards and one center who received the highest vote were named the All-Star starters, the reserves were chosen by votes among the NBA head coaches in their respective conferences. The coaches were not permitted to vote for their own players, the reserves consist of two guards, two forwards, one center and two players regardless of position. If a player is unable to due to injury, the commissioner will select a replacement. Vince Carter of the Toronto Raptors topped the ballots with 1,911,973 votes, Allen Iverson, Eddie Jones, Grant Hill, and Alonzo Mourning completed the Eastern Conference starting position. This was the first All-Star appearance by Carter and Iverson, the Eastern Conference reserves included five first-time selections, Allan Houston, Ray Allen, Glenn Robinson, Jerry Stackhouse, and Dale Davis. Reggie Miller, and Dikembe Mutombo rounded out the team with their fifth and sixth respective appearances, three teams, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons, and Milwaukee Bucks, had two representations at the All-Star Game with Miller/Davis, Hill/Stackhouse, and Allen/Robinson. The Western Conferences leading vote-getter was Shaquille ONeal, who earned his seventh consecutive All-Star Game selection with 1,807,609 votes, jason Kidd, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, and Tim Duncan completed the Western Conference starting positions. Bryant, Garnett, and ONeal were starters for the previous years Western Conference team, Duncan became an All-Star Game starter for the first time after he was selected as a reserve in last years game. The Western Conference reserves include two first-time selections, Rasheed Wallace and Michael Finley, the team is rounded out by Gary Payton, Chris Webber, John Stockton, Karl Malone, and David Robinson. Three teams, Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, and San Antonio Spurs, had two representations at the All-Star Game with Bryant/ONeal, Malone/Stockton, and Duncan/Robinson. The Eastern Conference led in the first three minutes of the game but then the Western Conference took advantage and finished the first quarter leading 33-26. The East tried to back in the second quarter but the score at halftime the West was still ahead of five points
10.
All-NBA Third Team
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The All-NBA Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The voting is conducted by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States, the team has been selected in every season of the leagues existence, dating back to its inaugural season in 1946. The All-NBA Team originally had two teams, but since 1988 it is composed of three five-man lineups—a first, second, and third team, typically comprising a total of 15 roster spots. Players receive five points for a first team vote, three points for a team vote, and one point for a third team vote. The five players with the highest point totals make the first team, with the next five making the second team, in the case of a tie at the fifth position of any team, the roster is expanded. If the first team consists of six due to a tie. A tie has occurred once, in 1952, when Bob Davies. From 1946 to 1955, players were selected without regard to position, however, since 1956, kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan hold the record for the most total selections with fifteen. Karl Malone and Shaquille ONeal follow with fourteen total honors, while Schayes, Bob Cousy, Jerry West, Hakeem Olajuwon, Dirk Nowitzki, and LeBron James have twelve selections. From the 1946–47 season to 1954–55 season, the All-NBA Team was composed of two teams, each with five spots, except when there were ties. During this period, players were selected without regard to position, from the 1955–56 season to 1987–88 season, the All-NBA Team was composed of two teams, each with five roster spots, except when there were ties. During this time, players were selected with regard to position, they are listed according to position in the descending order. Since the 1988–89 season, the All-NBA Team has been composed of three teams, each with five spots, except when there are ties. Players are selected with regard to position, they are listed according to position in the descending order. The following table lists players with at least ten total selections. National Basketball Association portal All-NBA Development League Team General Specific
11.
J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award
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The award is named in honor of James Walter Kennedy, the second commissioner of the NBA. The winner is selected by the Pro Basketball Writers Association, the PBWA represents writers for newspapers, magazines and internet services who cover the NBA on a regular basis. Members of the PBWA nominate players for the award, and then a vote is taken by approximately 150 PBWA members, the person with the highest point total wins the award. The award is given to a person who made a substantial charitable contribution. For instance, Kevin Garnett received the award in 2006 after donating $1.2 million toward the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, since its inception, the award has been given to 34 different people. Only one season had joint winners—Michael Cooper and Rory Sparrow in the 1985–86 season, mutombo is also the only player to win the award twice. Frank Layden and Joe OToole were the only non-players to win the award, Layden, the 1983–84 award recipient, was the head coach for the Utah Jazz, while OToole, the 1994–95 award recipient, was the athletic trainer for the Atlanta Hawks. National Basketball Association portal General Specific
12.
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
13.
