PEOPLE KNOWN FOR: basketball
American basketball player
Bill Russell American basketball player who was the first outstanding defensive centre in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and one of the sport’s greatest icons. He won 11 NBA titles...
American basketball player
LeBron James American professional basketball player who is widely considered one of the greatest all-around players of all time and who won National Basketball Association (NBA) championships with the...
American basketball player
Dennis Rodman American professional basketball player who was one of the most skilled rebounders, best defenders, and most outrageous characters in the history of the professional game. He was a key part...
American basketball player and coach
Doc Rivers American professional basketball player and coach who, as head coach of the Boston Celtics, led the team to a National Basketball Association (NBA) championship in 2008. Rivers first emerged...
Canadian basketball player
Steve Nash South African-born Canadian basketball player who is considered to be one of the greatest point guards in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. For three seasons (2004–05 to 2006–07),...
American basketball player and coach
Phil Jackson American professional basketball player, coach, and executive. Employing an unorthodox New Age coaching style grounded in Eastern philosophy and Native American mysticism, he coached his teams...
American basketball player
Dwyane Wade American professional basketball player who was one of the best players of his era and who won three National Basketball Association (NBA) championships (2006, 2012, and 2013) as a member of...
American basketball coach
Gregg Popovich American basketball coach who led the San Antonio Spurs to National Basketball Association (NBA) championships in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014. Popovich, who was of Serb and Croatian...
American basketball player and coach
Don Nelson American professional basketball player and coach who amassed a record 1,335 National Basketball Association (NBA) coaching victories and was named the NBA Coach of the Year three times (1983,...
American basketball player, coach, and executive
Pat Riley American basketball player, coach, and executive who was one of the most successful National Basketball Association (NBA) coaches of all time. Riley filed for a trademark on the term three-peat...
American basketball player
Kobe Bryant American professional basketball player, who helped lead the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) to five championships (2000–02 and 2009–10). Bryant’s father, Joe...
German basketball player
Dirk Nowitzki German professional basketball player who is regarded as one of the greatest foreign-born players in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. Nowitzki took up basketball relatively...
American basketball player
Jerry Lucas American basketball player who was one of the best rebounders in the sport’s history and who in 1996 was named one of the 50 greatest National Basketball Association (NBA) players of all time....
American basketball player
Tim Duncan American collegiate and professional basketball player who led the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA) to five championships (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014). In...
American basketball player
Michael Jordan American collegiate and professional basketball player widely considered to be one of the greatest all-around players in the history of the game. He led the Chicago Bulls to six National...
American coach
Geno Auriemma is an Italian-born American basketball coach who led the University of Connecticut women’s team to a record 11 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) national championships between...
American basketball player
Allen Iverson American basketball player known for both explosive play on the court and controversy away from the game. He became the first great athlete to be strongly identified with the hip-hop movement....
American basketball player
Bill Walton American collegiate and professional basketball player who is considered one of the best all-around post players in the sport’s history. After graduating from high school, Walton embarked on...
American basketball player
George Gervin American professional basketball player who rose to stardom as a member of the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the 1970s and established himself as one of...
American basketball player
Shaquille O’Neal American basketball player, named in 1996 to the National Basketball Association (NBA) list of its 50 greatest players of all time. As a high-school senior in San Antonio, Texas, O’Neal...
American basketball player
Carmelo Anthony is a former professional basketball player who was one of the most prolific scorers in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. Anthony is also noted for winning a National Collegiate...
American investor and philanthropist
Paul Allen American investor and philanthropist best known as the cofounder of Microsoft Corporation, a leading developer of personal-computer software systems and applications. Allen was raised in Seattle,...
American coach
Dean Smith American collegiate basketball coach at the University of North Carolina (1961–97) who, with 879 career victories, retired as the most successful men’s collegiate basketball coach; his record...
American basketball player
Earl Monroe American basketball player who is regarded as one of the finest ball handlers in the sport’s history. In 1967 Monroe entered the National Basketball Association (NBA) an urban legend, a high-scoring...
American basketball player
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is an American collegiate and professional basketball player who, as a 7-foot 2-inch- (2.18-metre-) tall centre, dominated the game throughout the 1970s and early ’80s. (Read Kareem...
