Some player's wish of winning a NBA Title but 'Larry Legend' won 3. Being the 5th overall pick in the 1978 NBA Draft Larry Bird played 13 seasons as a Boston Celtic, winning 3 NBA Championships in 1981, '84, and '86. He was Finals MVP twice in 1984, and '86, NBA MVP 3 straight years in 1984, ?85, and ?86, NBA All- Star for 9 straight years 1980- '89, elected to the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 1998, Nine- time All NBA 1st Team 1980- '88, and Olympic Gold Medalist in 1992 with the 'Dream Team'.
Born on December 7, 1956 in West Baden, Indiana, Larry Bird was raised in French Link, Indiana, he went to Springs Valley High School, and he also attended and played basketball for Indiana, and Indiana State University. Growing up Larry's family always struggled financially so Georgia and Joe Bird would often send their son Larry to live with his grandparents. In 1975 after Larry's parents had divorced his father Joe Bird committed suicide due to alcoholism and personal difficulties. Despite everything he had been through by the time he was a sophomore in high school Larry had become one of the best players in French Link.
In 1976 Larry received a basketball scholarship to Indiana University where he would've played for coach Bobby Knight, but he left school after a week because he was homesick. A few months later Larry enrolled himself into Indiana State University. In his senior season at ISU Larry led the Sycamores to the NCAA Championship game where they played the Michigan State Spartans led by Larry's soon to be rival Earvin 'Magic' Johnson. Unfortunately for Larry and the Sycamores they lost to the Spartans, but Larry left ISU as the 5th highest scorer in NCAA history.
Shortly before the deadline Larry finally signed with the Boston Celtics for $650,000, making him the highest paid rookie in NBA history. Larry's collegiate rival Earvin 'Magic' Johnson had also entered the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers. Not only did they fight for the National Championship a year before, but their rookie seasons they were both in the run for Rookie of the Year. Magic may have taken the NCAA title but Larry took the Rookie of the Year award and was voted into the Eastern Conference All- Star team in the 1979- '80 season.
Bob Knight began his coaching career at Cuyahoga Falls (Ohio) High School where he was at for one year, then accepted an assistant coaching position at Army in 1963. Two years later he was named the head coach at the relatively young age of 24. In six seasons at West Point, Knight won 102 games, and coached future Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski. Knight then headed to Indiana University in 1971. Knight immediately endeared himself to the basketball-mad state of Indiana with his disciplined approach to the game. Educated in military history, Knight was given the nickname "The General" by former University of Detroit and Detroit Pistons coach-turned-broadcaster Dick Vitale. Within two years, Knight turned a mediocre team into a Big Ten Conference powerhouse. Indiana reached the Final Four in 1973, losing to UCLA. In 1975 the Indiana Hoosiers were undefeated and the number one team in the nation, when leading scorer and All-American Scott May, the father of former North Carolina star and current Charlotte Bobcats player Sean May, broke his arm during the Hoosiers' historic defeat of arch-rival Purdue on Purdue's home court.
1 pick and immediately traded him to the Golden State Warriors for Hardaway and three first-round draft picks. The Warriors had chosen Hardaway with the third overall pick in the same draft. (Shawn Bradley went to the Philadelphia 76ers at No. 2.) In an effort to ease Hardaway's adjustment to playing point guard in the NBA, Magic Coach Brian Hill started him at off guard for the first half of his rookie season. Hill eventually moved Hardaway to the point, and the 21-year-old rookie finished with averages of 16.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game. He made the NBA All-Rookie First Team and finished six votes behind Webber for the Rookie of the Year Award. In only his second year in the league Hardaway emerged as a top NBA guard. He averaged 20.9 points and 7.2 assists, started in the 1995 NBA All-Star Game, and helped the Magic to the best record (57-25) in the Eastern Co...
People come to being on the road for countless reasons and though there is no real certainty on the road, there are two things that are certain, the road stands in opposition to home and your race and ethnicity plays a major role on the trajectory and the way others treat you on the journey. African Americans have an especially strong connection to road narratives. This is because, from the beginning, the race’s presence in America was brought by forcing them on to the road against their will. It is for this reason that there are countless narratives, fictional and non-fictional, of black peoples on the road. For Birdie Lee, a literary character, the beginning of the road marks the end of her comfortable home life and the beginning of her racial
Everybody in Detroit called him “The Man” because he always was a leader and the to-go person in any tough moment of the game. Some people called him “The Gentleman” because he was a genuinely nice person with respect for the game and for others. Joe Dumars, a member of the legendary 1989-1990 Detroit Pistons team, once declared “He is the best player I’ve seen coming into the league for years”. Road to history was wide open for Grant, but luck had some other plans for his career. This is the story of Grant Hill, a story about having faith, patience and love for the game of basketball.