UCLA Bruins men's basketball retired numbers
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The mens college basketball program of the University of California, Los Angeles was founded in 1920 and is known competitively as the UCLA Bruins. The Bruins have won 11 National Collegiate Athletic Association Mens Division I Basketball Championships, UCLA players have been assigned jersey numbers ranging from 0 to 78 in the teams history. The school no longer issues 10 retired numbers in honor of former players, to qualify, a player must have been a three-time consensus All-American, a consensus national player of the year, or been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The retired numbers are displayed in the rafters of the Bruins home arena, uCLAs legendary coach John Wooden generally opposed having numbers retired. Numbers retired by UCLA were originally limited to three-time consensus All-Americans, in 1990, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, known as Lew Alcindor during his UCLA career, and Bill Walton were the first to have their numbers retired. The ceremony was held in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of Pauley Pavilion, Wooden valued team play over individual accolades, and he opposed retiring numbers. What about the fellows who wore that number before, didnt they contribute to the team. Wooden did think highly of Abdul-Jabbar and Walton, if such a thing can be deserved, itd be Alcindor and Walton. But I dont think it would be anyone else, said Wooden, UCLA in 1996 expanded the requirements for retiring numbers to include players who were consensus national players of the year. This allowed the numbers of Walt Hazzard, Sidney Wicks, Marques Johnson. In 2004, UCLA also allowed players inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame to be eligible, three Bruins were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2012, and UCLA retired their numbers in 2013—Jamaal Wilkes, Reggie Miller, and Don Barksdale. Eight of the players honored were members of NCAA championship teams, although Hazzards No.42 was retired, he allowed Kevin Love to wear it. Johnsons retired No.54 was worn by his sons, Kris, while Robinson wore several different numbers while at the school from 1939 to 1941, the number 42 was chosen because it was the number he wore during his Brooklyn Dodgers career
14.
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
15.
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
16.
Basketball at the Summer Olympics
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Basketball at the Summer Olympics has been a sport for men consistently since 1936. Prior to its inclusion as a sport, basketball was held as a demonstration event in 1904. Womens basketball has played in the Summer Olympics since its first appearance in 1976. United States womens teams have won 8 titles out of the 10 tournaments in which they competed, besides the United States, Argentina is the only nation still in existence who has won either the mens or womens tournament. The Soviet Union, Yugoslavia and the Unified Team are the countries no longer in existence who have won the tournament, Basketball was invented by James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1891. Within a few decades, the new game became popular throughout the United States as an indoor sport, the popularity spread overseas and the International Basketball Federation was organized in 1932 in Geneva, Switzerland. Thanks in part to the effort of Phog Allen—a Kansas Jayhawks collegiate coach—the first Olympic basketball tournament was organized in the 1936 Olympics at Berlin on outdoor tennis courts, dr. Naismith presented the medals to the top three teams. According to the Olympic rules of time, all of the competitors were amateurs. The tournament was held indoors for the first time in 1948, the American team proved its dominance, winning the first seven Olympic tournaments until 1968, without losing a single game. The United States winning streak ended in 1972 under highly controversial circumstances, after the game, the American team refused to accept the silver medal, and the medal has been kept in IOC possession ever since. The Americans reclaimed the gold medal in 1976, with Yugoslavia, in 1980, with the Americans absence due to the boycott, Yugoslavia became the third team to win the title, after beating the Soviets anew in the semifinals and Italy in the final. The United States regained the title in 1984, by beating Spain in the final, the Soviets won the gold medal for the second time in 1988, after beating the Americans for the second time in the semifinal, and the Yugoslavs in the gold medal game. In April 1989, through the leadership of Secretary General Borislav Stanković, FIBA approved the rule that allowed NBA players to compete in international tournaments, by this time, the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia no longer existed, but their successor states continued to be among the leading forces. Two newly independent countries of the former Yugoslavia and Soviet Union, Croatia and Lithuania, won the silver, the United States repeated its victory in 1996 and 2000, but its performance was not as successful as in 1992. Since active NBA players have been allowed to compete in the Summer Olympics, Yugoslavia was the runner-up in Atlanta, and France in Sydney, with Lithuania winning bronze again on both occasions. The Americans regrouped in 2008, beating the current FIBA world champions, Spain, in a gold medal game. The Americans and the Spaniards met again in the 2012 gold medal game, with the Americans again winning, the first womens tournament was in 1976. The Soviet Union won against five other teams, in 1988, the tournament expanded into eight teams, with the Americans beating Yugoslavia in the gold medal game
17.
