October 11, 2020: Celtics 17, Lakers 17

Pictured: Not "social distancing."

October 11, 2020: The Los Angeles Lakers clinch the NBA Championship, beating the Miami Heat, 106-93 in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, at the COVID-19-forced neutral site -- the "bubble," where the entire NBA Playoffs were held, in front of no paying fans -- of the AdventHealth Arena in the Orlando suburb of Bay Lake, Florida.

It was the 4th NBA Championship, and the 4th Bill Russell Award for the Most Valuable Player of the Finals, for the 3rd different team, for LeBron James. He had previously won with the Heat in 2012 and 2013, and with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. Of course, he had engineered his shift to the Lakers, after abandoning the Cavs for the 2nd time after the 2018 Finals. There was no bitterness that time, because he had finally won them a title.

It was also the 4th title for 40-year-old Udonis Haslem, who was LeBron's teammate on the 2012 and '13 Heat, and who also won with the Heat in 2006. It's the 3rd title for Danny Green, who beat LeBron, Udonis and the Heat in the '14 Finals for the San Antonio Spurs, and won in 2019 with the Toronto Raptors. It was also the 3rd title for JaVale McGee, who beat LeBron's Cavs with the 2017 and '18 Golden State Warriors.

It was the 2nd title for 4-time All-Star Rajon Rondo, who previously won with the 2008 Boston Celtics. It was the 2nd title for Quinn Cook, who was on the '18 Warriors. And it was the 2nd title for J.R. Smith, the Lakewood, New Jersey native who won with LeBron and the '16 Cavs, but was a target of ridicule for his mistake in the '17 Finals.

It was the 1st title, at any level, for the Lakers' head coach, Frank Vogel. It was also the 1st title for 34-year-old 8-time All-Star Dwight Howard, 27-year-old 7-time All-Star Anthony Davis, 35-year-old never All-Star Jared Dudley, 30-year-old never All-Star Markieff Morris, and for Kostas Antetokounmpo, younger brother of 4-time Milwaukee Bucks All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who had yet to reach an NBA Finals. (He won it all the next year.)

Rondo became the 1st player ever to win titles with both the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. Clyde Lovellette had won titles with the Celtics and the Minneapolis Lakers.

McGee and Quinn Cook joined Jamaal Wilkes as the only players to win titles with both the Lakers and the Warriors, regardless of what cities those franchises played in. (The Warriors played in Philadelphia from 1946 to 1962, and the Lakers in Minneapolis from 1947 to 1960.)

LeBron and Danny Green (2014 Spurs and 2019 Raptors) joined John Salley (1989 and '90 Pistons, 1996 Bulls, 2000 Lakers) and Robert Horry (1994 & '95 Houston Rockets; 2000, '01 & '02 Lakers; 2005 & '07 San Antonio Spurs) as the only players to win titles with 3 different teams. Haslem joined Salley and Tim Duncan (1999, 2003, '05, '07 and '14 Spurs) as the only players to win NBA titles in 3 different decades.

Rondo joined A.C. Green as the only players to win an NBA title in one decade, not win one in the next, and then win one in the next. His 12-year gap between titles exceeded Green's 11-year gap (1988-2000), and was 2nd all-time only to that of Sam Cassell, his teammate on the '08 Celtics, who had also won with the 1995 Houston Rockets, 13 years earlier.

Finally, in this, the NBA's 74th and longest season, the Lakers tied the Celtics for the most NBA Championships, 17:

* Celtics: 1957, '59, '60, '61, '62, '63, '64, '65, '66, '68, '69, '74, '76, '81, '84, '86 and 2008.

* Lakers: 1949, '50, '52, '53, '54, '72, '80, '82, '85, '87, '88, '2000, '01, '02, '08, '09 and 2020.

Meaning that 2 franchises have won 34 of the 74 NBA Championships, or 46 percent of them. Throw in the 6 titles won by the Warriors, the 6 won by and the Bulls, and the 5 won by the Spurs, and that's 5 teams winning 69 percent of the titles.

For comparison's sake, here was the ratios of the top 5 teams in the other 3 sports at that time:

* MLB, starting with the 1st World Series in 1903: Yankees 27, Cardinals 11, Red Sox 10, Athletics 9, Giants 8. That's 65 out of 117, or 55 percent. So, even with the old domination by the Yankees, the MLB was more equitable than the NBA.

* NFL, starting in 1920: Packers 13, Bears 9, Giants 8, Steelers 6, Patriots 6. That's 42 out of 100, or 42 percent.

* NHL, starting with the 1st Stanley Cup won by a current team, 1916: Canadiens 24, Maple Leafs 13, Red Wings 11, Bruins 6 and Blackhawks 6. That's 60 out of 103, or 58 percent.

Of course, the 1st 5 Laker titles came in Minneapolis, so, really, the Celtics still led, 17-12. The next-closest teams were the Bulls with 6 and the Spurs with 5.

And the Lakers and Celtics have faced each other in more NBA Finals than any other matchup, 12: The Celtics winning in 1959, '62, '63, '65, '66, '68, '69, '84 and 2008; and the Lakers winning in 1985, '87 and 2009.

James and Davis were named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team a year later.

However, this was, without question, the most asterisk-worthy title in NBA history. It was unlike any other season, and any other Playoffs. There wasn't home-court advantage for anyone. From 2008 to 2012, including their 2010 title, the Lakers won 5 straight Division titles. In the 10 years after that, here is where they finished in the Western Conference: 7th, 14th, 14th, 15th, 14th, 11th, 10th, 1st (the 2020 title), 7th, 11th.

The end of the Kobe Bryant era was bad, which, due to age and other attrition, was understandable. But the LeBron era has been crowned by that asterisk-worthy title. By Laker standards, which means multiple titles, this period has been a failure, every bit as much as their Wilt Chamberlain era, where, in 5 seasons, they made 4 Finals but only won 1 title.

And, unlike Wilt, LeBron has been, effective, all of these things for the Lakers: Best all-around player, best scorer, best passer, head coach, general manager and chief scout. No one player, in any sport, has ever had that much power over a team. Perhaps none ever should again.

