October 28, 2018: Los Angeles Hosts All 5 Sports In 1 Day

October 28, 2018: Los Angeles becomes the 1st metropolitan area to host games in all 5 of North American sports' major leagues on the same day.

In the National Football League: The Los Angeles Rams beat the Green Bay Packers, 29-27 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, to move to 8-0. The following week, the Rams fell from the ranks of the undefeated, losing to the New Orleans Saints. The other team in the area, the Los Angeles Chargers, had a bye week, and did not play.

In the National Basketball Association: At the Staples Center (renamed the Crypto.com Arena a year later), the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Washington Wizards, 136-104. The city's main NBA team, the Los Angeles Lakers, were not scheduled.

In the National Hockey League: Later in the day, also at the Staples Center, the Los Angeles Kings beat the New York Rangers, 4-3. The area's other NHL team, the Anaheim Ducks, were also at home, at the Honda Center, but lost to the San Jose Sharks, 4-3. Timo Meier scored the winning goal with 2:48 left in overtime.

In Major League Soccer, the Los Angeles Galaxy lost to the Houston Dynamo 3-2 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson. The city's other MLS team, Los Angeles FC, were on the road, losing 2-1 to Sporting Kansas City.

Most importantly, in Major League Baseball: Game 5 of the World Series was held at Dodger Stadium. Andrew Bentinendi hit a 2-run home run for the Boston Red Sox in the top of the 1st inning, while David Freese hit a solo homer for the Dodgers in the bottom of the inning. That 2-1 score held until the 7th, when J.D. Martinez homered to make it 4-1, extending Clayton Kershaw's poor postseason record. Steve Pearce hit a home run in the 8th, cementing his status as the Series' Most Valuable Player.

The Red Sox won, 5-1, taking the Series in 5 games, their 4th World Championship since 2004 -- and their 4th since 1918. There was no steroid-using David Ortiz this time, but they found a new way to cheat: Apple Watches. A little more than 3 months later, Boston would beat Los Angeles for another World Championship, as the New England Patriots beat the Rams in Super Bowl LIII.

UPDATE: The Red Sox have a team Hall of Fame. From the 2018 World Champions, they have inducted 2nd baseman Dustin Pedroia, pitcher Jon Lester; executive Elaine Weddington Steward, guest relations director Al Green, broadcasters Jerry Remy and Joe Castiglione, and longtime vendor Arthur D'Angelo.

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October 28, 2018 was a Sunday. This was the only baseball game played that day. Aside from the Rams, these games were played in the NFL:

* The New York Giants lost to the Washington Redskins, 20-13 at MetLife Stadium in the Meadowlands.

* The New York Jets lost to the Chicago Bears, 24-10 at the new Soldier Field in Chicago.

* The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 24-18 at the new Wembley Stadium in London. Officially, it was a home game for the Jaguars, who willingly gave up a home game because they weren't drawing well at home.

* The Carolina Panthers beat the Baltimore Ravens, 36-21 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.

* The Pittsburgh Steelers beat their arch-rivals, the Cleveland Browns, 33-18 at Heinz Field (now Acrisure Stadium) in Pittsburgh.

* The Cincinnati Bengals beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 37-34 at Paul Brown Stadium (now Paycor Stadium) in Cincinnati.

* The Seattle Seahawks beat the Detroit Lions, 28-14 at Ford Field in Detroit.

* The New Orleans Saints beat the Minnesota Vikings, 30-23 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

* The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Denver Broncos, 30-23 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. It would almost make sense geographically for these teams to be each other's arch-rivals, but both teams have a bigger rivalry with the Raiders, whatever city they're in.

* The Arizona Cardinals beat the San Francisco 49ers, 18-15 at State Farm Stadium in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, California.

* The Indianapolis Colts beat the Oakland Raiders, 42-28 at the Oakland Coliseum.

* In the week's Thursday night game, the Houston Texans beat the Miami Dolphins, 42-23 at NRG Stadium (as Reliant Stadium was then known) in Houston.

