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1938

Jay Arnette is born in Austin, Texas. He was named all-state in both basketball and baseball while at McCallum High School.

1956

Bill Russell signs his rookie contract with the Celtics, three days ahead of his career debut. Russell missed the first 24 games of the ’56-’57 season in order to retain his amateur eligibility to participate with the U.S. men’s team at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne.

1957

Kevin McHale is born in Hibbing, Minnesota. He was named Minnesota Mr. Basketball in 1976, while starring at Hibbing High School.

1964

Arvydas Sabonis is born in Kaunas, Lithuania (then the Soviet Union). He represented both the Soviet Union and Lithuania internationally, earning a gold medal at the 1988 Olympics with the former and then bronze medals at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics with the latter.

1969

Tom Gugliotta is born in Huntington Station, New York. A star player at Walt Whitman High School, he was inducted into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.

1974

Luis “Felipe” Lopez is born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He grew up playing baseball on his native island but took up basketball as a teenager after his parents moved to New York City.

Recently fired as head coach of the Kansas City Kings, Bob Cousy shockingly accepts a job as Commissioner of the American Soccer League, a precursor to the MLS. Despite openly admitting his lack of knowledge of the sport, Cousy would ultimately stay in the position for nearly five years.

1976

Swen Nater sets the Bucks single game franchise record with 33 rebounds (along with 30 points) in a 126-109 victory over the Hawks.

1977

Jorge Garbajosa is born in Torrejon de Ardoz, Spain. A longtime member of the Spanish national team, he was named President of the country’s basketball federation in 2020.

1982

NBA All-Star Mo Williams is born in Jackson, Mississippi.

1990

Torrey Craig is born in Columbia, South Carolina. As one of the initiatives of his Torrey Craig Foundation, he recently financed and fundraised for a refurbishment of the basketball courts in his hometown of Great Falls.

2006

Allen Iverson is traded from the 76ers to the Nuggets in exchange for Andre Miller, Joe Smith, and two first round picks. It ends a two-week period in which Iverson had been on the inactive list after demanding a trade from Philadelphia management.

2022

Damian Lillard becomes the Trail Blazers’ all-time leading scorer, surpassing Clyde Drexler with his 18,041st point during a loss to the Thunder.

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