UPDATE: The Lakers again finished 7th in 2023 and 2024. The Bubble Season aside, they have not made the Finals since 2010. And the Celtics won an 18th title in 2024.

*

October 11, 2020 was a Sunday. The NHL had also decided its title later than usual, on September 28, with the Tampa Bay Lightning winning the Stanley Cup, beating the Dallas Stars in 6 games.

Baseball's postseason was also in progress, and "in a bubble." Or, rather, 2 bubbles: Petco Park in San Diego, a National League ballpark, for the American League Playoffs; and Globe Life Field in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas, an AL ballpark, for the NL Playoffs.

There was 1 game on this day, Game 1 of the AL Championship Series, at Petco. The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Houston Astros, 2-1. Blake Snell outpitched Framber Valdez. Randy Arozarena hit a home run. The Rays went on to win the series in 7 games, but lost the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

And these NFL games were played:

* The New York Giants lost to the Dallas Cowboys, 37-34 at AT&T Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The New York Jets lost to the Arizona Cardinals, 30-10 at State Farm Stadium in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona.

* The Baltimore Ravens beat the Cincinnati Bengals, 27-3 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.

* The Los Angeles Rams beat the Washington Football Team, 30-10 at FedEx Field (now Northwest Stadium) in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland. This game marked the return of Washington quarterback Alex Smith from an injury that nearly killed him 2 years earlier. I have a separate entry for this event.

* The Carolina Panthers beat the Atlanta Falcons, 23-16 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

* The Houston Texans beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 30-14 at NRG Stadium (as Reliant Stadium was then known) in Houston.

* The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 38-29 at Heinz Field (now Acrisure Stadium) in Pittsburgh.

* The Cleveland Browns beat the Indianapolis Colts, 32-23 at FirstEnergy Stadium (now named Huntington Bank Field) in Cleveland.

* The Las Vegas Raiders beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 40-32 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Miami Dolphins beat the San Francisco 49ers, 43-17 at Levi's Stadium in the San Francisco suburb of Santa Clara, California.

* The Seattle Seahawks beat the Minnesota Vikings, 27-26 at Lumen Field in Seattle.

* The preceding Thursday, the Chicago Bears beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 20-19 at the new Soldier Field in Chicago.

* The next night, on ESPN Monday Night Football, the New Orleans Saints beat the Los Angeles Chargers, 30-27 at the Superdome in New Orleans.

* Pushed back to Tuesday night due to COVID reasons, the Tennessee Titans beat the Buffalo Bills, 42-16 at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.

* And the Denver Broncos, the Detroit Lions, the Green Bay Packers and the New England Patriots had a bye week.

September 23, 2017: LeBron James Calls Donald Trump "U bum"

September 23, 2017: Donald Trump went on Twitter, and tweeted about whether the recently-crowned NBA Champion Golden State Warriors would come to the White House for an official celebration. In this case, and in the response, I have not corrected either spelling, or grammar, or punctuation from the original.

First, the Warriors' on-floor leader, Steph Curry, said this:

We don't stand for basically what our president has, the things that he's said and the things that he hasn't said at the right times, that we won't stand for it. By acting and not going, hopefully that will inspire some change when it comes to what we tolerate in this country, what is accepted and what we turn a blind eye toward. It's not just the act of not going. There are things you have to do in the back end that you have to push that message into motion.

To this, Trump said, "Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team.Stephen Curry is hesitating,therefore invitation is withdrawn!"

LeBron James, whose Cleveland Cavaliers had beaten by the Warriors, had beaten them the year before, and had been beaten by the Warriors the year before that, tweeted back what Warriors captain Steph Curry had already said:

U bum @StephenCurry30 already said he ain't going! So therefore ain't no invite. Going to White House was a great honor until you showed up!

Recently-retired Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant also spoke up: "A #POTUS whose name alone creates division and anger. Whose words inspire dissension and hatred can't possibly "Make America Great Again""

Chris Paul, then with the Houston Rockets, weighed in: "With everything that's going on in our country, why are YOU focused on who's kneeling and visiting the White House??? #StayInYoLane"

In 1990, Michael Jordan, still a resident of North Carolina, refused to endorse Harvey Gantt, Mayor of Charlotte and the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate against bigoted Republican incumbent Jesse Helms. Why? He said, "Republicans buy sneakers, too."

With this tweet, his support of Colin Kaepernick, and his wearing of an "I CAN'T BREATHE" T-shirt during a pregame warmup, LeBron decided that he didn't give a damn whether Republicans bought sneakers too: This was more important than personal profit.

No, LeBron James will never be a better, or a more-achieved, basketball player than Michael Jordan. But he's a better American, and a better man.

*

September 23, 2017 was a Saturday. This was also the day that a scheduling conflict forced New York City FC to move their Major League Soccer match with the Houston Dynamo to a neutral site, which turned out to be Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut, a whopping 115 miles from Midtown Manhattan. The game ended in a 1-1 draw. I have a separate entry for that event.

These Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 5-1 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto. Sonny Gray was the winning pitcher. Greg Bird and Todd Frazier hit home runs. Aaron Judge went 1-for-4.

* The New York Mets lost to the Washington Nationals, 4-3 at Citi Field. Noah Syndergaard had to leave the game with an injury after only 1 inning. Matt Harvey, scheduled to start the next night, came in on short rest, and allowed 3 runs in 4 innings. Former Met Daniel Murphy led off the top of the 10th inning with a home run.

* The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Baltimore Orioles, 9-6 at Camden Yards in Baltimore.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-2 at SunTrust Park (now Truist Park) in the Atlanta suburb of Cumberland, Georgia.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 11-6 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Cincinnati Reds, 5-0 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. Eduardo Rodríguez pitched 7 2/3rds innings of 3-hit shutout ball, and Carson Smith and Joe Kelly completed the 3-hit shutout.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Detroit Tigers, 10-4 at Comerica Park in Detroit.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox, 8-2 at Guaranteed Rate Field (now Rate Field) in Chicago.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 4-3 at Miller Park (now American Family Field) in Milwaukee. Travis Shaw hit a home run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

* The Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Angels, 6-2 at Minute Maid Park (now Daikin Park) in Houston.