* The following night, on Monday Night Foot ball, the New England Patriots beat the Buffalo Bills, 25-6 at New Era Field (formerly Rich Stadium and Ralph Wilson Stadium)in the Buffalo suburb of Orchard Park, New York.

* And the Atlanta Falcons, the Dallas Cowboys and the Tennessee Titans had a bye week.

In addition to the Clippers' game, there were 3 games played in the NBA:

* The Brooklyn Nets lost to the Golden State Warriors, 120-114 at the Barclays Center. Steph Curry scored 35 points.

* The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Phoenix Suns, 117-110 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena (now the Paycom Center) in Oklahoma City.

* And the Utah Jazz beat the Dallas Mavericks, 113-104 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

In addition to the Kings' and Ducks' games, there were 4 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Islanders beat the Carolina Hurricanes, 2-1 at the PNC Arena (now the Lenovo Center) in Raleigh.

* The Detroit Red Wings beat the Dallas Stars, 4-2 at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

* The Edmonton Oilers beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-1 at the United Center in Chicago. Connor McDavid scored the winning goal, 53 seconds into overtime.

* And the Vegas Golden Knights beat the Ottawa Senators, 4-3 at the T-Mobile Arena in the Las Vegas suburb of Paradise, Nevada. Jonathan Marchessault scored the winning goal, with 2:36 in overtime.

In addition to the 2 L.A.-area teams, there were 9 games in Major League Soccer:

* The New York Red Bulls beat Orlando City, 1-0 at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey.

* New York City FC beat the Philadelphia Union, 3-1 at Yankee Stadium.

* The New England Revolution beat the Montreal Impact, 1-0 at Gillette Stadium in the Boston suburb of Foxborough, Massachusetts.

* Toronto FC beat Atlanta United, 4-1 at BMO Field in Toronto.

* The Columbus Crew beat Minnesota United, 3-2 at Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

* The Chicago Fire and D.C. United played to a draw, 0-0 at SeatGeek Stadium in the Chicago suburb of Bridgeview, Illinois.

* The Colorado Rapids beat FC Dallas, 2-1 at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in the Denver suburb of Commerce City, Colorado.

* The Seattle Sounders beat the San Jose Sharks, 2-1 at CenturyLink Field (now Lumen Field) in Seattle.

* And the Vancouver Whitecaps beat the Portland Timbers, 2-1 at BC Place in Vancouver.

And in English soccer, North London team Arsenal went to South London, but could only manage a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

June 11, 2012: The Los Angeles Kings Are Finally Crowned

June 11, 2012: The Los Angeles Kings win the Stanley Cup for the 1st time, in their 45th season of play -- their 44th, if you don't count the owner-canceled 2004-05 season.

Founded with the NHL's "Great Expansion" of 1967, the Kings had been a Playoff team more often than not. But, once in the Playoffs, they hadn't done well. In just their 2nd season, 1969, they reached the Stanley Cup Semifinals. But they didn't get that far again until 1993. That time, they reached the Stanley Cup Finals for the 1st time, before losing to the Montreal Canadiens.

It took them until the 2011-12 season to get back to the Playoffs' round of 4, by this point named the NHL Western Conference Finals. In December, general manager Dean Lombardi fired head coach Terry Murray, and replaced him with Darryl Sutter, of the famous 6 Sutter Brothers of Viking, Alberta.

The Kings' leading players were right wing and Captain Dustin Brown, Slovenian center Anže Kopitar, right Justin Williams, center Mike Richards, defenseman Drew Doughty, and goaltender Jonathan Quick. In the Playoffs, they beat the Vancouver Canucks in 5 games, the St. Louis Blues in a 4-game sweep, and the Phoenix Coyotes in 5.

They would be facing the New Jersey Devils, who were coming off an emotional high, having won the Eastern Conference Championship by beating their arch-rivals, the New York Rangers, on an overtime goal by Adam Henrique in 6 games.

