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1944

Donnie Freeman is born in Madison, Illinois. He starred at Madison High School and the University of Illinois, and in 2019 was inducted into the Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame.

1950

ABA champion Mike Gale is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1954

Two-time NBA champion Wally Walker is born in Millersville, Pennsylvania.

1971

Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway is born in Memphis, Tennessee. He was named National High School Player of the Year while starring for Treadwell High School.

1974

Derek Anderson is born in Louisville, Kentucky. He initially left his home state to play at Ohio State but returned to help lead the Kentucky Wildcats to the 1996 NCAA title.

1976

The men’s group stage kicks off at the Olympics in Montreal and the first time ever, the United States does not enter the tournament as the defending champions. The U.S. defeats Italy 109-89 in their first game, getting 20 points from Adrian Dantley, and 19 points and seven rebounds from Mitch Kupchak. The defending gold medalists, the Sovet Union, open play with a 120-77 victory over Mexico.

1996

Upset by what he perceived as a lowball offer from the Magic, Shaquille O’Neal signs a seven year, $120 million dollar free agency contract with the Lakers.

1997

Edrice “Bam” Adebayo is born in Newark, New Jersey. His nickname was granted in his infancy due to his mimicking behavior of the Flintstones character Bamm-Bamm Rubble.

2001

Patrick Ewing signs as a free agent with the Magic. After 15 years with the Knicks and one with the SuperSonics, he played out his final season in Orlando before retiring.

2018

Kawhi Leonard is traded from the Spurs to the Raptors, along with Danny Green, in exchange for DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poltl, and a first round pick, ending a stand-off with Spurs management that caused Leonard to sit out the majority of the ’17-’18 season.

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