* The Miami Marlins beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 12-6 at Chase Field in Phoenix.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Colorado Rockies, 5-0 at Petco Park in San Diego. Jhoulys Chacín pitched 6 innings of 1-hit shutout ball, and 4 relievers completed a 5-hit shutout.

* The San Francisco Giants beat their arch-rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, 2-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Madison Bumgarner outpitched Hyn-jin Ryu. Denard Spain went 3-for-4 with an RBI.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Texas Rangers, 1-0 at the Oakland Coliseum. Raúl Alcántara pitched 5 innings of 2-hit shutout ball, and 4 relievers completed a 4-hit shutout. The only run came when Khris Davis led off the bottom of the 2nd inning with a home run.

* And the Cleveland Indians beat the Seattle Mariners, 11-4 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle.

Among the college football games played that day were these:

* Number 1 Alabama beat Vanderbilt, 59-0 at Vanderbilt Stadium (now FirstBank Stadium) in Nashville.

* Number 2 Clemson beat Boston College, 34-7 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina.

* Number 3 Oklahoma beat Baylor, 49-41 at McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas.

* Number 4 Penn State beat Iowa, 21-19 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa.

* Number 5 University of Southern California (USC) beat the University of California, 30-20 at California Memorial Stadium, Berkeley.

* Number 6 Oklahoma State were upset by Number 16 Texas Christian University (TCU), 44-31 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

* Number 7 Washington beat Colorado, 37-10 at Folsom Field in the Denver suburb of Boulder, Colorado.

* Number 8 Michigan beat Purdue, 28-10 at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana.

* Number 9 Wisconsin were idle.

* Number 10 Ohio State beat the University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV), 54-21 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus.

* In an all-Top 20 matchup, Number 11 Georgia beat Number 17 Mississippi State, 31-3 at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia.

* Number 12 Florida State were upset by North Carolina State, 27-12 at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida.

* In a rivalry game, Duke beat North Carolina, 27-17 at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

* Notre Dame beat Michigan State, 38-18 at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan.

* Among the service academies, Army lost to Tulane, 21-17 at Yulman Stadium in New Orelans; Navy beat Cincinnati, 42-32 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland; and Air Force lost to Number 22 San Diego State, 28-24 at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

* And New Jersey's team, Rutgers, lost to Nebraska, 27-17 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska.

And in New Jersey high school football, my Alma Mater, East Brunswick, lost to neighboring Monroe, 21-19 at Hugh Walsh Field in Monroe.

June 25, 1999: San Antonio's 1st Title

June 25, 1999: The San Antonio Spurs win their 1st league championship, after 3 years in the ABA and 23 years in the NBA. They defeat the New York Knicks, 78-77 at Madison Square Garden, to win Game 5 and the NBA Championship.

For the only major sports team in a city now with over 1.14 million people, this is a huge moment. It begins a stretch where, in 16 seasons, coach Gregg Popovich and forward Tim Duncan will lead them into 6 NBA Finals, winning 5 of them, the 1st 2 with center David Robinson.

For the Knicks, it is their 8th trip to the NBA Finals, and it remains their last. They managed to get there despite an injury to their star player, center Patrick Ewing. Forward Larry Johnson put the team on his back, and was 3 wins away from becoming a New York sports legend.

Coach Jeff Van Gundy -- short, bald, scrawny, looking nothing like a basketball player -- had built a team that played scrappy ball. Bill Gallo, sports cartoonist for the New York Daily News, drew him as a boxer, calling him "Rocky Van Gutsy."

But "Coach Pop" had as much guts, more brains, and more talent, and there was little the Knicks could do. In 1997, the Knicks had been bought by Cablevision, and James Dolan has run them ever since. And competitiveness has been a rarity.

Founded in 1967, in the American Basketball Association, as the Dallas Chaparrals, the team moved in 1973, becoming the San Antonio Spurs. They were 1 of the 4 ABA teams invited to join the NBA in 1976. By 1978, they had won a Division title, followed by trips to the Western Conference Finals in 1979, '82 and '83.

After a few down years, the arrival of coach Larry Brown in 1988 and Robinson in 1989 made them a Playoff team again. They got back to the Conference Finals in 1995, Popovich's 1st year as general manager. In 1996, after a bad start, he named himself head coach, and the arrival of Duncan the following season made them a title team in just 2 more seasons.

The Spurs would win the title again in 2003, Robinson's last year. Sports Illustrated named Robinson and Duncan their Sportsmen of the Year. The Spurs won again in 2005, 2007 and 2014, losing in the Finals in 2013, as Duncan straddled the NBA's Shaquille O'Neal era and the first half of the LeBron James era, as it was LeBron's Heat that beat the Spurs in the 2013 Finals, before the Spurs turned the tables in 2014.

By 2022, the population of San Antonio was believed to be 1.47 million people, and its metropolitan area 2.6 million. Yet the Spurs remain its only major league team: They lost the WNBA's Silver Stars after the 2017 season; the Missions are in baseball's Class AA Texas League; despite several minor professional football teams, including the Gunslingers of the 1980s USFL and the Brahmas of the current UFL, they've only hosted 3 NFL regular-season games, all as an emergency home for the 2005 New Orleans Saints after Hurricane Katrina; San Antonio F.C. are in the USL Championship, the 2nd tier of American soccer; and they have no pro hockey team at all.

UPDATE: The Spurs do not yet have a team Hall of Fame, but they have retired uniform numbers. From the 1970s: 13, for guard James Silas; and 44, for guard George Gervin. From the 1980s: 00, for guard Johnny Moore.

From their 1999 NBA Championship: 6, for guard Avery Johnson; 21, for forward Tim Duncan; 32, for forward Sean Elliott; 50, for center David Robinson; and a banner with his total coaching wins, 1,390, for head coach Gregg Popovich. From their 2003 Championship: Duncan, Robinson, Popovich; 9, for guard Tony Parker; 12, for forward Bruce Bowen; and 20, for guard Manu Ginóbili.