The 1st 2 games were played at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The Kings won Game 1, 2-1, with Kopitar scoring at 8:13 of overtime. It made the Kings the 1st team to win their 1st 9 road games in a single postseason. The Kings won Game 2 2-1 in overtime as well, with Jeff Carter scoring at 13:42.

The action moved to the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles for Game 3, and the Kings won, 4-0. It made the Kings the 1st team to take a 3-0 lead in all 4 rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. In nearly 202 minutes of action, Quick had allowed just 2 goals. The Kings were dominating.

The Devils woke up in Game 4: Henrique scored with 4:31 left in regulation to break a tie, and Ilya Kovalchuk scored an empty-net goal to gain a 3-1 victory. The series went back to Newark for Game 5, and Bryce Salvador's goal with 10:55 left in regulation gave the Devils a 2-1 lead that they held onto. Since a potential Game 7 would be at home, Devils fans had hope that maybe, just maybe, they could become the 2nd team in NHL history to lose the 1st 3 games of a Stanley Cup Finals, and then win the next 4.

Those hopes were dashed in Los Angeles in Game 6. The Kings played an incredibly dirty game, and the officials let them get away with it. At 10:10 of the 1st period, the referee, Dan O'Rourke, assessed a major boarding penalty and a game misconduct on the Devils' Steve Bernier, throwing him out of the game for a hit on Rob Scuderi.

The game was scoreless at that point. But that dubious 5-minute power play awarded to the Kings in the led to 3 goals, and the game was pretty much over there. The Kings won, 6-1, and took their 1st Stanley Cup. Quick was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as Most Valuable Player of the Playoffs. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman handed the Stanley Cup to Captain Dustin Brown.

This allowed Los Angeles to have won World Championships in all the major North American sports: The World Series had been won by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1959, 1963, 1965, 1981 and 1988; the NFL Championship had been won by the Los Angeles Rams in 1951 and the Los Angeles Raiders in 1984; the Los Angeles Lakers had won the NBA Championship in 1972, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009 and 2010; and top-flight soccer league titles were won by the Los Angeles Wolves in 1967, the Los Angeles Aztecs in 1974, and the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2002, 2005 and 2011.

Actually, and very embarrassingly for their fanbase, the Kings had been beaten to the Los Angeles area's 1st Stanley Cup by the 2007 Anaheim Ducks. The Los Angeles Angels, then known as the Anaheim Angels, had won a title for Anaheim with the 2002 World Series.

The Kings won the Cup again in 2014, beating the Rangers in 5 games, all of which went to overtime. Kyle Clifford scored the clincher, at 5:43 of double overtime in Game 5 at Madison Square Garden.

UPDATE: Through the 2025-26 season, the Kings do not have a team Hall of Fame. But they have retired the uniform numbers of 7 players:

* 1970s goaltender Rogatien "Rogie" Vachon, Number 30.

* From the 1970s and '80s, center Marcel Dionne, Number 16; and right wing Dave Taylor, Number 18. The 3rd member of "the Triple Crown Line," left wing Charlie Simmer, has not yet had his Number 11 retired, possibly because a later Kings great wore it.

* From their 1993 NHL Western Conference Champions, defenseman Rob Blake, Number 4; left wing Luc Robitaille, Number 20; and center Wayne Gretzky, Number 99.

* From their 2012 and 2014 Stanley Cup winners, right wing Dustin Brown, Number 23. Presumably, they will add the Number 32 of goaltender Jonathan Quick, and maybe also the Number 11 of center Anže Kopitar, possibly to share with Charlie Simmer.

* They have also honored 1973-2017 broadcaster Bob Miller with a banner, with a microphone in place of a number.

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June 11, 2012 was a Monday. Football was out of season. The NBA Finals opened, at the Chesapeake Energy Arena (now the Paycom Center) in Oklahoma City. The Oklahoma City Thunder, the franchise that had been the Seattle SuperSonics from 1967 to 2008, played their 1st Finals game since 1996, and beat LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the rest of the Miami Heat, 105-94. Kevin Durant scored 36 points. But the Heat won the next 4 games, to take the title.

