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1964

Late in game two of the NBA Finals between the Celtics and Warriors, a scuffle breaks out on the court and ends with Wilt Chamberlain knocking out Clyde Lovellette. Neither player is ejected though Lovellette is assessed a technical foul. The Celtics win the game 124-101 to take a 2-0 series lead.

1970

Willis Reed has 32 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Knicks to a 132-96 victory over the Bucks in game five of the Eastern Conference Finals. The win finishes the series and advances New York to the NBA Finals for the first time in 17 years.

1971

Allan Houston is born in Louisville, Kentucky. He led Ballard High School to the Kentucky state title in 1988.

For the first time in the trophy’s history, the NBA Rookie of the Year award is granted to two players due to a voting tie: Dave Cowens of the Celtics and Geoff Petrie of the Trail Blazers. It was a stacked rookie class, with Pete Maravich finishing third in voting, followed by Calvin Murphy in fourth and Bob Lanier in fifth.

1973

NCAA All-American Lamond Murray is born in Pasadena, California.

1977

The Nuggets make their NBA playoffs debut, losing 101-100 to the Trail Blazers in game one of the Western Conference Semifinals. Maurice Lucas hits the go-ahead jumper for Portland with 11 seconds left and Denver’s Ted McClain subsequently misses at the buzzer. The Trail Blazers went on to win the series in six games.

1983

Danny Granger is born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is the great-nephew of legendary gospel vocalist Mahalia Jackson.

1997

The Spurs finish the ’96-’97 season with a 103-98 loss to the Rockets to finish 20-62. Following injuries to David Robinson and Sean Elliott, the Spurs end their season with losses in 23 of their final 30 games. This sets them up to win the ensuing NBA Draft lottery and select Tim Duncan with the #1 overall pick.

1999

A scheduled game between the Nuggets and Trail Blazers is postponed indefinitely as a response to the Columbine High School shooting. The game is eventually played on May 2.

2000

NCAA Most Outstanding Player winner Ochai Agbaji is born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Greek club Panathinaikos defeats Maccabi Tel Aviv 73-67 in the EuroLeague Final in Thessaloniki, Greece. Zeljko Rebraca is named Final Four MVP. Tel Aviv’s center Nate Huffman finishes with 26 points and 10 rebounds in the losing effort and is named to the All-Tournament Team alongside Rebraca, Dejan Bodiroga, and Hedo Turkoglu.

2001

Doug Collins is hired as Wizards head coach, replacing Leonard Hamilton. Collins reunites with Wizards president of basketball operations Michael Jordan, who played for him on the Bulls for three seasons.

Australia’s Lauren Jackson is the first overall pick of the Seattle Storm in the WNBA Draft. Over 11 WNBA seasons, all spent with Seattle, she earned three league MVP awards, one Defensive Player of the Year, two championships, and one Finals MVP in 2010. Third overall pick Tamika Catchings (Tennessee) is forced to sit out the 2001 season due to an ACL tear but subsequently wins Rookie of the Year honors with the Indiana Fever in 2002.

2003

Allen Iverson breaks his own 76ers franchise postseason record with 55 points in a 98-90 win over the Hornets in game one of the Eastern Conference first round.

2004

Kel’el Ware is born in Little Rock, Arkansas. He led North Little Rock High School to two Arkansas state titles.

LeBron James is named NBA Rookie of the Year for the ’03-’04 season, with Denver’s Carmelo Anthony finishing a close second in voting, followed by Miami’s Dwyane Wade in third. James becomes the first Cavaliers player to win the award, and only the third player to earn it without having played college basketball, following Pau Gasol and Amar’e Stoudemire.

2005

Dwight Howard makes his 82nd start of the ’04-’05 season, becoming the first rookie straight out of high school to start every game of their rookie season. Howard finishes with 21 points and six rebounds in a 98-93 Magic loss to the Heat, also becoming the youngest player ever (at 19 years and 133 days) to average a double-double in a season (12.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game).

2017

In what was, at the time, the biggest second half comeback in NBA playoffs history, the Cavaliers erase a 25-point halftime deficit to defeat the Pacers 119-114 in game three of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. LeBron James scores 28 of his 41 points in the second half, and also finishes with 13 rebounds and 12 assists. The record would be later broken by the Clippers in 2019.

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