1996 Summer Olympics
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A record 197 nations, all current IOC member nations, took part in the Games, comprising 10,318 athletes. The 1996 Summer Games were the first to be staged in a different year from the Winter Games, Atlanta became the fifth American city to host the Olympic Games and the third to hold a Summer Olympic Games. Atlanta was selected on September 18,1990, in Tokyo, Japan, over Athens, Belgrade, Manchester, Melbourne, and Toronto at the 96th IOC Session. Atlantas bid to host the Summer Games that began in 1987 was considered a long-shot and this would be Torontos fourth failed attempt since 1960. The Athens bid was based on the fact that 1996 marked 100 years since the first Summer Games in Greece in 1896, though Athens would eventually host the 2004 Summer Olympics. The Oxford Olympics Study 2016 estimates the outturn cost of the Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics at USD4.1 billion in 2015-dollars and cost overrun at 151% in real terms. This includes sports-related costs only, that is, operational costs incurred by the committee for the purpose of staging the Games. The competition venues, the Olympic village, international broadcast center, and media and press center, which are required to host the Games. The cost and cost overrun for Atlanta 1996 compares with costs of USD4.6 billion, average cost for the Summer Games since 1960 is USD5.2 billion, average cost overrun is 176%. The 1996 Olympics was predicated on the model established by the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. The cost to stage the Games was US$1.8 billion, to pay for the games, Atlanta relied on commercial sponsorship and ticket sales, resulting in a profit of $10 million. Events of the 1996 Games were held in a variety of areas, a number were held within the Olympic Ring, a 3 mi circle from the center of Atlanta. Others were held at Stone Mountain, about 20 miles outside of the city, to broaden ticket sales, other events, such as soccer, occurred in various cities in the Southeast. The opening ceremony featured Céline Dion singing The Power of the Dream, the mascot for the Olympiad was an abstract, animated character named Izzy. In contrast to the tradition of mascots of national or regional significance in the city hosting the Olympiad, Izzy was an amorphous. The 1996 Olympics were the first to have two separate opening ceremony events, Savannah, because of its geographical separation from Atlanta, had its own opening ceremonies on July 18,1996. The event featured Worldwide Connection, a composed by Savannah native Jeffrey Reed and a concert by Trisha Yearwood. Atlantas Olympic slogan Come Celebrate Our Dream was written by Jack Arogeti, the slogan was selected from more than 5,000 submitted by the public to the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau
18.
Basketball at the 1996 Summer Olympics
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Basketball contests at the 1996 Olympic Games were held from July 20,1996 to August 4,1996. Games took place in the Morehouse College Gymnasium and in the Georgia Dome, for the second straight Olympic games, the American mens team composed almost completely of NBA players won the gold medal. The Summer Olympics have never returned to the United States or to Canada since then and he had played for the Bulls in 1992 and later that year, for the Dream Team at the Barcelona Olympics. An NOC may enter up to one team with 12 players. For the womens tournament, the teams consisted of the runner-up from the Americas, in addition to the second and third places from Asia. Twelve teams are split into two preliminary round groups of six teams each, the top four teams from both groups qualify for the knockout stage. Fifth and sixth places from each form an additional bracket to decide 9th–12th places in the final ranking. In the quarterfinals, the matchups are as follows, A1 vs. B4, A2 vs. B3, A3 vs. B2, the four eliminated from the quarterfinals form an additional bracket to decide 5th–8th places in the final ranking. The winning teams from the meet in the semifinals as follows, A1/B4 vs. A3/B2. The winning teams from the semifinals contest the gold medal, the losing teams contest the bronze. The womens event involved 12 teams split in two groups, the four best teams from each group advanced to the quarterfinal round. 9th–12th Place 5th–8th Place http, //www. basketball-reference. com/olympics/years/1996 The four best teams from each advanced to the quarterfinal round. 9th–12th Place 5th–8th Place 1996 Olympic Games, Tournament for Men,1996 Olympic Games, Tournament for Women, FIBA Archive
19.