From their 2005 and 2007 Championships: Duncan, Popovich, Parker, Bowen and Ginóbili. From their 2014 Championships: Duncan, Popovich, Parker and Ginóbili. The Spurs reached the NBA Finals again in 2026, but lost to the Knicks.

Gervin, Robinson and Parker have been inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. When the NBA announced its 50th Anniversary Team in 1996, and its 75th Anniversary Team in 2021, Robinson and Duncan were named to it. So was earlier Spurs star Gervin.

*

June 25, 1999 was a Friday. These Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles, 9-8 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. The Yankees scored a tying run in the 8th and the winning run in the 9th, a home run by Shane Spencer, making a winning pitcher of Dan Naulty in relief of Hideki Irabu. Tino Martinez went 4-for-4 with a walk and 2 RBIs. Derek Jeter went 1-for-4. So did Cal Ripken.

* The New York Mets beat the Atlanta Braves, 10-2 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta. Rick Reed was the winning pitcher. John Olerud went 4-for-6 with 2 RBIs. Benny Agbayani went 2-for-3 with a walk. Both hit home runs. Rickey Henderson went 1-for-5 with a walk.

* The Montreal Expos beat the Florida Marlins, 4-3 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago White Sox, 6-1 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 11-4 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins, 2-0 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Brian Moehler pitched a 6-hit shutout.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Sammy Sosa went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 5-3 at Milwaukee County Stadium.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Cleveland Indians, 8-2 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Houston Astros, 10-7 at the Astrodome in Houston.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 1-0 at Bank One Ballpark (now Chase Field) in Phoenix. José Jiménez (not the Bill Dana character of the same name) pitched a no-hitter, and still needed Thomas Howell to single Darren Bragg home in the top of the 9th to beat Randy Johnson. Mark McGwire went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Colorado Rockies, 10-1 at Qualcomm Stadium (formerly San Diego Stadium and Jack Murphy Stadium). Tony Gwynn did not play.

* The Anaheim Angels beat the Oakland Athletics, 4-3 at Edison International Field of Anaheim (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim).

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat their arch-rivals, the San Francisco Giants, 4-2 at Candlestick Park (then named 3Com Park at Candlestick Point) in San Francisco. Barry Bonds went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* And the Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners, 11-4 at the Kingdome in Seattle. This was the last series the Mariners played there, before moving into Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park). Alex Rodriguez went 0-for-4. Ken Griffey Jr. did not play.

June 22, 1994: The Rockets Make Houston Clutch City

June 22, 1994: Game 7 of the NBA Finals, at The Summit in Houston. The New York Knicks can still make it a title double for New York City, and for Madison Square Garden. Unfortunately for them, John Starks turned The Summit into a brick house.

The Houston Oilers had won the AFL Championship in 1960 and 1961, but had lost the Championship Game in 1962 and 1967, the AFC Championship Game in 1978 and 1979, and the biggest blown lead in NFL Playoff history in 1993.

The Houston Aeros had won the World Hockey Association title in 1974 and 1975, but lost the Final in 1976, and folded in 1978, and the NHL has never put a team in Houston. The Housotn Astros had won the National League Western Division title in 1980 and 1986, but had lost the NL Championship Series both times. And the Houston Rockets had reached the NBA Finals in 1981 and 1986, but lost to the Boston Celtics both times.

Not that Texas' other major city, Dallas, had much sports success. But the Dallas Cowboys had won 2 Super Bowls in the 1970s, and, at this time, had just won the last 2. In contrast, Houston had become known as "Choke City."

But with head coach Rudy Tomjanovich, a former star player for the Rockets, and center Hakeem Olajuwon leading the way, the Rockets reached the Finals again in 1994. They had to get past the Utah Jazz, with their 2 big stars, forward Karl Malone and guard John Stockton. Malone was nicknamed "The Mailman," because he always seemed to "deliver." But Game 7 of their series was at The Summit on a Sunday, and a fan held up a sign saying, "There's no mail on Sunday!" (Unless you're in the British newspaper business.)

With Michael Jordan taking time off, the Knicks were finally able to get past the Chicago Bulls, after losing to them in the Playoffs in 1992 and 1993. It took them 7 games, but they did it. Then they beat Reggie Miller and the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Knicks took a 3-games-to-2 lead in the Finals, but Games 6 and 7 would be at The Summit. And the Rockets came through in Game 6, winning 86-84. The entire series was close: The Rockets won Game 1 by 7 points, Game 3 by 4, and Game 6 by 2; while the Knicks won Game 2 by 8, Game 4 by 9, and Game 5 by 7.

Game 7. The biggest game in Rockets history, and the biggest game for the Knicks in 21 years. The Rockets led 22-21 after the 1st quarter, 45-43 at the half, and 63-60 after 3 quarters. They never quite pulled away, but won, 90-84, for their 1st NBA Championship.

Olajuwon scored 25 points, and Vernon Maxwell added 21. Derek Harper led the Knicks with 23. The stat that really stands out, though, belonged to John Starks: He made 2 out of 18 shots from the field, including taking 11 3-point shots and missing all of them. He was 4-for-4 on free throws, for a total of 8 points. So maybe it wasn't so much that the Rockets were finally clutch, as Starks went the other way, putting up the most infamous "bricklayer" performance in basketball history.

Houston had so often known as "Choke City" for its sports performances. The Rockets printed up signs reading "CLUTCH CITY," for the fans to hold up. They lived up to it.

The following year, the Rockets acquired Portland Trail Blazers star Clyde "the Glide" Drexler, Olajuwon's teammate at the University of Houston. They got back to the Finals, and swept the Orlando Magic in 4 straight. During Game 4, a fan held up a sign saying, "Hey, Clyde: What's your ring size?" He had made 2 NBA Finals with the Blazers, losing both of them. Now, Clyde the Glide and Hakeem the Dream had won an NBA Championship together.

It's easy to forget now, just how good the 1994 and '95 Houston Rockets were. Don't assume that, just because Michael Jordan wasn't there that year, the Chicago Bulls would have beaten them.

Olajuwon, Drexler and Ewing were named to the NBA's 50th and 75th Anniversary Teams.

