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Slam Dunk Contest
The NBA Slam Dunk Contest (officially known as the AT&T Slam Dunk) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) competition held during the NBA All-Star Weekend. The contest was conceived of and started by the American Basketball Association (ABA) for its 1976 ABA All-Star Game in Denver. The winner was Julius Erving of the New York Nets. As a result of the ABA–NBA merger later that year, the contest moved to the NBA for the 1976–77 season. There was not another slam dunk contest at the professional level until 1984. The contest has adopted several formats over the years, including, until 2014, the use of fan voting, via text-messaging, to determine the winner of the final round. The current champion of the Slam Dunk Contest is Mac McClung of the Orlando Magic. History 1976 ABA Slam Dunk Contest The first-ever Slam Dunk Contest was held on January 27, 1976, at McNichols Sports Arena in Denver during halftime of the 1976 ABA All-Star Game, the league's final Al ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Obi Toppin
Obadiah Richard Toppin Jr. ( ; born March 4, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A power forward, he played college basketball for the Dayton Flyers men's basketball, Dayton Flyers. A native of New York City, Toppin was born in the borough of Brooklyn, and graduated from Ossining High School in New York. After receiving no NCAA Division I offers, he played a postgraduate season at Mt. Zion Preparatory School in Maryland. As a freshman with the Dayton Flyers, Toppin was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year after leading his team in scoring. He had breakout success in his sophomore season, earning Atlantic 10 Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year, Atlantic 10 Player of the Year and List of U.S. men's college basketball national player of the year awards, National College Player of the Year honors. After his sophomore college season, Toppin declared for the 2020 NBA draft where he was sel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference. The team was originally founded as the Denver Larks in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association (ABA), but changed their name to the Rockets before the first season began due to a swift ownership change that came from the owners of the local Ringsby Rocket Truck Lines company. The Rockets then changed their name to the Nuggets on August 7, 1974 as a precautionary measure for their franchise to move from the ABA to the NBA. After the name change, the Nuggets played for the final List of ABA champions, ABA Championship title in 1976, losing to the Brooklyn Nets, New York Nets. The team has had some periods of success, qualifying for the ABA playoffs in all but two seasons of the ABA's existence. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moses Malone
Moses Eugene Malone Sr. (March 23, 1955 – September 13, 2015) was an American professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1974 through 1995. A center, he was named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times, was a 12-time NBA All-Star and an eight-time All-NBA Team selection. Malone led the Philadelphia 76ers to an NBA championship in 1983, winning both the league and Finals MVP. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2001. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the sport's history, Malone is also seen as one of the most underrated players in NBA history. Malone began his professional career out of high school after he was selected in the third round of the 1974 ABA draft by the Utah Stars. He was named an ABA All-Star as a rookie and played two seasons in the league until it merged with the NBA ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elvin Hayes
Elvin Ernest Hayes (born November 17, 1945), nicknamed "the Big E", is an American former professional basketball player and radio analyst for his alma mater Houston Cougars. He is a member of the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams, and an inductee in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Known for both his offensive and defensive prowess, Hayes is often regarded as one of the best power forwards in NBA history. Hayes is also known for his longevity, being seventh all-time in NBA minutes played (at exactly 50,000), and missing only nine games during his 16-season career. Early life In Hayes' senior year at Britton High School, he led his team to the state championship, after averaging 35 points a game during the regular season. In the championship game victory, Hayes scored 45 points and grabbed 20 rebounds. College career In 1964, the University of Houston's administration informed Houston's basketball Coach, Guy Lewis, that he could recruit African American p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alex English
Alexander English (born January 5, 1954) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and businessman. A South Carolina native, English played college basketball for the South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball, South Carolina Gamecocks. He was selected in the second round of the National Basketball Association (NBA) draft in 1976. English played the small forward position and was a star player for the Denver Nuggets in the 1980s. During his Nuggets tenure (1979–1989), the team made the NBA playoffs nine consecutive times, won two Midwest Division titles, and reached the 1985 NBA Playoffs, 1985 Western Conference Finals. English played 15 seasons in the NBA for four teams, averaging 21.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. English scored more points than any other NBA player during the 1980s. He was named to eight NBA All-Star teams and made the All-NBA Second Team three times. English led the NBA in scoring in the 1982–83 NBA season, 1982–83 season. His numb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ( ; born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. , April 16, 1947) is an American former basketball player. He played professionally for 20 seasons for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins men's basketball, UCLA Bruins as a Center (basketball), center. A member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Abdul-Jabbar won a record six NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards. He was a 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA Team member, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team selection. He was a member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two more as an assistant coach, and was twice voted the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award, NBA Finals MVP. He was named to three NBA anniversary teams (NBA 35th Anniversary Team, 35th, 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, 50th, and NBA 75th Anniversary Team, 75th). Widely regarded as one of the greatest playe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1977–78 NBA Season