FIBA Basketball World Cup
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It is considered to be the flagship event of the International Basketball Federation. The world championship is considered to be just as prestigious as the basketball gold medal. The championship has held every four years since the inaugural tournament in 1950. The tournament structure is similar, but not identical, to that of the FIFA World Cup, a parallel event for womens teams, now known as the FIBA Womens Basketball World Cup, is also held quadrennially. From 1986 through 2014, the mens and womens championships were held in the same year, the current format of the tournament involves 24 teams competing for the title at venues within the host nation. The winning team receives the Naismith Trophy, first awarded in 1967, the current champions are the United States, who defeated Serbia in the final of the 2014 tournament. Following the 2014 FIBA championships for men and women, the mens World Cup was scheduled on a new four-year cycle to avoid conflict with the FIFA World Cup, the next mens World Cup will be held in 2019, in the year following the FIFA World Cup. All FIBA World Championship/World Cup tournaments from the 1994 edition onward, are considered as fully professional level tournaments. The FIBA Basketball World Cup was conceived at a meeting of the FIBA World Congress at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. Long-time FIBA Secretary-General Renato William Jones urged FIBA to adopt a World Championship, similar to the FIFA World Cup, the FIBA Congress, seeing how successful the 23-team Olympic tournament was that year, agreed to the proposal, beginning with a tournament in 1950. Argentina was selected as host, largely because it was the country willing to take on the task. Argentina took advantage of the host selection, winning all their games en route to becoming the first FIBA World Champion, the first five tournaments were held in South America, and teams from the Americas dominated the tournament, winning eight of nine medals at the first three tournaments. By 1963, however, teams from Eastern Europe and Southeast Europe, between 1963 and 1990, the tournament was dominated by the United States, the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and Brazil who together accounted for every medal at the tournament. United States dominated that year and won gold, while former states of USSR and Yugoslavia - Russia and Croatia - won Silver, the 1998 FIBA World Championship, held in Greece, lost some of its luster when the 1998–99 NBA lockout prevented the American professional players from participating. New Yugoslavian team, now consisting of the former Yugoslav republics of Serbia and Montenegro, won the gold medal over Russia, while USA, playing with amateur players, in 2002 other nations eventually caught up to the four powerhouse countries and their successor states. Meanwhile, the United States team, made up entirely of NBA players and this new era of parity convinced FIBA to expand the tournament to 24 teams for 2006,2010 and 2014 editions of the tournament. In 2006, emerging powerhouse Spain beat Greece in the first appearance in the final for both teams, Spain became only the seventh team to capture a World Championship gold. The USA, who lost to Greece in a semifinal, beat Argentina in 3rd place match, in 2010 FIBA World Championship final the USA beat Turkey and won gold for first time in 16 years, while Lithuania beat Serbia and won bronze
20.
1994 FIBA World Championship
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The 1994 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Canada from August 4 to August 14,1994. The tournament was held at SkyDome and Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto as well as at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton. The hosting duties were awarded to Belgrade, Yugoslavia, but after United Nations imposed a trade embargo on the Balkan country. The tournament was won by the United Statess Dream Team II, the United States finished with a perfect 8–0 record. The bronze medal was won by Croatia who beat Greece 78–60 in the bronze-medal game, three stadia were used during the tournament, The following national teams competed, * North Korea withdrew from the tournament, South Korea replaced them. The top two teams each group remain in medal contention. The top two finishers from Groups I and II advance to the final round
21.
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
22.
Ray Allen
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Walter Ray Allen Jr. is an American former professional basketball player who played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association. After playing three seasons of basketball for Connecticut, Allen entered the NBA in 1996 and went on to play for the Milwaukee Bucks, Seattle SuperSonics, Boston Celtics. One of the most accurate three-point and free throw shooters in NBA history, he was a ten-time NBA All-Star and he also won an Olympic gold medal as a member of the 2000 United States mens basketball team. Allen is the NBAs all-time leader in career three-point field goals made in both the regular and postseason and he has acted in two films, one of which was a lead role in the 1998 Spike Lee film, He Got Game. The third of five children, Allen was born at Castle Air Force Base near Merced, California, a military child, he spent time growing up in Saxmundham in England, Altus in Oklahoma, Edwards Air Force Base in California, and Germany. He attended high school in Dalzell, South Carolina, where he led Hillcrest High School to a state championship. Allen attended the University of Connecticut from 1993 to 1996 after being recruited by assistant coach Karl Hobbs, while at UConn, he was named USA Basketballs Male Athlete of the Year in 1995. In 1995–96, his college season, Allen was a first-team All-American. Allen finished his UConn career third on the Huskies career scoring list with 1,922 points, in 2001, Allen was named honorary captain of the 25-member UConn All-Century Basketball Team. On February 5,2007, his name and number were honored at Connecticuts Gampel Pavilion during the Huskies of Honor ceremony at halftime of the basketball game against the Syracuse Orange. Allen was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the pick of the 1996 NBA draft. Immediately after his selection, Allen and Andrew Lang were traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for the rights to fourth pick Stephon Marbury. Allen made his NBA debut on November 1,1996 where he started and played 28 minutes and scored 13 points in a win against fellow rookie Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers. On January 12,1997 Allen put in one of his strongest efforts of the season in a win against the Golden State Warriors contributing 22 points,6 assists,3 steals and a new career high of 9 rebounds. Continuing his strong season, on March 25,1997 Allen scored a new career high of 32 points in a loss to the Phoenix Suns. Allen was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 1996, after an injury-riddled 2003–04 season, he was named to the All-NBA Second Team and, alongside teammate Rashard Lewis, led the Sonics to the Conference Semifinals in 2005. Allen told the press if the Lakers remained a mediocre squad, in about a year or two he will be calling out to Jerry Buss that we need some help in here. When asked about Allens comments, Bryant responded, Dont even put me, after the 2004–05 season, Allen signed a 5-year, $80 million contract extension
23.