UPDATE: The Rockets do not have a team Hall of Fame, but they do retire numbers. From their 1981 NBA Western Conference title, they have retired 23, for guard Calvin Murphy; 24, for center Moses Malone; 44, for forward Elvin Hayes; and 45, for forward Rudy Tomjanovich. From their 1986 Western Conference title: 34, for center Hakeem Olajuwon.

From their 1994 and 1995 NBA Champions: Tomjanovich, by then the head coach; Olajuwon; and 22, for guard Clyde Drexler. From since then, 11, for 2000s center Yao Ming. They have also raised a banner for longtime general manager Carroll Dawson.

Hayes, Tomjanovich, Olajuwon, Drexler and Dawson have been elected to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. 

*

June 22, 1994 was a Wednesday. Football was out of season. The hockey season ended 8 days earlier, when, to my dismay, the New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup. And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Minnesota Twins, 9-2 at Yankee Stadium. Scott Kamieniecki was the winning pitcher. Paul O'Neill hit a home run. Don Mattingly went 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs.

* The New York Mets beat the Atlanta Braves, 5-2 at Atlanta-Fulton Stadium.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Baltimore Orioles, 9-2 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Cal Ripken Jr. went 1-for-3.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 3-2 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-4 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the San Francisco Giants, 4-3 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Barry Bonds and Matt Williams hit home runs for the Giants. As far as I know, neither was using steroids yet.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Detroit Tigers, 9-6 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Texas Rangers, 4-0 at the new Comiskey Park (now Rate Field) in Chicago. Wilson Álvarez pitched 8 innings of 2-hit shutout ball, and Paul Assenmacher struck out the side in the 9th.

* The Montreal Expos beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-4 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Houston Astros, 14-5 at Mile High Stadium in Denver.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 7-6 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. Tony Gwynn went 2-for-2 with 2 walks and an RBI.

* The Seattle Mariners beat the California Angels, 12-3 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Ken Griffey Jr. went 2-for-5 with a home run and 3 RBIs.

* And the Kansas City Royals beat the Oakland Athletics, 10-1 at the Oakland Coliseum.

June 21, 2012: LeBron Gets His Ring

Dwyane Wade (left) and LeBron James

June 21, 2012: LeBron James, the most-hyped basketball player of all time, gets his validation as an all-time great confirmed, by winning his 1st NBA Championship.

He had been hyped since high school in Akron, Ohio. He was hyped from there to his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers, without having attended a single college class. He got them to the Finals in 4 years. But after 7 years, and only 1 Finals appearance, his contract had run out, and he asked team owner Dan Gilbert to bring in new players that he could lead to an NBA Championship. Gilbert did not give him that assurance, and so James made "The Decision": "I'm taking my talents to South Beach."

He went to the Miami Heat, who already had Dwyane Wade, who had led them to the title in 2006. They brought in Chris Bosh, Juwan Howard, Shane Battier, Udonis Haslem and Eddy Curry. LeBron knew that Wade was The Man in Miami, but, unlike Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles, he didn't have to be The Man: He wanted a title, not recognition as the leader.

The Heat won the Eastern Conference title in 2011, but were beaten in the NBA Finals by the veteran San Antonio Spurs. In 2012, they got back to the Finals, this time against the Oklahoma City Thunder, making their 1st Finals appearance since 1996, when the franchise was the Seattle SuperSonics. The Thunder were no slouches, as they had Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Kendrick Perkins, Nick Collison, Nazr Mohammed, Reggie Jackson (no relation to the Baseball Hall-of-Famer of the same name) and the veteran Derek Fisher, in his 8th NBA Finals, having won 5 of them.

In 1991, in winning his 1st title, Michael Jordan saw his Chicago Bulls lose Game 1, but he took over, and led them to win the next 4 straight. This would also happen to LeBron in 2012. The Thunder won Game 1 in Oklahoma city, 105-94, Durant scored 36, James 30. But the Heat took home-court advantage away in Game 2, 100-96. James and Durant each scored 32.

The series moved to Miami, and Games 3 and 4 were close, 91-85 and 104-98, respectively. Westbrook scored 43 points in Game 4, one of the best performances ever in an NBA Finals defeat. Game 5, at the American Airlines Arena (now named the Kaseya Center) was a coronation, as the Heat won, 121-106. Durant scored 32, James 26, but a 36-22 3rd quarter gave the Heat the advantage, and eventually the title.

LeBron had his title, and his ring. He then led the U.S. team to the Gold Medal at the Olympic Games in London. Sports Illustrated named him its Sportsperson of the Year.

He led the Heat to the title again in 2013, beating the Spurs in 7 games. But the following year, the Spurs beat the Heat in 5 games, ending LeBron's tenure in Miami. In hindsight, the long LeBron Era can be broken up into halves: The 1st half being the Tim Duncan Era (2003-14), the 2nd half being the Steph Curry Era (afterward).

James would get a 3rd title, in 2016, having returned to the Cavaliers; and a 4th, with the Los Angeles Lakers, in 2020.

UPDATE: The Heat do not yet have a team Hall of Fame, but they have retired some uniform numbers. From their founding era, they have retired 10 for guard Tim Hardaway Sr. From their 2006 NBA Championship, they have retired 3 for guard Dwyane Wade, 32 for center Shaquille O'Neal, 33 for forward Alonzo Mourning, and 40 for forward Udonis Haslem. From their 2012 and 2013 NBA Championships, in addition to holdovers Wade and Haslem, they have retired 1 for forward Chris Bosh.

As yet, they have not retired 6 for LeBron James, probably due to the fact that he is still an active player. But they have retired 23 for Michael Jordan -- not because he had anything to do with their team, but for overall contributions to basketball. And 6 has been retired by the entire league for Bill Russell.

Hardaway and Mourning have been elected to the Florida Sports Hall of Fame. James and Wade were named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary 75 Greatest Players. So was Ray Allen, who joined the team for the next season, winning that season's title. For the Thunder, Durant, Westbrook and Harden were named to it.