And there were 4 games played in Major League Baseball, all of them Interleague:

* The New York Yankees beat the Atlanta Braves, 3-0 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta. How many Yankees does it take to pitch a 5-hit shutout? This time, 5: Iván Nova pitched the 1st 7, Cody Eppley got the 1st out in the 8th, Clay Rapada got the last 2 outs in the 8th, Cory Wade got the 1st out in the 9th, and Boone Logan managed to finish it off without screwing it up, which I, as a Yankee Fan, can tell you was a welcome relief.

Eppley and Wade each pitched to 1 batter; Wade and Logan, to 2. Is it so hard to believe that the Yankees didn't have a single reliever capable of holding the Braves to 2 runs or fewer over the 8th and 9th innings?

At any rate, Raúl Ibañez hit a home run, Derek Jeter went 1-for-5, and Alex Rodriguez went 1-for-4.

* The Miami Marlins beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-1 at the brand-new Marlins Park (now LoanDepot Park) in Miami. Since this was the 1st era of Interleague Play, 1997 to 2019, and the rule was that the designated hitter could not be used when the National League team was the home team, David Ortiz, the big fat lying cheater, actually played the field, at 1st base, and went 0-for-4.

* The Washington Nationals beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-3 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

* And the Los Angeles Angels beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-2 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

May 31, 2002: The Sacramento Swindle

May 31, 2002: Game 6 of the NBA Western Conference Finals is played at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Sacramento Kings, 106-102. Shaquille O'Neal scored 41 points and had 17 rebounds. Kobe Bryant added 31 points in support.

Almost immediately, there were allegations that this game was fixed by the referees. In 2008, as part of the scandal that involved him betting on games he had officiated, fired NBA referee Tim Donaghy said that two of the referees in this game were told to fix it so the NBA and televising network NBC could make more money on a Game 7.

The officials for this game were Dick Bavetta, Ted Bernhardt and Bob Delaney. Bavetta holds the record for most NBA games officiated, with 2,635, having never missed a game from his 1975 hiring until his 2014 retirement. Early in his career, he was considered one of the worst refs in the game. He decided to do something about it, and practiced with Summer league games, such as in New York City's Rucker League. By 1986, when he was assigned to officiate a Playoff game for the first time, he had begun to be regarded as one of the best referees.

And yet, in a 2002 article for ESPN, Bill Simmons named the worst officiated games of the prior four years, alleging that the games involved either extending a series so it did not end quickly or advancing a large market team for the NBA's benefit. All seven games named had been officiated by Bavetta. It should be noted that Simmons is a Boston Celtics fan, and is usually full of... highly questionable opinions.

Bernhardt was best known for a 1996 game where he called a foul on Dennis Rodman, who then head-butted him and was suspended for it. Delaney seems an unlikely candidate for corruption: He was a New Jersey State Trooper who successfully infiltrated the Mob, and worked his way all the way from high school games to the NBA Playoffs.

In this Game 6, the awarding of fouls resulted in the Lakers shooting 40 free throws overall, a whopping 27 in the fourth quarter alone, and the Kings' big men were plagued with foul trouble: Between them, Vlade Divac, Chris Webber, Scot Pollard, and Lawrence Funderburke were called for 20 fouls, Divac and Pollard both fouling out.

Michael Wilbon of The Washington Post, already co-hosting Pardon the Interruption on ESPN with fellow Post columnist Tony Kornheiser, wrote, "I wrote down in my notebook six calls that were stunningly incorrect, all against Sacramento, all in the fourth quarter when the Lakers made five baskets and 21 foul shots to hold on to their championship." Wilbon pointed out that Kobe Bryant did not get a foul called on him after elbowing Mike Bibby in front of an official.

Two nights later, at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, the Lakers won Game 7, 112-106 in overtime.

Also on May 31, 2002, the NBA's Eastern Conference Championship was won. The New Jersey Nets defeated the Boston Celtics, 96-88, to win Game 6 at the FleetCenter (now the TD Garden) in Boston, and win their first NBA Eastern Conference Championship. After 26 years of trying, they were in their first NBA Finals. They did this despite none of their players scoring more than Kenyon Martin’s 16 points, and former Net Kenny Anderson scoring 18 for Boston.