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
24.
Retired number
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Retiring the number of an athlete is an honor a team bestows upon a player, usually after the player has left the team, retires from the sport or dies. Once a number is retired, no player from the team may wear that number on their uniform, unless the player so-honored permits it, however. Such an honor may also be bestowed on players who had highly memorable careers, died prematurely under tragic circumstances, some sports that retire team numbers include baseball, cricket, ice hockey, basketball, American football and association football. Retired jerseys are referred to as hanging from the rafters as they are, literally. The first number retired by a team in a professional sport was that of hockey player Ace Bailey. Some teams have retired number 12 in honor of their fans. Similarly, the Sacramento Kings and Orlando Magic retired number 6 in honor of their fans, if a jersey is retired and an active player is still wearing it, the player is usually permitted to wear the number for his entire career as a player. If in the sport, managers and coaches wear uniform numbers, however, in some cases the player may elect to change their number. For instance, in 1987 the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League decided to retire jersey number 7 in honor of Phil Esposito, at the time #7 belonged to Ray Bourque, who was the Bruins captain and had become a star in his own right. On the night of the ceremony honoring Esposito, Bourque took to the ice wearing his normal jersey. He skated over to the Hall of Famer, took off the jersey, underneath was a jersey numbered 77, which would become as associated with Bourque as the 7 was with Esposito in Boston. Bourques new jersey number would eventually join Espositos in the rafters of TD Garden, in rare cases, a number may be retired because of the players endeavors in other fields. For example, former football star Gerald Fords number 48 was retired by the University of Michigan football squad by virtue of his future career as the 38th President of the United States. Teams also take out of circulation without formally retiring them. For example, the Pittsburgh Steelers have only retired two numbers, Ernie Stautners #70 and Joe Greenes #75. However, they have not reissued the numbers of several of their greatest players since they retired, and it is understood that no Steeler will ever wear them again. Similarly, with the exception of a pair of quarterbacks in the mid-1980s, additionally, after Peyton Manning was released by the Indianapolis Colts, owner Jim Irsay stated that no Colt will ever wear Mannings #18 again, though it was not officially retired. After his departure from the team in 2004, the Lakers removed Shaquille ONeals #34 from circulation, the Lakers had announced the intention to retire ONeals #34 officially, though, doing so on April 2,2013
25.
NBA on TNT
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The NBA on TNT is Turner Network Televisions coverage of the National Basketball Association, produced by Turner Sports since 1989. TNT airs many of the NBAs marquee games, in recent years, fans have reckoned it as what NBC was during that networks coverage of the league. TNT would seem to be the NBAs preferred carrier as well, from 2003 to 2005, TNT also airs most of the big games during the regular season, and TNT studio content is streamed to NBA. com via the TNT Overtime section. Ernie Johnson Jr. has been TNTs NBA studio host since the 1990-1991 season, currently, Johnson is joined by Kenny The Jet Smith, Charles Barkley, and Shaquille ONeal. The NBA postgame show which features the four, Inside the NBA, has gained popularity in recent years for the chemistry, occasionally, Johnson, ONeal, Smith and Barkley are joined by Chris Webber, Kevin McHale, David Aldridge or Reggie Miller. TNTs playoff coverage is nicknamed 40 Games in 40 Nights, ESPN airs the other Conference Final, with weekend coverage of the ESPN-covered series and the Finals being broadcast on ABC. For the first round, TNTs coverage of the playoffs is not exclusive, regional networks can still carry a local call. After the first round, only national coverage from TNT or ESPN/ABC is produced, starting in 2000, the NBA spread out playoff series so that only two series would play per day. TNT would air doubleheaders on most weekdays, while TBS would air one doubleheader per week, with the advent of the new NBA television deal in 2003, TNT has aired playoff games alone, including some weekday tripleheaders. The tripleheaders, which were criticized by fans and many in the media, consisted of one game at 6,00 p. m. another at 8,30 p. m. After 2003, the NBA and TNT discontinued the tripleheaders, instead settling for a doubleheader on TNT, however, when Turner Sports acquired NBA TV in 2008, the network abandoned airing the lone non-national Thursday game, instead leaving it up to the local sports networks. However, TBS may still air the start of the game in case the ongoing first game on TNT extends beyond the tip-off time of the second game. Other than their regular Thursday schedule, TNT also airs NBA regular season games on Martin Luther King Day, during which tripleheaders were still used. However, in 2011, ESPN opted to air one matinee game on MLK Day, Albert and Steve Kerr called the game. In addition, NBA TVs Fan Night games gave way to TNT on select Tuesday nights, normally the studio crew of Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley would stay in the TNT Atlanta studios for all of the regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs. The substitute studio hosts will also be on hand for Inside the NBA and the other games pre-game and halftime presentations, on May 11,2011, Turner Sports broadcast its 1, 000th playoff telecast. In July 2011, it was announced that Shaquille ONeal would join as an analyst, for the 2012–13 season, Charles Barkley occasionally filled in as a game analyst for select games. During his studio absences, Chris Webber served as a studio analyst
26.
