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1926

NBA trailblazer Chuck Cooper is born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

1960

John Paxson is born in Dayton, Ohio. He followed in the footsteps of his older brother Jim, starring at Archbishop Alter High School in Kettering and then at the University of Dayton.

1964

NBA veteran Brad Lohaus is born in New Ulm, Minnesota.

1966

Hersey Hawkins is born in Chicago, Illinois. Despite a star turn at Westinghouse High School, he was lightly recruited by colleges and wound at nearby Bradley University, where he ended up setting the school scoring record.

1974

Jeff Sheppard is born in Marietta, Georgia. He was named Mr. Georgia Basketball in 1992 while starring for McIntosh High School.

1975

A 39-year-old Wilt Chamberlain makes a surprise announcement that he is planning on coming out of retirement to play one more season with the Lakers. Though the superstar center had been out of the game for two years, the Knicks had expressed interest in signing him, followed by the Lakers publicly claiming he was still under contract with them. In response, Chamberlain threatened to show up to Lakers training camp to finish out his contract but before he could report, the NBA league office declared him a free agent to settle the matter.

1983

The NBA officially institutes its new substance abuse policy, as brokered by then league vice president David Stern.

1984

Marques Johnson, Junior Bridgeman, and Harvey Catchings are traded from the Bucks to the Clippers in exchange for Terry Cummings, Craig Hodges, and Ricky Pierce.

1988

Kevin Durant is born in Washington, D.C. He grew up just east of the city in Seat Pleasant, Maryland and started his high school career at National Christian Academy in nearby Fort Washington.

The United States women’s team defeats Yugoslavia 77-70 at the Seoul Olympics to earn their second consecutive gold medal. Teresa Edwards leads the U.S. with 18 points, while Cindy Brown adds 12 points and eight rebounds.

One day after being defeated by the Soviet Union in the Olympic semifinals in Seoul, the United States men’s basketball team rallies to defeat Australia 78-49 in the bronze medal game. Meanwhile, the U.S. women’s team clinches its second consecutive gold medal with a 77-70 victory over Yugoslavia.

2000

Jaden McDaniels is born in Federal Way, Washington. He teamed up with older brother Jalen to lead Federal Way High School to the Washington state title in 2016.

For the first time since NBA players were allowed to participate, the United States men’s team faces stiff competition at the Olympics, narrowly surviving Lithuania 85-83 in the semifinal round in Sydney, when a potential game winning buzzer beater by Sarunas Jasikevicius is off the mark. In the other semifinal, France cruises past Australia 76-53, behind 19 points from Laurent Sciarra.

The United States and Australia women’s teams are victorious in the Olympics semifinals in Sydney, setting up a gold medal showdown between undefeated powerhouses. The U.S. gets 19 points from Sheryl Swoopes, plus double-doubles from Lisa Leslie (15 points, 12 rebounds) and Natalie Williams (10 points, 11 rebounds) in a 78-65 victory over South Korea. Australia gets 16 points each from Lauren Jackson and Sandy Brondello in a 64-52 win over Brazil.

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