What guard Jason Kidd did with this team in 1 season, taking them from one of the worst teams in the league to a Finalist, is one of the greatest achievements any NBA player has ever had.

Given the Nets' history to this point -- they had won just 1 Playoff series between 1977 and 2001 -- this should have been the most remarkable NBA story of the night. But it wasn't, because of the perceived Sacramento Swindle.

Was the Lakers-Kings Game 6 fixed? Did NBA Commissioner David Stern, and NBC Sports President Dick Ebersol, want the Lakers in the Finals rather than the Kings? It would be easy to say, "You do the math": There are 13 million people in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, and only 2.5 million in Sacramento's.

But that theory doesn't hold up for the East: There are 13.2 million in New England, and, while the Nets are part of the New York Tri-State Area, the New York Knicks have always held the vast majority of those fans. So if it was fixed for the Lakers, why not for the Celtics?

The Kings, previously the Rochester Seagrams (1923-43), the Rochester Pros (1943-45), the Rochester Royals (1945-57), the Cincinnati Royals (1957-72) and the Kansas City Kings (1972-85), still have not been to the NBA Finals since 1951. From 2002 to 2021, the Lakers made it 6 more times.

When the NBA named its 50th Anniversary Team in 1996, the only man named to it to have played for the Kings, either in Kansas City or Sacramento, was Kansas City star Nate "Tiny" Archibald, although Cincinnati players Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas were named. Shaquille O'Neal, then in his 1st season with the Lakers after 4 years with the Orlando Magic, was a controversial selection.

When the NBA named its 75th Anniversary Team in 2021, there was no controversy around Shaq being named, or with Phil Jackson again being named one of the top coaches, as he was in 1996 as well, when he was still running the Chicago Bulls. Kobe Bryant was added: His crime in Colorado had already been chosen to be forgotten before his death. And no player on the Kings franchise, not even Hall-of-Famer Chris Webber, was added.

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May 31, 2002 was a Friday. Football was out of season. In the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Detroit Red Wings pretty much settled their "rivalry" with the Colorado Avalanche by winning Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals, 7-0 at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Boston Red Sox, 5-2 at Yankee Stadium. Derek Lowe outpitched David Wells. Jorge Posada had 2 hits, including driving in both Yankee runs with a home run, but the rest of the team only had 4 hits.

* The New York Mets beat the Florida Marlins, 6-5 at Pro Player Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida. Rey Ordóñez, not known for his power, hit a home run in the top of the 10th inning.

* The Montreal Expos beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-7 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Seattle Mariners, 8-7 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Gerónimo Gil hit a sacrifice fly to score Brian Roberts with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, 13-9 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Chicago White Sox, 7-0 at Jacobs Field (now Progressive Field) in Cleveland. Bartolo Colón allowed 8 hits, but kept the shutout.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Cincinnati Reds, 7-0 at Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium) in Cincinnati. How many Braves pitchers does it take to pitch a 4-hit shutout? Apparently, 4: Greg Maddux, 2 hits over 5 innings; Kevin Gryboski, none over an inning and 2/3rds; Kerry Lightenberg, 2 over an inning and 1/3rd; and Chris Hammond, striking out the side in a perfect 9th.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-2 at Comerica Park in Detroit.

* The Houston Astros beat the Chicago Cubs, 4-1 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Anaheim Angels beat the Minnesota Twins, 11-3 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 3-1 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Texas Rangers, 10-7 at The Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. The Royals got 3 straight home runs in the top of the 11th inning, from Carlos Beltrán, Mike Sweeney and Joe Randa.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the San Diego Padres, 12-1 at Qualcomm Stadium (formerly San Diego Stadium and Jack Murphy Stadium).

* The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-3 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the Colorado Rockies beat the San Francisco Giants, 6-2 at Pacific Bell Park (now Oracle Park) in San Francisco.