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
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The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as the sports most complete library, in addition to promoting and preserving the history of basketball, dedicated to Canadian physician and inventor of the sport James Naismith, it was opened and inducted its first class in 1959. As of the induction of the Class of 2016 on September 9,2016, the Naismith Hall of Fame was established in 1959 by Lee Williams, a former athletic director at Colby College. In the 1960s, the Basketball Hall of Fame struggled to raise money for the construction of its first facility. The Basketball Hall of Fames Board named four inductees in its first year, in addition to honoring those who contributed to basketball, the Hall of Fame sought to make contributions of its own. In 1979, the Hall of Fame sponsored the Tip-Off Classic and this Tip-Off Classic has been the start to the college basketball season ever since, and although it does not always take place in Springfield, Massachusetts, generally it returns every few years. In the 17 years that the original Basketball Hall of Fame operated at Springfield College, the popularity of the Basketball Hall of Fame necessitated that a new facility be constructed, and in 1985, an $11 million facility was built beside the scenic Connecticut River in Springfield. As the new hall opened, it also recognized women for the first time, with such as Senda Berenson Abbott. In 2002, the Basketball Hall of Fame moved again—albeit merely 100 yards south along Springfields riverfront—into a $47 million facility designed by renowned architects Gwathmey Siegel & Associates, the buildings architecture features a metallic silver, basketball-shaped sphere flanked by two similarly symmetrical rhombuses. The dome is illuminated at night and features 80,000 square foot, including numerous restaurants, the second Basketball Hall of Fame was not torn down but rather converted into an LA Fitness health clubs. The current Basketball Hall of Fame features Center Court, a basketball court on which visitors can play. Inside the building there are a gallery, many interactive exhibits, several theaters. A large theater for ceremonies seats up to 300, the honorees inducted in 2002 included the Harlem Globetrotters and Magic Johnson, a five-time NBA champion, three-time NBA finals MVP and Olympic gold medalist. As of 2011, the current Basketball Hall of Fame has greatly exceeded attendance expectations, despite the new facilitys success, a logistical problem remains for the Basketball Hall of Fame and the City of Springfield. Urban planners at universities such as UMass Amherst have called for the I-91 to be moved, in 2010, the Urban Land Institute announced a plan to make the walk between Springfields Metro Center and the Hall of Fame easier. Since 2011, the induction process employs a total of seven committees to both screen and elect candidates, since 2011, the Veterans and International Committees also vote to directly induct one candidate for each induction class. Contributor Direct Election Committee Note that other committees may choose to elect contributors, for example, the 2014 class included two contributors. However, each screening committee is limited as to the number of candidates it can put forth to the Honors Committee—10 from the North American Committee, any individual receiving at least 18 affirmative votes from the Honors Committee is approved for induction into the Hall of Fame
27.