*

June 21, 2012 was a Thursday. The Stanley Cup Finals had ended 10 days earlier, as the Los Angeles Kings defeated the New Jersey Devils, to my chagrin, in 6 games. Football was out of season. These games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Miami Marlins, 6-5 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-1 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Chris Nelson and Wilin Rosario hit home runs for the Rox, while Jimmy Rollins did so for the Phils.

* The Washington Nationals beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 5-2 at Nationals Park in Washington.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Minnesota Twins, 9-1 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 2-1 at Comerica Park in Detroit. Quintin Berry singled Ramón Santiago home with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

* And the Oakland Athletics beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-1 at the O.co Coliseum (as the Oakland Coliseum was then known). Travis Blackley had been level with Clayton Kershaw for 8 innings. Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you, especially the leadoff variety. Josh Lindblom relieved Kershaw, and started the bottom of the 9th by walking Coco Crisp. Jemile Weeks singled, and Yoenis Céspedes hit a 3-run home run off Josh Lindblom, to make a winning pitcher out of Ryan Cook.

June 21, 1988: "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" Premieres

June 21, 1988: Who Framed Roger Rabbit premieres. Robert Zemeckis, best known for Back to the Future, directed. It is loosely based on the 1981 novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit? by Gary K. Wolf. It combines live action with cartoon animation, and includes some of the most legendary characters in cartoon history, as well as new ones created for this film.

But this is no kids' movie, and some may even find it disturbing.

In the world of the film, cartoon characters, a.k.a. "Toons," live side-by-side with real people. And, when making their films, can be just as temperamental and otherwise problematic as humans. Marvin Acme (Stubby Kaye) supplies the studios with gadgets, a nod to Wile E. Coyote and the "Acme" products he uses in his failed bids to catch the Road Runner. ("Acme" is an ancient Greek term meaning "peak" or "best.")

R.K. Maroon (Alan Tilvern) runs Maroon Cartoons, a nod to Bugs Bunny, in his Bronx accent, calling somebody a moron: "What a maroon!" His biggest stars are Baby Herman (voiced by Lou Hirsch), who's 50 years old but still in the form of a baby; and Roger Rabbit (Charles Fleischer), the goofy, line-forgetting Costello to Herman's Abbott.

Despite being a Toon rabbit, Roger is married to a Toon woman, Jessica Rabbit (speaking voice, Kathleen Turner; singing voice, Amy Irving; and neither is listed in the credits), a lounge singer with, physical proportions that would be impossible in a human woman. She says, "I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way." Why are she and Roger together? She says, "He makes me laugh." (Fleischer also voices Benny the Cab, and 2 of Judge Doom's weasels.)

But she is manipulated into sort-of cheating on him with Acme, and then Acme ends up dead, and Roger is the main suspect. To try to clear his name, he goes to Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins, a Cockney who nonetheless managed to sound like a hard-boiled American private eye), who once ran a successful private investigation firm with his brother Teddy.

A few years earlier, Teddy was killed by a Toon. Ever since, Eddie has been drinking away his P.I. skills. He needs Roger as much as Roger needs him, but, as he does with everybody (except, apparently, Jessica), Roger annoys the hell out of Eddie. Joanna Cassidy plays Dolores, a waitress who helps Eddie and Roger.

They are pursued by Judge Doom (Christopher Lloyd) and his gang of Toon weasels, led by Smart Ass (the unmistakable voice of David Lander, a.k.a. Squiggy from Laverne & Shirley). Eddie looks at the available evidence, and thinks Maroon is behind it all. Maroon admits he had a chance to sell his studio, including Toontown, where all the Toons live. The problem is, he only owned half of Toontown: Acme owned the other half, and no one knew who his beneficiary in the event of his death would be. If that remained true, Maroon would be sole owner -- and chief suspect. But Maroon is shot and killed just as he's confessing to Eddie.

Now, Doom can buy both men's shares, cheap. As villains so often do, instead of immediately killing the heroes they've captured, he stupidly explains his plan to them first. It's for a road: "Eight lanes of shimmering cement, running from here to Pasadena. Smooth, safe, fast. Traffic jams will be a thing of the past." (Yeah, surrre! He continued.) "I see a place where people get on and off the freeway, on and off, off and on, all day, all night! Soon, where Toontown once stood will be a string of gas stations, inexpensive motels, restaurants that serve rapidly prepared food, tire salons, automobile dealerships, and wonderful, wonderful billboards, reaching as far as the eye can see! My God, it'll be beautiful!"

In other words, he foresaw freeway exits, and the shopping centers that sprang up around them, serving as the new "downtown shopping districts" for what became suburban America after World War II. Except that the film took place in 1947, when said 8 lanes were already in place in real life in 1940: The L.A. area's 1st freeway, the Arroyo Seco Parkway, went to Pasadena.

To build his freeway, Doom has to destroy Toontown. In order to do that, he found a way to do what was previously considered impossible, due to "cartoon physics": A way to not only kill a Toon, but destroy Toontown, an acid he called "The Dip."

Eddie breaks out, a fight results, and it appears that Doom is killed. But he isn't: It turns out that not only is his human form a disguise for a Toon, but that Doom is the Toon who killed his brother. Eddie shakes off this shock, and kills Doom and his weasels. Acme's will is found, leaving Toontown to the Toons themselves. (The legal status of Toons needs to be mentioned: Are they considered "people," and entitled to the rights thereof in court?)

Cameos are made by some of the biggest legends of cartoons: Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse (voice of Wayne Allwine), Minnie Mouse (Russi Taylor), Donald Duck (Tony Anselmo), Goofy (Tony Pope), Pinocchio (Peter Westy) and Dumbo (Frank Welker); Warner Brothers' Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Tweety Bird, Sylvester the Cat (all voiced by Mel Blanc, in what turned out to be his last film before he died) and Yosemite Sam (Joe Alaskey); Paramount's Betty Boop (her original portrayer, Mae Questel); MGM's Droopy Dog (Richard Williams); and legendary actress June Foray in multiple roles.

Naturally, as Porky, Blanc ends the film with the classic Warner Brothers ending: Porky's stuttering "A-ba-dee, a-ba-dee, a-ba-dee, a-ba, that's all, folks!"