The 1977–78 NBA season was the 32nd season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Washington Bullets winning the NBA Championship, beating the Seattle SuperSonics 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals. Notable occurrences *On October 10, 1977, and in a shocking moment to Knicks fans, the New York Knicks traded Walt Frazier to the Cleveland Cavaliers as compensation for a free agent signing. That free agent the Knicks got was Jim Cleamons. *The New York Nets moved from Uniondale, New York to Piscataway, New Jersey, and were renamed the New Jersey Nets. The New York Knicks, who forced the Nets to pay $4.8 million for invading the New York area prior to the previous season, remained the only NBA team in New York City for 35 years, until the Nets moved to Brooklyn in the 2012–13 season. *The 1978 NBA All-Star Game was played at the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, with the East beating the West 133–125. Randy Smith of the Buffalo Braves won the game's MVP awar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilton Norman Chamberlain ( ; August21, 1936 – October12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player. Standing tall, he played Center (basketball), center in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 seasons. He was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978, and was elected to the NBA's NBA 35th Anniversary Team, 35th, 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, 50th, and NBA 75th Anniversary Team, 75th anniversary teams. According to former teammate Billy Cunningham, "The NBA Guide reads like Wilt's personal diary." Chamberlain holds List of career achievements by Wilt Chamberlain, 72 NBA records, including several NBA regular season records, regular season records in Point (basketball), scoring, Rebound (basketball), rebounding, and Minute (basketball), durability; Block (basketball), blocks were not counted during his career. He is best remembered as the only player to score Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game, 100 points in a single game. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Thompson (basketball)
David O'Neil Thompson (born July 13, 1954), commonly known by the nickname "Skywalker", is an American former professional basketball player. He played with the Denver Nuggets of both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as the Seattle SuperSonics of the NBA. He was previously a star in college for North Carolina State, leading the Wolfpack to its first NCAA championship in 1974. Thompson is one of the ten players to score 70 or more points in an NBA game. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1996. Thompson was known for his exceptional leaping ability that enabled him to become one of the game's premier dunkers in the 1970s and earned him the nickname of "Skywalker". Michael Jordan said, "The whole meaning of vertical leap began with David Thompson." Bill Walton described Thompson as "Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady, and LeBron James rolled into one". High school career Thompson attend ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Larry Kenon
Muhsin Kenon (born Larry Joe Kenon, December 13, 1952), is an American former professional basketball player, known in his playing career as Larry Kenon. A 6'9" forward who had a productive career in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA), Kenon played for the New York Nets, San Antonio Spurs, Chicago Bulls, Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers. His nicknames were "KAT," "Mr. K" (to go with Nets teammate "Dr. J.", Julius Erving), and "Special K." College Kenon transferred from Amarillo College to play basketball at Memphis State University. In his junior year, 1972–73, he averaged 20.1 points and 16.7 rebounds per game and led the Tigers to the NCAA championship game, where they were defeated by the Bill Walton-led UCLA Bruins. After that season, one in which he was named Missouri Valley Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year, Kenon left Memphis State and turned pro. ABA career In 1973, the Detroit P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference. The team plays its home games at Frost Bank Center. The Spurs are one of four former American Basketball Association (ABA) teams to remain intact in the NBA after the 1976 American Basketball Association–National Basketball Association merger, ABA–NBA merger, one of two former ABA teams to have won an NBA Finals, NBA championship (the other being the Denver Nuggets), and the only former ABA team to have won multiple championships. The franchise has won NBA championships in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014. As of the 2022–23 season, the Spurs had the highest winning percentage among active NBA franchises. As of May 2017, the Spurs had the best winning percentage of any franchise in the major professional sports ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Gervin
George Gervin ( ; born April 27, 1952), nicknamed "the Iceman", is an American former professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Virginia Squires, San Antonio Spurs, and Chicago Bulls. Gervin averaged at least 14 points per game in all 14 of his ABA and NBA seasons, and finished with an NBA career average of 26.2 points per game. Widely regarded as a top ten shooting guard in NBA history, in 1996 Gervin was named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, and in 2021, Gervin was named as one of the 75 greatest players in NBA history. Early life George Gervin was born on April 27, 1952, in Detroit, Michigan. Gervin attended Martin Luther King Jr. High School. He struggled on and off the court until his senior year, when a growth spurt allowed him to average 31 points and 20 rebounds and lead his school to the state quarterfinals. He was a ''Detroit Free Press'' All-State sel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
