PEOPLE KNOWN FOR: basketball
American basketball player
Bill Russell was an 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...
American basketball player
LeBron James is an 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...
American basketball player
Dennis Rodman is an 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...
American basketball player and coach
Doc Rivers is an 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 is a 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 is an American professional basketball player, coach, and executive. Employing an unorthodox New Age coaching style grounded in Eastern philosophy and Native American mysticism, he coached...
American basketball player
Dwyane Wade is an 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...
American basketball coach
Gregg Popovich is an 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 is an 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...
American basketball player, coach, and executive
Pat Riley is an 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 was an 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,...
German basketball player
Dirk Nowitzki is a 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 is an 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...
American basketball player
Tim Duncan is an 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)....
American basketball player
Michael Jordan is a former collegiate and professional basketball player widely considered to be one of the greatest all-around players in the history of the game. Jordan’s unmatched athleticism and competitive...
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 is an 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...
American basketball player
Bill Walton is an American collegiate and professional basketball player who is considered one of the best all-around players in the sport’s history. After graduating from high school, Walton embarked...
American basketball player
George Gervin is an 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...
American basketball player
Shaquille O’Neal is a former basketball player who was the dominant center of his era. O’Neal helped the Los Angeles Lakers win three NBA championships (2001–03), and he later captured a fourth title (2006)...
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 was an 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...
American coach
Dean Smith was an 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...
American basketball player
Earl Monroe is an 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) as an urban legend,...
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 is an 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 is an 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...
American basketball player
Charles Barkley is a former professional basketball player whose larger-than-life character made him one of the most popular figures in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. Over the course of...
American lawyer and businessman
Jerry Reinsdorf is an 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.,...
American basketball player
Scottie Pippen is an 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 was an 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,...
American basketball player and coach
Jerry Sloan was an 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...
American basketball player
Rick Barry is an 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...
American basketball player and coach
Nancy Lieberman is an 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...
American basketball player
Magic Johnson is an 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”...
American basketball player
Cheryl Miller is an 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...
American basketball player and coach
Anne Donovan was an 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 is a Nigerian-born American professional basketball player who led the Houston Rockets to consecutive National Basketball Association (NBA) championships in 1994 and 1995. Olajuwon was...
American basketball player
Jack Twyman was an 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...
American basketball coach
Mike Krzyzewski is an 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...
American basketball player
Pete Maravich was an 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 is an 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 was an 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)...
American basketball player
David Robinson is an 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 was an 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...
Chinese basketball player
Yao Ming is a 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...
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 is a 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...
American basketball player and manager
Wayne Embry is an 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...
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