February 23, 2014: Jason Collins Becomes the 1st Out U.S. Athlete

February 23, 2014: The Brooklyn Nets beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 108-102 at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles. Jason Collins played 10 minutes and 37 seconds for the Nets, and he didn't score any points. He did, however, have an offensive rebound, a defensive rebound, and a steal.

This appearance made Collins, who, in the off-season, publicly revealed that he is gay -- also known as "coming out of the closet," or "outing yourself," and was not, at the time, signed to any team -- the first openly gay athlete in major league sports in North America.

Presuming, of course, that you do not include MLS, Major League Soccer, as "major league." Robbie Rogers had already played for the Los Angeles Galaxy since coming out. So far, the reaction to him has been positive. But in the traditional "Big Four" North American sports, Collins was the first. And it appeared that, on that night, the L.A. fans -- presumably, many of whom had cheered Rogers -- treated Collins no worse than they treated any other opposing player.

A few other athletes have come out after retirement. Collins, knowing that he could still have a shot at signing with a new team, but also that teams might shy away from signing him if they knew, chose to be honest, and let them know. The Nets decided that it didn't matter, that it wasn't an indication of bad character, and that he might still be able to help them win, and they signed him.

Born on December 2, 1978 in Los Angeles, Jason Paul Collins was an All-American center at Stanford University. He had previously played with the New Jersey Nets from 2001 to 2008, before their 2012 move to Brooklyn. He played the 2nd half of the 2007-08 season with the Memphis Grizzlies, 2008-09 with the Minnesota Timberwolves, 2009-12 with the Atlanta Hawks, most of 2012-13 with the Boston Celtics, and the end of that season with the Washington Wizards. He ended up playing 22 games for the Nets, starting only 1, and never played again.

In that 1st game for the Nets, he wore Number 46. For his remaining games with the Nets, he wore 98, as he had with the Celtics and the Wizards. He wore it in memory of Matthew Shepard, a University of Wyoming student who was murdered for being gay in 1998. Having proven his point, he announced his retirement on November 19, 2014.

Glenn Burke, who played baseball in the 1970s, didn't "come out" while he was playing, because, in his own mind, he was never "in." Baseball fans at large didn't know he was gay, but his teammates knew, and most of them didn't care. Unfortunately, he played for 2 bigoted managers, Tommy Lasorda and Billy Martin. Lasorda ordered him traded away from the Los Angeles Dodgers; and Billy Martin, with the Oakland Athletics, had him sent down to the minors, burying him and prematurely ending his career.

One day, people who are gay will not have to face the choice of announcing it, or keeping themselves in the closet because they're afraid of repercussions. One day, we will hear that someone is gay, and we'll say, "So what? It doesn't make a difference. It's his (or her) business, not ours."

Until then, anyone facing the choice that Jason Collins and Robbie Rogers have made -- not being gay, but revealing it -- will need more Collinses and Rogerses, to move people's hearts and minds forward. Such people will advance our society in the same way that Jackie Robinson did on race, to the point where the only thing that matters is, "Can he play?"

If a player is a good player and a good teammate, then I don't care if he's a purple Buddhist from Mars in a ménage-a-trois with a college kid and a teddy bear: His personal life doesn't matter, and he can play on my team. If a player is exactly like I was as a young man, except with talent, but not enough to make it at the major league level, then I'd cut him.

I'd rather have a gay player on my team than an anti-gay player.

UPDATE: Jason Collins died of cancer on May 12, 2026. He was only 47 years old.

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February 23, 2014 was a Sunday. Baseball and football were out of season. And the NHL was in its Winter Olympic break. But there were 7 other games in the NBA that day:

* The Miami Heat beat the Chicago Bulls, 93-79 at the American Airlines Arena (now the Kaseya Center) in Miami.

* The Toronto Raptors beat the Orlando Magic, 105-90 at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.

* The Washington Wizards beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 96-83 at the Quicken Loans Arena (now the Rocket Arena) in Cleveland.