The film was nominated for 7 Academy Awards, none for acting. It won 4. Not surprising, it took the "Oscars" for Best Film Editing, Best Sound Effects Editing, and Best Visual Effects. The 4th Oscar was a Special Achievement Award, given to Richard Williams, who had been producing animated sequences for film openings since the 1950s.

*

June 21, 1988 was a Thursday. Game 7 of the NBA Finals was played at The Forum, outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California. The Los Angeles Lakers made it back-to-back titles, defeating the Detroit Pistons: "Showtime" 108, "the Motor City Bad Boys" 105.

Football was out of season. Hockey season had ended on May 26, when the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Boston Bruins for the Stanley Cup. And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Detroit Tigers, 7-6 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. The Yankees led 6-1 going into the bottom of the 9th, thanks to the 1st major league home run of Randy Velarde, and Dave Winfield and Don Mattingly each having 2 hits and an RBI. But in the bottom of the 9th, first Neil Allen, then Dave Righetti imploded, and Cecilo Guante gave up a grand slam to Allen Trammell.

* The New York Mets beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 9-0 at Shea Stadium. Ron Darling pitched a 7-hit shutout. Kevin McReynolds hit a home run.

* The Montreal Expos beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 7-0 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Pascual Pérez pitched 8 innings of 5-hit shutout ball, and Tim Burke pitched a perfect 9th.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Chicago Cubs, 6-1 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Mike Schmidt went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-2 at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto. Eddie Murray went 0-for-4, but Cal Ripken went 2-for-4 with 3 RBIs.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Cleveland Indians, 10-6 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox, 6-2 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. George Brett and Frank White hit home runs.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 4-2 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Robin Yount went 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Paul Molitor went 2-for-5.

* The California Angels beat the Minnesota Twins, 5-4 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Chili Davis hit a home run in the top of the 10th inning.

* The Houston Astros beat the Cincinnati Reds, 3-1 at the Astrodome in Houston.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners, 6-0 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Paul Kilgus pitched a 6-hit shutout.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves, 2-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the San Diego Padres beat the San Francisco Giants, 8-3 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Tony Gwynn went 1-for-5 with an RBI.

June 19, 2016: "Believeland" Beats 73-9

June 19, 2016: This was the 2nd of 4 straight seasons in which the Golden State Warriors faced the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals. It was also the season in which the Warriors set a new NBA record for wins in a season, going 73-9.

It was the 1 of the 4 Finals that the Warriors lost.

In 1967, the Philadelphia 76ers set a new record for wins in an NBA regular season: 68. In 1972, the Los Angeles Lakers broke it, with 69. In 1996, the Chicago Bulls broke that, with 72. And all 3 of them won the NBA Championship.

In 2016, the Warriors, defending NBA Champions, won 73. With Steve Kerr coaching Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson, all of them probably headed for the Basketball Hall of Fame, it seemed like no one could stop them.

Certainly not the Cleveland Cavaliers, whom they beat in the previous year's Finals. LeBron James had abandoned them -- or been chased out, depending on who you believe -- after the 2010 season, having played 7 seasons and led them to a single Finals, in 2007. With the Miami Heat, he played 4 seasons, reached the Finals every year, and won in 2012 and 2013.

For Cleveland, and for Northern Ohio, there had not been a World Championship in any sport since the Browns won the 1964 NFL Championship -- effectively, Super Bowl -II. The Browns had lost the NFL Championship Game in 1965, '68 and '69; and the AFC Championship Game in the seasons of 1986, '87 and '89.

The Indians (who became the Guardians in 2022) hadn't won a World Series since 1948, or a Pennant since 1954, or even been in a Pennant race since 1959, before winning the American League Pennant in 1995 and 1997, losing the World Series both times. They also reached the AL Championship Series in 1998 and 2007, but lost both times.

The Cavaliers reached the NBA Eastern Conference Finals in 1976 and 1992, before Akron, Ohio native LeBron arrived in 2003. He led them to the NBA Finals in 2007, but lost to the San Antonio Spurs. They never seemed to give him enough supporting players, and so he left, winning titles in Miami, before coming home to new Cavs ownership, to try again.

He got them to the Finals in 2015, but the Warriors won. And when the Warriors jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the 2016 Finals -- winning Game 1, 104-89; winning Game 2, 110-77; losing Game 3, 120-90; and winning Game 4, 108-97 -- it looked bad for LeBron.

But the Cavs won Game 5 in Oakland, 112-97. They won Game 6 in Cleveland, 115-101. It all came down to a Game 7 in Oakland. The host Warriors should have won.

The day before, The day before Game 7, Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue took his players to the famous San Quentin Prison in Marin County, north of San Francisco. He showed them the now-retired electric chair, and Lue told them, "That's pressure, not a Game 7."

Game 7 was close, with 20 lead changes and 11 ties. It was the only game in the series to have a final margin of fewer than 10 points. At halftime, the Warriors led 49–42. But they failed to score a basket during the last 4:39 of the game.

With the score tied at 89, and 1:50 remaining in regulation, LeBron delivered what became known as "The Block," on a layup attempt by Andre Iguodala. Kyrie Irving made a 3-point field goal over Stephen Curry to give Cleveland a 92–89 lead with 53 seconds left.

Kevin Love forced Curry into a contested three-pointer, which he missed. LeBron made 1 of 2 free throws, putting them 4 points ahead with only 10.6 seconds left. The Cavaliers fouled Draymond Green with 6.5 seconds remaining. Curry and Marreese Speights each missed a 3, and time expired.

LeBron led all Cavaliers with 27 points and became only the 3rd player ever in NBA history to record a triple-double in an NBA Finals Game 7, with 27 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds. Lue, a reserve guard on the 2000 and 2001 Lakers, became the 14th person to win an NBA Championship as a player and as a head coach.

(The other 2 players with a triple-double in an NBA Finals Game 7 were Lakers. In 1969, Jerry West lived up to his nickname, "Mr. Clutch": He had 42 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists, but the Lakers lost to the Boston Celtics, anyway. In 1988, James Worthy lived up to his nickname, "Big Game James": He had 36 points 16 rebounds and 10 assists, and the Lakers beat the Detroit Pistons.)