Major League Baseball
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Major League Baseball is a professional baseball organization, the oldest of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. A total of 30 teams now play in the National League and American League, the NL and AL operated as separate legal entities from 1876 and 1901 respectively. After cooperating but remaining legally separate entities since 1903, the merged into a single organization led by the Commissioner of Baseball in 2000. The organization also oversees Minor League Baseball, which comprises about 240 teams affiliated with the Major League clubs, with the World Baseball Softball Confederation, MLB manages the international World Baseball Classic tournament. Baseballs first professional team was founded in Cincinnati in 1869,30 years after Abner Doubleday supposedly invented the game of baseball, the first few decades of professional baseball were characterized by rivalries between leagues and by players who often jumped from one team or league to another. The period before 1920 in baseball was known as the dead-ball era, Baseball survived a conspiracy to fix the 1919 World Series, which came to be known as the Black Sox Scandal. The sport rose in popularity in the 1920s, and survived potential downturns during the Great Depression, shortly after the war, baseballs color barrier was broken by Jackie Robinson. The 1950s and 1960s were a time of expansion for the AL and NL, then new stadiums, Home runs dominated the game during the 1990s, and media reports began to discuss the use of anabolic steroids among Major League players in the mid-2000s. In 2006, an investigation produced the Mitchell Report, which implicated many players in the use of performance-enhancing substances, today, MLB is composed of thirty teams, twenty-nine in the United States and one in Canada. Baseball broadcasts are aired on television, radio, and the Internet throughout North America, MLB has the highest season attendance of any sports league in the world with more than 73 million spectators in 2015. MLB is governed by the Major League Baseball Constitution and this document has undergone several incarnations since 1875, with the most recent revisions being made in 2012. Under the direction of the Commissioner of Baseball, MLB hires and maintains the sports umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, MLB maintains a unique, controlling relationship over the sport, including most aspects of Minor League Baseball. This ruling has been weakened only slightly in subsequent years, the weakened ruling granted more stability to the owners of teams and has resulted in values increasing at double-digit rates. There were several challenges to MLBs primacy in the sport between the 1870s and the Federal League in 1916, the last attempt at a new league was the aborted Continental League in 1960. The chief executive of MLB is the commissioner, Rob Manfred, the chief operating officer is Tony Petitti. There are five other executives, president, chief officer, chief legal officer, chief financial officer. The multimedia branch of MLB, which is based in Manhattan, is MLB Advanced Media and this branch oversees MLB. com and each of the 30 teams websites. Its charter states that MLB Advanced Media holds editorial independence from the league, MLB Productions is a similarly structured wing of the league, focusing on video and traditional broadcast media
28.
Catcher
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Catcher is also a general term for a fielder who catches the ball in cricket. Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player, when a batter takes his/her turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to primary duty, the catcher is also called upon to master many other skills in order to field the position well. The role of the catcher is similar to that of the wicket-keeper in cricket, positioned behind home plate, the catcher can see the whole field, and is therefore in the best position to direct and lead the other players in a defensive play. The catcher typically calls for using hand signals. The calls are based on the mechanics and strengths, as well as the batters tendencies and weaknesses. Foul tips, bouncing balls in the dirt, and contact with runners during plays at the plate are all events to be handled by the catcher and this includes a mask, chest and throat protectors, shin guards, and a heavily padded catchers mitt. The physical and mental demands of being involved on every defensive play can wear catchers down over a long season, because of the strategic defensive importance of catching, if a catcher has exceptional defensive skills, teams are often willing to overlook their relative offensive weaknesses. A knowledgeable catchers ability to work with the pitcher, via selection and location. Many great defensive catchers toiled in relative anonymity, because they did not produce large offensive numbers, notable examples of light-hitting, defensive specialists were, Ray Schalk, Jim Hegan, Jim Sundberg and Brad Ausmus. Schalks career batting average of.253 is the lowest of any player in the Baseball Hall of Fame. That he was selected for enshrinement in 1955 was largely a tribute to his defensive skills. Catchers are often able to play first base and less commonly third base, in the numbering system used to record baseball plays, the catcher is assigned the number 2. In the middle of the century, the game of baseball began to evolve from a sport played by amateurs for recreation into a more serious game played by professionals. One of the most dramatic changes was the transition of the delivery from an underhand motion to an overhanded throw. As the game progressed towards professionals and became serious, pitchers began to attempt to prevent the batter from hitting the ball by throwing faster pitches. With the introduction of the strike in 1858, catchers began inching closer to home plate due to the rules requirement that a strikeout could only be completed by a catch. These developments meant that catchers began to take on a defensive role
29.
