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1938

Gus Johnson is born in Akron, Ohio. At Central High School, he was teammates with (and overshadowed by) fellow Naismith Hall of Fame inductee Nate Thurmond.

1956

Phil Hubbard is born in Canton, Ohio. He was named Ohio Player of the Year in 1975 while starring for Canton McKinley High School.

1977

Adrian Dantley is traded from the Pacers to the Lakers, along with Dave Robisch, in exchange for James Edwards, Earl Tatum, and cash consideration. Despite being the reigning Rookie of the Year, this was the second time Dantley had been traded in a span of less than four months. He would ultimately last less than two seasons with Los Angeles before getting traded again, this time to the Jazz.

Air Indiana Flight 216, carrying the Evansville men’s basketball team to a game in Tennessee, crashes shortly after lift-off, killing everyone on board. The school opted to cancel the remainder of the season but revived the program for ’78-’79.

1986

On his 48th birthday, Gus Johnson has his jersey #25 retired by the Bullets. He subsequently passed away from brain cancer just a few months later.

1991

Dennis Johnson has his jersey #3 retired by the Celtics. Traded to Boston in 1983, Johnson was an All-Star and All-Defensive player for the franchise, while contributing to two championships.

1994

Willie Burton scores 53 points for the 76ers in a 105-90 victory over the Heat. At the time, it was the highest single game point total by any 76ers player besides Wilt Chamberlain, and has since been surpassed by only Allen Iverson and Joel Embiid.

2018

Dirk Nowitzki makes his ’18-’19 season debut with the Mavericks and becomes the first player in NBA history to play 21 seasons with the same franchise. Nowitzki scores two points in a 99-88 loss to the Suns. Nowitzki had missed the first 26 games of the season due to offseason ankle surgery.

2023

Giannis Antetokounmpo sets the Bucks single game franchise record with 64 points in a 140-126 victory over the Pacers.

On this date: full archive

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