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1963

Sam Vincent is born in Lansing, Michigan. While starring for Eastern High School, he broke Magic Johnson’s single game scoring record.

1967

Lou Hudson signs a contract with the Minnesota Muskies of the newly formed ABA. Hudson, who played his college ball at the University of Minnesota, had just come off a successful rookie season with the St. Louis Hawks, who initially sued him for breach of contract but later offered him a newly restructured contract, which convinced Hudson to stay in the NBA.

1971

The Utah Stars are victorious in a winner-take-all game seven of the ABA Finals, 131-121 over the Kentucky Colonels. Zelmo Beaty, in his first ABA season after making two NBA All-Star teams, is named Playoffs MVP.

1973

Donyell Marshall is born in Reading, Pennsylvania. His great uncle is Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Lenny Moore.

1976

Ron Mercer is born in Nashville, Tennessee. He was named Tennessee Mr. Basketball in 1994, while starring for Goodpasture High School.

A miraculous playoffs run for the Cavaliers ends with a 94-87 loss to the Celtics in game six of the Eastern Conference Finals. Dave Cowens finishes with 21 points and 18 rebounds for Boston, which advances to the NBA Finals.

1979

The Bullets defeat the Spurs 107-105 in game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals, finishing off a 3-1 series comeback and advancing to their second consecutive NBA Finals. Bob Dandridge leads the Bullets with 37 points and nine rebounds while George Gervin drops 42 points in a losing effort.

1980

Reggie Evans is born in Pensacola, Florida. When he retired as a player, Evans returned to his hometown to start his own youth rec league.

1985

Hamed Haddadi is born in Ahvaz, Iran. In 2008, he became the first Iranian player in NBA history, when he debuted with the Grizzlies.

1987

Magic Johnson is named NBA league MVP for the ’86-’87 season, his first of three such awards in his career. He’s the first guard since Oscar Robertson in ’63-’64 to earn the trophy. Michael Jordan finishes second in voting and Larry Bird finishes in third.

1994

Clint Capela is born in Geneva, Switzerland. Initially drawn more to soccer, Capela turned to basketball at age 13 after a chance encounter with Thabo Sefolosha, the first Swiss NBA player.

1995

Michael Jordan’s comeback season ends as the Bulls are eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals with a 108-102 loss to the Magic in game six. Shaquille O’Neal has 27 points and 13 rebounds for Orlando, which advances to the Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history.

1997

The Spurs win the NBA draft lottery, while the Celtics, who had the best odds of landing the #1 pick at 27.5%, instead fall to the third pick behind San Antonio and Philadelphia. As expected, the Spurs subsequently draft Tim Duncan with the top pick.

The Heat defeat the Knicks 101-90 in game seven of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, capping off erasing a 3-1 series deficit, aided largely by Knicks suspensions which swung the series in Miami’s favor.

1998

Michael Jordan is named league MVP for the fifth and final time, tying him with Bill Russell for second most MVP trophies, behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s six.

2004

The Pacers defeat the Heat 73-70 in game six of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, clinching the series. Its Miami’s first home loss in 19 games across the end of the regular season and beginning of the playoffs.

2007

A controversial Western Conference Semifinals series comes to an end, as the Spurs defeat the Suns 114-106 in game six to advance. Due to an incident earlier in the series, San Antonio’s Robert Horry missed the game due to suspension but more importantly, Phoenix’s Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw had been suspended for game five.

2008

LeBron James drops 45 points but Paul Pierce responds with 41 as the Celtics clinch the Eastern Conference Semifinals with a 97-92 victory over the Cavaliers in game seven.

2014

Maccabi Tel Aviv pulls off one of the biggest upsets in EuroLeague history, stunning Real Madrid 98-86 in the first ever championship game to go to overtime. Maccabi’s Tyrese Rice, a former star at Boston College, is named Final Four MVP.

2021

The first ever NBA play-in tournament begins, with the Jayson Tatum scoring 50 points to lead the Celtics past the Wizards 118-100, followed by the Pacers defeating the Hornets 144-117 to advance to a play-in game against Washington for the #8 seed.

2024

A pair of P.J. Washington free throws with two seconds left gives the Mavericks a 117-116 victory over the top seeded Thunder, finishing a Western Conference Semifinals upset in six games. Luka Doncic finishes with 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists for the #5 seed Mavs.

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