Jackie Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia in 1919. His family was sharecroppers. Jackie’s mother, Mallie Robinson, was a very hard working woman. Mallie raised Jackie and her four other children all by herself. Jackie and his family lived in a neighborhood where they were the only black family that lived on that block (Jackie Robinson Official). Growing up with only one parent, Jackie had to find his own way of living. He got into many sports and excelled in them all. From a young age, Jackie was the top athlete in the sports he played. As he grew, up he started winning bigger events and got recognized by many people for his talents.
As he moved onto college, his accomplishments certainly did not cease. Coach Wooden played basketball at Purdue University where he was coached by Ward “Piggy” Lambert who Wooden called “the greatest influence” he had (coachwooden.com). In 1932, the Purdue Boilermakers basketball team won the Helms Athletic Foundation National Champio...
How do you measure the greatness of the two biggest NBA superstars of all time? Michael Jordan is significantly known for being the ultimate basketball player in NBA history. However, LeBron James is considered one of the top basketball players in the NBA now. There inspiring leadership and unbelievable talent on the court makes it hard for us to choose a winner. James is continuously breaking NBA history, but Jordan's mighty legacy is considered unbreakable. Why can't both exceptional players be valued and appreciated, rather than compared?
When I began my report I didn’t know much about Michael Jordan, but I did know that he was “undoubtedly the greatest player in the history of the NBA'; (“Michael Air Jordan'; 1). It seemed like every time I heard the word basketball I also heard the name Michael Jordan. There’s just no avoiding him. If you are watching television you might see him playing basketball or golf. If you were reading a magazine there will probably be an advertisement with his picture. If you were walking down the street you might see a kid wearing Air Jordan shoes or a Bulls jersey with “JORDAN'; on the back of it. This man is probably as recognizable as the Pope.
The 1991 season was the start of the first three-peat, the Chicago Bulls led by the face of the franchise, Michael Jordan, had another All-Star caliber player Scottie Pippen. Michael Jordan and the bulls would go on to win their first championship beating the Lakers; he also won his second MVP since 1987 as well as his first NBA Finals MVP. He would go on to win his second MVP award in both the regular season and in the finals, also winning his second NBA Championship. His s...
He then won another Championship beating the Sonics as his 4th. He also was the star in the movie Space Jam. The next year he scored an average of 30.4 points per game with 72-82 record that season and won his 5th championship against Utah Jazz. He again won the same as the following year 1997-1998 winning again to make his 6th and final championship. He then joined the Washington wizards. Then, he retired from basketball (Biography.com Editors.).
Michael Jordan, in his prime, was thought of as one of the greatest basketball champions of all time. A shooting guard, standing at six-six, Jordan was able to out play anyone in his position. He started his career at the University of North Carolina, where he helped his team win a national championship. He then was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the 1984-85 season. While playing for the Bulls, Jordan received many awards such as, MVP, five championships, Olympic gold medals, slam dunk contests, and many more defensive and offensive awards. Jordan simply dominated the nineties and left the game as a NBA Finals winner in 1998.
Michael Jordan played for the Chicago Bulls from 1984 to 1998 winning six NBA championships from 1991-1993 and 1996-1998. He was also awarded the Most Valuable
As a 5’9” sophomore in high school in Wilmington, North Carolina, he tried out for his school’s basketball team but wasn’t good enough, neither tall enough, to make it. He then practiced throughout the year and came back as a 6’3” junior to try out. With his improved skills and After graduating from high school, he accepted a basketball scholarship to the University of North Carolina. In his first season at Carolina, he became the second Tarheel player to start in every game as a freshman and was named Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Year (1982). At the end of his freshman year, he made the game-winning shot against Georgetown University for the championship of the NCAA. The Sporting News named him college player of the year in 1983 and in 1984. He left North Caro...
NBA star Mosses Malone practiced basketball with Hakeem at the gym in Houston. Patrick Ewing and the Georgetown University Hoyas met the University of Houston in the 1984 NCAA finals. Hakeem led the Cougars to two NCAA finials and was the number one pick in the 1984 NBA draft. Ralph Sampson was the center for the Houston Rockets until Hakeem joined the team. Bill Flinch was Olajuwon's first coach in the NBA.
Wilt Norman Chamberlain was born on August 21, 1936 in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. His family was a working class family with nine children and parents who loved and worked extremely hard to attain a happy childhood for their children. As a child growing up, Wilt was not always enticed to play basketball. He grew up participating in track and field during his school days. However due to his immense size and height and the culture of basketball in Philadelphia, he started to play basketball. At the height of six feet 11 inches by high school, Wilt had an immediate impact on any team he played for (“Wilt Chamberlain” 1). Wilt attracted interest from basketball scouts by the time he was in junior high. Duri...