The Cavaliers became the first team in NBA history to come back from a 3–1 series deficit to win the NBA Finals. They became the 1st NBA Champion to clinch all their playoff series on the road since the 1999 San Antonio Spurs, and the 1st road team to win a Finals Game 7 since the 1978 Washington Bullets.

The Cavaliers won their 1st championship in franchise history, in their 46th season. What's more, it ended a 52-year major league sports championship drought for Northern Ohio, since the Cleveland Browns won the 1964 NFL Championship. It was the 1st World Championship for any Ohio team since the Cincinnati Reds won the 1990 World Series, almost 36 years.

For Cleveland, and for Northern Ohio, all was forgiven with LeBron. "Believeland" had believed in him, and he had rewarded that belief. This remains the only NBA Finals in which a single player has led both teams in points, assists, steals, and blocks. A parade was held, ending in a ceremony at City Hall, attended by Jim Brown of the 1964 Browns.

For the 2nd time, Sports Illustrated named LeBron its Sportsperson of the Year. He would receive a 3rd award in 2020, as part of a group of athletes involved with COVID-related charities.

Was there a carryover of the effects of this Finals? Not really: The Warriors got up and beat the Cavs in the Finals in 2017 and '18. The Indians got to extra innings of Game 7 of the World Series in 2016, as they had in 1997 -- but, as in that season, they lost. And it took the Browns until 2020 to make the Playoffs again.

LeBron ended up going to 8 straight NBA Finals, 9 in 10 years, and 10 in 14. But it was a mixed record: He won with the Heat in 2012 and '13, with the Cavs in 2016, and with the Lakers in 2020; but he lost with the Cavs in 2007, '15, '17 and '18, and with the Heat in 2011 and '14. He went 4-6 in Finals. compare that to Bill Russell, 11-1; Wilt Chamberlain, 2-4; John Havlicek, 7-0; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 6-4; Magic Johnson, 5-4; Michael Jordan, 6-0; Shaquille O'Neal, 4-2; Kobe Bryant, 5-2; Tim Duncan, 5-1; and Curry, 4-2.

LeBron may be the NBA's all-time leading scorer. And he may have been named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary 75 Greatest Players, although they were not ranked, 1 to 75. And, as the de facto (if not official) head coach and general manager of the Lakers, one of the most successful teams in any sport, he might be the most powerful single player in the history of North American sports.

But the "GOAT" -- Greatest Of All Time? Not by a long shot.

UPDATE: The Cavaliers have a Wall of Honor. From the 1970s, they have honored founding owner Nick Mileti, original coach Bll Fitch; guards Bobby "Bingo" Smith and Austin Carr; forwards John Johnson, Michael Campanella "Campy" Russell and Mike Mitchell; and centers Jim Chones and Nate Thurmond. From the 1980s, they have honored guard Lloyd "World B." Free.

From the 1990s, they have honored owner Gordon Gund, general manager Wayne Embry, head coach Lenny Wilkens (who also played 2 seasons for the Cavs in the 1970s), guards Mark Price and Terrell Brandon, forwards John Williams and Larry Nance; and center Brad Daugherty. And from the 2000s, they have honored center Žydrūnas Ilgauskas.

In addition, the Cavs have honored Chuck Broski, their statistician from Day One; longtime broadcaster Joe Tait; and Nick Gilbert, son of owner Dan Gilbert, who, fighting a genetic disease that would end his life at age 26, sat in for his father to announce the team's NBA Draft picks, and became something of a good luck charm after the team twice won the top pick. They have not yet honored anyone from the 2016 NBA Champions, not even LeBron James.

Mileti, Smith, Carr, Russell, Chones, Gund, Embry, Nance, Ilguaskas and 1980s general manager Harry Weltman have been inducted into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame.

*

June 19, 2016 was a Thursday. Football was out of season. The Stanley Cup was won a week earlier, by the Pittsburgh Penguins over the San Jose Sharks.

And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Minnesota Twins, 7-4 at Target Field in Minneapolis. Ervin Santana outpitched Nathan Eovaldi. Max Kepler and Brian Dozier hit home runs for the Twins. For the Yankees, Brian McCann went 3-for-4 with 2 solo home runs. Alex Rodriguez, in what turned out to be his last season, went 1-for-4 with an RBI.

* The New York Mets lost to the Atlanta Braves, 6-0 at Citi Field. Julio Teheran outpitched Jacob deGrom, coming within 1 baserunner of a perfect game, a 3rd-inning single by Michael Conforto. Nick Markakis went 2-for-5 with a home run and 2 RBIs. Freddie Freeman went 4-for-5 with an RBI.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Seattle Mariners, 2-1 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-1 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 11-6 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. David Ortiz went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 5-1 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

* The Miami Marlins beat the Colorado Rockies, 3-0 at Marlins Park (now LoanDepot Park) in Miami. How many Marlins pitchers does it take to pitch a 2-hit shutout? This time, 4: Tom Koehler, who allowed both hits but also walked 6 over 6 innings; then came a perfect inning each from Kyle Barraclough, David Phelps and AJ Ramos (no periods on his initials).

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Chicago White Sox, 3-2 at Progressive Field in Cleveland. José Ramírez singled Rajai Davis home with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 10-5 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The Cubs got home runs from Javier Báez, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Willson Contreras and Addison Russell. As big as 2016 had just become for ending a drought, it could have been an even bigger year for Cleveland: The World Series would be between the Indians, who hadn't won a World Series since 1948; and the Cubs, who hadn't won a Pennant since 1945 or a World Series since 1908.

* The Texas Rangers beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-4 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Detroit Tigers, 2-1 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. Cheslor Cuthbert singled Lorenzo Cain home with the winning run in the bottom of the 13th inning.

* The Houston Astros beat the Cincinnati Reds, 6-0 at Minute Maid Park (now Daikin Park) in Houston. Mike Fiers (4 hits over 5 2/3rds innings) and Chris Devenski combined on a 5-hit shutout.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Washington Nationals, 6-3 at Petco Park in San Diego.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 2-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the Los Angeles Angels beat the Oakland Athletics, 2-0 at Oakland Coliseum.