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Invention of Basketball by Dr. James Naismith, a PE teacher from Springfield,Massachusetts -
Basketball was included as an official Olympic sport at the Berlin Summer Olympics. -
In 1946 the BAA and NBL combined to make the NBA -
The First African American players in the NBA were Earl Lloyd, Chuck Cooper, and Nat Clifton. -
The Golden age of the NBA was when the Celtics led the NBA in the 1960s. They won 11 championships in only 13 seasons. -
The NBA and ABA merged, bringing players like Julius "Dr. J" into the NBA. -
Michael Jordan was drafted third overall in the 1984 NBA draft, the only two people drafted before him were Hakeem Olajuwon and Sam Bowie. Hakeem Olajuwon became a hall of famer while Sam Bowie is looked at as one of the biggest draft busts in NBA history. -
1992 the United States basketball team in the Olympics had Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Charles Barkley. People all around the world watched the Olympics just to watch this team play. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTNIWbGmzGU&t=18s -
In 1999 a lockout led to a 50-game season instead of 82. It led to major changes in the league's salary structure and helped establish the modern NBA business model. -
LeBron James, the most hyped player since Michael Jordan, was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was the first overall pick. -
Warriors and Cavaliers Rivalry Peaks. The Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers played against each other in four consecutive NBA Finals, with Golden State winning three of them in 2015,2017, 2018 and Cleveland winning one in 2016. https://youtu.be/R6CvH-BXIxI?si=WA961VMOP1xELE8D -
Players like Nikola Jokic(Serbia), Luka Doncic (Slovenia), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece), and others from around the world, solidified basketball's global reach, in Europe and Asia.