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1924

NBA All-Star Jack Coleman is born in Burgin, Kentucky.

1941

Rod Thorn in born in Princeton, West Virginia. He was such a star basketball player at Princeton High School that part of his recruitment to West Virginia University included the West Virginia State Legislature officially designating him as a “Natural Resource.”

1958

Wilt Chamberlain signs a one-year contract with the Harlem Globetrotters for a then unprecedented amount of $50,000. Chamberlain opted to skip his senior season at Kansas but could not yet declare for the NBA Draft due to existing eligibility rules. He played out his year with the Globetrotters, which included the team’s first ever visit to the Soviet Union.

1978

Bill Walton of the Trail Blazers is named NBA league MVP in a controversial voting result over second place George Gervin. Walton earned the award despite missing 24 regular season games due to a broken foot.

1979

Rasual Butler is born (as Felix Cheeseborough) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His name was changed by his mother when Butler was eight, after his father was murdered in a random act of violence.

1984

Larry Bird leads the way with 21 points and 13 rebounds as the Celtics defeat the Bucks 115-108 in game five of the Eastern Conference Finals, clinching the series and advancing to the NBA Finals.

1986

The NCAA places the Memphis Tigers men’s basketball team on probation for a series of recruiting and student aid violations that occurred between 1980 and 1984. As part of the punishment, the program is deemed ineligible for the 1987 NCAA Tournament and vacates the results of their 1985 and 1986 tournament appearances, the former of which included a trip to the Final Four.

1999

The Lakers play their final home game at The Forum, a 118-107 loss to the Spurs in the Western Conference Semifinals to finish a series sweep. The Lakers begin play at the Staples Center with the ’99-’00 season.

2000

Jaxson Hayes is born in Norman, Oklahoma. His father Jonathan was an assistant coach for the University of Oklahoma football team at the time, and had previously played tight end in the NFL for 11 seasons.

2003

Chamique Holdsclaw sets the WNBA single game record with 24 rebounds during a 74-70 Washington Mystics victory over the Charlotte Sting. Holdsclaw broke her own record of 22, which she had set one year prior.

During a Mavericks loss to the Spurs in game three of the Western Conference Finals, Dirk Nowitzki suffers a sprained knee, causing him to miss the remainder of the series, which the Spurs put away in six games.

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