* The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 125-117 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena (now the Paycom Center) in Oklahoma City. Despite the loss, Kevin Durant scored 42 points for the Thunder.

* The Sacramento Kings beat the Denver Nuggets, 109-95 at the Pepsi Center (now the Ball Arena) in Denver.

* The Houston Rockets beat the Phoenix Suns, 115-112 at the US Airways Center (now the Mortgage Matchup Center) in Phoenix.

* And the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves, 108-97 at the Moda Center in Portland.

January 16, 2015: The 1st Father to Coach His Own Son In the NBA

Doc (left) and Austin Rivers

January 16, 2015: The Los Angeles Clippers host the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles. The Clippers were coached by Glenn "Doc" Rivers. The team had just acquired his son, Austin Rivers, as part of a 3-way trade between the New Orleans Pelicans, from whom Austin had played since 2012, and the Boston Celtics.

This was Austin's 1st game for the Clips, and thus his 1st game being coached by his father. There had been fathers and sons both playing in the NBA before, and there had even been fathers and sons coaching in the NBA before. But this was the 1st game in which a father coached his son.

It didn't go so well, for father or son. The Cavs won, 126-121. Kyrie Irving scored 37 points for the Cavs, while LeBron James scored 32. Austin Rivers played 11 minutes and 32 seconds, took 6 shots, 2 of them from 3-point range, and missed them all. He grabbed no rebounds. He had no assists. He did commit a turnover, and get charged with a personal foul. It was immediately mocked as one of the worst-played games in NBA history.

Things got better for Austin, and he remained with the Clippers through 2018. Doc remained their head coach until 2020.

Butch Van Breda Kolff was the 1st father to coach against his son in the NBA, when he coached the New Orleans Jazz while his son Jan played for the New York Nets on November 9, 1976. The Jazz won the game, 110-99.

UPDATE: Austin Rivers last played in 2023. Like Doc, he has gone into broadcasting. Doc continues as an NBA coach.

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January 16, 2015 was a Friday. There were 12 other games in the NBA:

* The Brooklyn Nets beat the Washington Wizards, 102-80 at the Verizon Center (now the Capital One Arena) in Washington.

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Boston Celtics, 119-103 at the TD Garden in Boston.

* The Philadelphia 76ers beat the New Orleans Pelicans, 96-81 at the Wells Fargo Center (now the Xfinity Mobile Arena) in Philadelphia.

* The Memphis Grizzlies beat the Orlando Magic, 106-96 at the Amway Center in Orlando.

* The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Golden State Warriors, 127-115 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena (now the Paycom Center) in Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant scored 36 points. Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 32.

* The Dallas Mavericks beat the Denver Nuggets, 97-89 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

* The San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 110-96 at the AT&T Center (now the Frost Bank Arena) in San Antonio.

* The Atlanta Hawks beat the Toronto Raptors, 110-89 at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.

* The Detroit Pistons beat the Indiana Pacers, 98-96 at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse (now the Gainbridge Fieldhouse) in Indianapolis. Brandon Jennings scored 37 points.

* The Phoenix Suns beat the Minnesota Timberwolves, 110-99 at the US Airways Center (now the Mortgage Matchup Center) in Phoenix.

* The Utah Jazz beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 94-85 at the Delta Center (then the EnergySolutions Arena) in Salt Lake City, Utah.

* And the Miami Heat beat the Sacramento Kings, 95-83 at the Sleep Train Arena (formerly the ARCO Arena) in Sacramento.

Baseball was out of season. The NFL was between Playoff rounds. There were 6 games in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers beat the Columbus Blue Jackets, 2-1 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus.

* The New York Islanders beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 6-3 at the UBS Arena.

* The New Jersey Devils lost to the Anaheim Ducks, 5-1 at the Honda Center in Anaheim.

* The Vancouver Canucks beat the Carolina Hurricanes, 3-0 at the PNC Arena (now the Lenovo Center) in Raleigh.

* The Nashville Predators beat the Washington Capitals, 4-3 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.

* And the Winnipeg Jets beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-2 at the United Center in Chicago.