American basketball player, coach, and manager
Jerry West American basketball player, coach, and general manager who spent four noteworthy decades with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A frail youth, West overcame...
American basketball player
Kevin Garnett American professional basketball player who was one of the most versatile and dominant players of his time. Garnett played three seasons of high school basketball in South Carolina before...
American basketball player
Charles Barkley American professional basketball player and television personality whose larger-than-life character made him one of the most popular figures in National Basketball Association (NBA) history....
American lawyer and businessman
Jerry Reinsdorf American lawyer and businessman who was the majority owner of the Chicago Bulls and Chicago White Sox sports franchises. After graduating from George Washington University (B.A., 1957)...
American basketball player
Scottie Pippen American professional basketball player who won six National Basketball Association (NBA) titles (1991–93, 1996–98) as a member of the Chicago Bulls. Pippen played high school basketball...
American basketball coach
Pat Summitt American collegiate women’s basketball coach at the University of Tennessee (1974–2012) who led the squad to eight National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championships (1987, 1989,...
American basketball player and coach
Jerry Sloan American professional basketball player and coach who was one of the best defensive guards and hard-nosed rebounders in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a Chicago...
American basketball player
Rick Barry American professional basketball player who was one of the most prolific scorers and accurate free throw shooters in the sport’s history. In his 14 seasons playing in both the National Basketball...
American basketball player and coach
Nancy Lieberman American basketball player and coach. A pioneer in women’s basketball, Lieberman recorded several unprecedented accomplishments in a playing career that spanned three decades. Growing up,...
American basketball player
Magic Johnson American basketball player who led the National Basketball Association (NBA) Los Angeles Lakers to five championships. The son of an autoworker, Johnson earned his nickname “Magic” in high...
American basketball player
Cheryl Miller American basketball player and coach who was one of the greatest players in the history of women’s basketball. Miller is credited with both popularizing the women’s game and elevating it...
American basketball player and coach
Anne Donovan American basketball player who is often credited with revolutionizing the centre position in women’s basketball. She later had a successful coaching career. As a 6-foot 8-inch (2.03-metre)...
American basketball player
Hakeem Olajuwon Nigerian-born American professional basketball player who led the Houston Rockets to consecutive National Basketball Association (NBA) championships in 1994 and 1995. Olajuwon was unfamiliar...
American basketball player
Jack Twyman American professional basketball player who was a six-time National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star but is perhaps best remembered for the years of support he provided to teammate Maurice...
American basketball coach
Mike Krzyzewski American college basketball coach who amassed the most coaching victories in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men’s basketball history while leading the Duke University...
American basketball player
Pete Maravich American basketball player who was the most prolific scorer in the history of Division I men’s college basketball and who helped transform the game in the 1960s and ’70s with his ballhandling...
American basketball player and coach
Larry Bird American basketball player who led the Boston Celtics to three National Basketball Association (NBA) championships (1981, 1984, and 1986) and is considered one of the greatest pure shooters...
American basketball player
Dolph Schayes American professional basketball player who was one of the game’s best-known players in the 1950s and who became the first in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) to score...
American basketball player
David Robinson American basketball player who won two National Basketball Association (NBA) titles with the San Antonio Spurs (1999, 2003). Robinson played basketball at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis,...
American coach
Bob Knight American collegiate basketball coach whose 902 career National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) coaching victories are among the most in men’s basketball history. Knight played basketball...
Chinese basketball player
Yao Ming Chinese basketball player, who became an international star as a centre for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Yao was born to accomplished basketball-playing parents...
American basketball player
Wilt Chamberlain was a professional basketball player, considered to be one of the greatest offensive players in the history of the game. More than 7 feet (2.1 metres) tall, Chamberlain was an outstanding...
American basketball player
Isiah Thomas is an American basketball player and coach, considered one of the best point guards in the history of the game. He led the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA) to consecutive...
American basketball player
Patrick Ewing Jamaican-born American basketball player and coach who was one of the dominant stars of his era, primarily while playing for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA)....
American basketball player and manager
Wayne Embry American professional basketball player and the first African American to serve as the general manager of a professional sports franchise. A native of Ohio, Embry starred for the Miami (of...
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