Los Angeles Angels
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The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are an American professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball as a club of the American League West division. The Angels have played games at Angel Stadium of Anaheim since 1966. Wrigley, the owner of the Chicago Cubs at the time, in 2009, the Angels won the AL West division championship for the third straight season. The team name started in 1892, in 1903, the name continued in L. A. through the PCL. After the Angels joined the Major Leagues, some players from the Angels PCL team joined the Major League Angels in 1961. The Angels were one of two teams established as a result of the 1961 Major League Baseball expansion, along with the second incarnation of the Washington Senators. The team then moved in 1962 to newly built Dodger Stadium, which the Angels referred to as Chavez Ravine, the teams founder, entertainer Gene Autry, owned the franchise for its first 36 years. During Autrys ownership, the made the playoffs three times, but never won the pennant. When The Walt Disney Company took control of the team in 1997, it extensively renovated Anaheim Stadium, the City of Anaheim contributed $30 million to the $118 million renovation with a renegotiated lease providing that the names of both the stadium and team contain the word Anaheim. The team was renamed the Anaheim Angels and became a subsidiary of Disney Sports, under Disneys ownership and the leadership of manager Mike Scioscia, the Angels won their first pennant and World Series championship in 2002. In 2005, new owner Arturo Moreno added Los Angeles to the name in order to better tap into the teams history. He also stated that as Los Angeles is the second largest market in the U. S. its addition would benefit the team greatly. In compliance with the terms of its lease with the city of Anaheim, which required Anaheim be a part of the teams name, local media in Southern California tend to omit a geographic identifier and refer to the team as the Angels or as the Halos. The Associated Press, the most prominent news service in the U. S. refers to the team as the Los Angeles Angels, the mantra Win One for the Cowboy is a staple that is deeply rooted in Angels history for fans. The saying refers to the Angels founder and previous owner, Gene Autry, years went by as the team experienced many losses just strikes away from American League pennants. Autrys #26 was retired as the 26th man on the field for the Angels, Angel Stadium of Anaheim is nicknamed The Big A. It has a section in center field nicknamed the California Spectacular, each game begins with the song Calling All Angels by Train being played on the P. A. with Norman Greenbaums Spirit in the Sky being played during the teams starting lineup announcement
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Cal State Fullerton Titans
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The Cal State Fullerton Titans are the athletic teams that represent California State University, Fullerton. The Titans are a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division I level, the Titans compete within the Big West Conference for most sports, wrestling competes as a member of the Pac-12 Conference and gymnastics competes as a member of the Western Athletic Conference. CSUF has won 13 national championships in eight different sports, the CSUF Titans Athletic Department sponsors the following Intercollegiate Sports, Wrestling & Gymnastics were both dropped at the same time after the 2010-2011 season due to budget constraints. Fencing Intercollegiate Program for Men and Women was discontinued in 2008 due to budget constraints, Mens Tennis was discontinued after the 1987 season due to budget constraints. Football was discontinued in 1992 due to budget constraints, see also, The National Classic Baseball is Cal State Fullertons strongest athletic program. The Titans are consistently rated among the nations elite baseball programs and they have won four national championships in the NCAA Mens Baseball College World Series since 1979,1979,1984,1995, and 2004. Home games are played on campus at Goodwin Field, the team is currently coached by Rick Vanderhook. As of the end of the 2007 season, there had been 43 MLB players who played for the school. In 1978, the Mens Basketball team - coached by Bobby Dye - made it to the Elite 8 in basketball in the NCAA Tournament and were considered the years Cinderella story as a #7 seed. The team defeated University of New Mexico at Tempe, AZ, Fullerton was led by Greg Bunch, a CSUF Hall of Famer. Since then, the team has been to the NIT three times, in 2008, the team finished the season 24-9, defeated UC Irvine 81-66 in the Big West Conference Championship. They qualified for their second NCAA tournament, where they faced the Wisconsin Badgers as a #14 seed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, 2013-14 season Dedrique Taylor was named Head Coach of the Titans Mens Basketball team. Dedrique Taylor has been with Coach Herb Sendek at Arizona State University since 2006, prior to that, Taylor has coached at Nevada, Portland State Vikings Mens Basketball program, Loyola Marymount University Lions Mens Basketball program and UC Davis Aggies Mens Basketball program. Taylor, has long respected as one of the top recruiters in the west with strong ties to the Los Angeles area. Head Coach Dedrique Taylor played at UC Davis as well as two Junior Colleges and is a native of California, growing up in Pomona. Taylor replaces CSUF Interim Head Coach Andy Newman, who guided the Titans to a 14-18 record overall, Newman was the Interim Head Coach, replacing Head Coach Bob Burton last season. Titans Womens Basketball Record in 45 years since 1969,575 Wins,706 Losses. Finished 1st in the Conference -8 Titles Titans Genia Miller All-Time Leading Scorer with 2,415 Points followed by Toni Thomas at 1,786 Points, several Titans moved on to the NFL, including NY Giants standout Mark Collins
