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1953

NBA champion Bob Gross is born in San Pedro, California.

1959

Mike Gminski is born in Monroe, Connecticut. He graduated from Masuk High School in three years in order to qualify for early entry at Duke University.

1961

Dean Smith is named head coach at the University of North Carolina, replacing Frank McGuire, who resigned following a recruiting scandal. Smith eventually coached the Tar Heels for 36 years, winning two national championships.

1964

Nate McMillan is born in Raleigh, North Carolina. In 2022, the city of Raleigh renamed a community center gym after McMillan, in recognition of his charitable work.

1975

Disgraced former NBA All-Star Jack Molinas is murdered in his backyard in Los Angeles. It was believed to be a mob hit, as Molinas had been dealing with organized crime for decades.

1984

The United States men’s team defeats France 120-62 in group stage play at the Olympics in Los Angeles. Steve Alford is the leading scorer with 18 points, while Michael Jordan adds 16 points.

1992

The United States women’s team defeats Spain 114-59 at the Barcelona Olympics to end group stage play undefeated. Medina Dixon finishes with 26 points and six steals for the U.S., while Katrina McClain adds 15 points, eight rebounds, and eight steals.

1996

Led by 28 points and seven rebounds from David Robinson, the United States men’s basketball defeats Yugoslavia 95-69 in the gold medal match at the Atlanta Olympics, capping off a dominant run. In the bronze medal game, Arvydas Sabonis finishes with 30 points and 13 rebounds to lead Lithuania to an 80-74 victory over Australia. It’s a third and final Olympic medal (one gold and two bronzes) for Sabonis, who had just finished second in NBA Rookie of the Year voting for the Trail Blazers at age 31.

2000

Grant Hill is traded from the Pistons to the Magic in exchange for Chucky Atkins and Ben Wallace. While Hill would struggle with injuries during his time in Orlando, Wallace blossomed from un-drafted role player to superstar in his six seasons in Detroit.

2021

In the quarterfinals round of men’s Olympics tournament in Tokyo, Kevin Durant scores 29 points to lead the United States to a 95-81 victory over Spain. Ricky Rubio finishes with 38 points for Spain, who is defeated by the U.S. in the knockout round for the fifth consecutive Olympics. In the other quarterfinals match-ups, Rudy Gobert’s 22 points leads France to a 84-75 victory over Italy, Patty Mills drops 18 as Australia crushes Argentina 97-59, and Luka Doncic and Goran Dragic team up to lead Slovenia to a 94-70 victory over Germany.

2023

With a 42-point performance in a Phoenix Mercury win over the Atlanta Dream, Diana Taurasi becomes the first (and still only) WNBA player to reach 10,000 career points.

2024

The United States men’s team closes out group stage play at the Paris Olympics with a 104-83 victory over Puerto Rico. Anthony Edwards leads all scorers with 26 points. The U.S. advances to the knockout round undefeated while Puerto Rico is eliminated with the loss.

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