A dedication to basketball history, catalogued and ranked for posterity, then presented in convenient list form

On this date in basketball history: August 29

Michael Jordan and the U.S. take gold at the Pan Am Games; the Knicks are sold to Charles Dolan; Don Nelson returns as Warriors coach

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1983

Michael Jordan leads the way for the United States, who closes out the Pan American Games with a perfect 8-0 record and a gold medal by defeating Puerto Rico 101-85 in Caracas, Venezuela. The star-studded U.S. team also featured Chris Mullin, Mark Price, and Jordan’s UNC teammate Sam Perkins. Brazil earns the silver medal and Mexico comes away with the bronze. It was an eighth Pan Am Games gold medal in nine tournaments for the United States, but they have failed to win one in the 10 tournaments since.


1946

Warren Jabali is born (as Warren Armstrong) in Kansas City, Kansas. He changed his last name to Jabali, the Swahili word for “rock,” while starring at Wichita State.

1949

ABA champion Darnell Hillman is born in Sacramento, California.

1960

Oscar Robertson leads the way with 22 points, Jerry Lucas adds 21, and Jerry West has 17, as the United States defeats Hungary 107-63 to conclude group stage play at the Rome Olympics.

1961

Rodney McCray is born in Mount Vernon, New York. He was teammates at Mount Vernon High School and at the University of Louisville with his older brother, Scooter.

1965

Four-time NBA champion Will Perdue is born in Melbourne, Florida.

1972

The United States men’s team improves to 3-0 in group stage play at the Munich Olympics with a 67-48 victory over Cuba. Dwight Jones is the leading scorer with 18 points. In other action, Puerto Rico pulls off a stunner over Yugoslavia, 79-74, behind 16 points from Teo Cruz.

1977

Devean George is born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After retiring from basketball, he became a real estate developer and oversaw development of multiple affordable housing projects in his hometown.

1980

Two-time NBA All-Star David West is born in Teaneck, New Jersey.

1982

Carlos Delfino is born in Santa Fe, Argentina. As part of the Argentinean national team, he earned a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics and a bronze at the 2008 Olympics.

1994

Viacom sells the New York Knicks and Madison Square Garden to Charles Dolan’s Cablevision and the ITT Corporation, setting the stage for Dolan’s son, James, to eventually take over as team president in 1999.

2002

The 14th FIBA World Championship gets underway in Indianapolis, marking the first time the men’s tournament has taken place in the U.S. Led by Paul Pierce, Michael Finley, and Elton Brand, the United States defeats Algeria 110-60 on the opening day of competition. Meanwhile, a generation of international superstars make their FIBA World Championship debut, including Pau Gasol and Juan Carlos Navarro for Spain (who defeats Canada), Hero Turkoglu for Turkey (who loses to Puerto Rico), Yao Ming for China (who loses to Germany), Dirk Nowitzki for Germany (who defeats China), Luis Scola for Argentina (who defeats Venezuela), Andrei Kirilenko for Russia (who loses to New Zealand), and Peja Stojakovic for Yugoslavia (who defeats Angola).

2006

Don Nelson returns to the Warriors as head coach, hired by his former Golden State player turned general manager, Chris Mullin.

2020

After a three day player strike is resolved, play resumes in “The Bubble” with three playoff games. Anthony Davis finishes with 43 points and nine rebounds as the Lakers clinch the Western Conference Quarterfinals with a 131-122 victory over the Trail Blazers in game five. Giannis Antetokounmpo finishes with 28 points and 17 rebounds as the Bucks eliminate the Magic with a 118-104 victory in game five of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. James Harden’s 31 points leads the Rockets to a 114-80 victory over the Thunder in game five of the Western Conference Quarterfinals, giving Houston a 3-2 series lead.