July 18, 1996: The Magic Is Gone In Orlando

July 18, 1996: Shaquille O'Neal signs as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers. This ends his 4-season tenure with the Orlando Magic, and also ends what could have been a golden era for the Magic.

Founded in 1989, the Magic struggled in their 1st 3 seasons, as expansion teams tend to do in sports, including in the NBA. But they got to .500 in their 4th season, which was O'Neal's rookie season. And it was an epic season: The enormous "Shaq" was blasting through opponents, and even destroying backboards with his dunks. Not only did he shatter 2, but he actually brought down a reinforced backboard against the New Jersey Nets at the Meadowlands.

They finished 41-41, but didn't make the Playoffs. They drafted guard Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway, and he formed a terrific rotating backcourt with original '89 Magic player Nick Anderson, Scott Skiles and Dennis Scott. They made the Playoffs in 1994.

General manager Pat Williams and head coach Brian Hill kept working. Hill moved Scott to small forward, and Williams traded for Chicago Bulls power forward Horace Grant. In 1995, the Magic went 50-32, eliminated the Boston Celtics from the Playoffs, beat the Bulls in spite of the return of Michael Jordan, and beat the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

In the franchise's 6th season, its 3rd with Shaq, and its 2nd with Penny, they were in the NBA Finals. They were swept in 4 straight by the defending Champions, the Houston Rockets, but they extended Game 1 in Orlando to overtime, and only lost Game 3 in Houston by 3 points. They were not far from making it a good series.

In 1995-96, they went 60-22, winning the NBA's Atlantic Division. Only the Bulls, with Jordan fully back, at a record 72-10, and the Western Conference-leading Seattle SuperSonics, at 64-18, had a better record. And when the Magic swept the Detroit Pistons in 3 straight, and then beat theAtlanta Hawks 4 games to 1, nobody expected the Eastern Conference Finals between Da Bulls and the Magic to be easy for either side.

But the Bulls blew the Magic out in Game 1 in Chicago, 121-83. There was hope in Game 2, as the Magic led 64-46, But the Bulls came back, and won, 93-88. Game 3 in Orlando was a wipeout, an 86-67 Bulls win, and the sweep was completed, 106-101.

Still, there was lots of reason to hope. Shaq was 24. Penny was about to turn 25. They were 2 of the 10 best players in basketball. The Magic had as much chance as Patrick Ewing's New York Knicks or Reggie Miller's Pacers to dethrone the Bulls in the East.

But Shaq was a free agent. He said the team "just didn't respect (Hill)." He also compared his lack of privacy in Orlando to "feeling like a big fish in a dried-up pond." He also learned that Penny considered himself the leader of the team, and didn't want Shaq making more money than him.

So, on July 18, 1996, Shaq signed a 7-year, $121 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers. He said the money wasn't the issue: "I'm tired of hearing about money, money, money, money, money. I just want to play the game, drink Pepsi, wear Reebok." Sounds like it was about the money to me.

With Shaq gone, and Penny missing one-quarter of the games due to injury, the Magic went 45-37 in 1997, and lost in the 1st Round to their cross-State rivals, the Miami Heat. Penny missed all but 19 games in 1997-98, and they went 41-41 and missed the Playoffs. He played all 50 games in the strike-shortened 1998-99 season, and the Magic went 33-17, but, again, they lost in the 1st Round, to the Philadelphia 76ers. In mid-season, Hill was fired. After that season, Penny was traded to the Phoenix Suns, and the Magic went into rebuilding mode. What could have been a Golden Age fell well short, and was now over.

Shaq and Kobe Bryant led the Lakers to 3 straight NBA Championships, 2000, '01 and '02. The Magic didn't get back to the Finals until 2009, losing to the Lakers, now led by Kobe without Shaq.

UPDATE: The Magic have a team Hall of Fame. From their 1995 Eastern Conference Champions, they have honored center Shaquille O'Neal, guards Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway and Nick Anderson, forward Dennis Scott, head coach Brian Hill, founding owner Richard DeVos, founding general manager Pat Williams, founding executive Jim Hewitt, and original broadcaster David Steele.

From their 2009 Eastern Conference Champions, they have honored center Dwight Howard. From in between those Finals berths, they have honored guards Darrell Armstrong and Tracy McGrady, and general manager John Gabriel.

Williams, Anderson and McGrady have also been elected to the Florida Sports Hall of Fame.

*

July 18, 1996 was a Thursday. These games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Milwaukee Brewers, 16-4 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Scott Karl outpitched Dwight Gooden. Fernando Viña went 3-for-5 with a home run and 3 RBIs. Rookie Derek Jeter went 0-for-2 before being replaced. Rubén Sierra went 3-for-4 with an RBI.

* The New York Mets lost to the Montreal Expos, 7-3 at Shea Stadium. Pedro Martínez outpitched Pete Harnisch. Henry Rodríguez and Cliff Floyd homered for the Expos, Todd Hundley for the Mets.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Boston Red Sox, 6-3 at Fenway Park in Boston. David Wells outpitched Aaron Sele. Cal Ripken went 1-for-5.

* The Florida Marlins beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 7-0 at Joe Robbie Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida. Kevin Brown pitched a 3-hit shutout.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Detroit Tigers, 8-4 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Cincinnati Reds, 8-3 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Minnesota Twins, 5-4 at Jacobs Field (now Progressive Field) in Cleveland.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox, 7-1 at the new Comiskey Park (now Rate Field) in Chicago.

* The Chicago Cubs beat their arch-rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-5 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Texas Rangers, 5-4 at The Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Rafael Bournigal singled Terry Steinbach home with the winning run in the top of the 11th inning.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Houston Astros, 3-2 at the Astrodome in Houston.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Colorado Rockies, 9-2 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. John Flaherty, Steve Finley and Ken Caminiti hit home runs. Rickey Henderson went 2-for-5. Tony Gwynn did not play, but his brother Chris Gwynn went 1-for-4 with a walk and 2 RBIs.

* The Seattle Mariners beat the California Angels, 15-3 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Ken Griffey Jr. went 2-for-4 with a walk and 4 RBIs. Alex Rodriguez went 4-for-4 with a home run, a walk and 2 RBIs. Jay Buhner went 2-for-5 with a home run and 5 RBIs.

* And the Los Angeles Dodgers beat their arch-rivals, the San Francisco Giants, 8-3 at 3Com Park (as Candlestick Park in San Francisco was known at the time). Hideo Nomo outpitched Shawn Estes. Eric Karros and Mike Busch homered; in Busch's case, a grand slam. For the Giants, Matt Williams homered, while Barry Bonds went 1-for-3 with a walk.

June 15, 2004: Larry Brown's "Double" Shocks the L.A. "Superteam"

Left to right: Larry Brown, Rip Hamilton,

Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups, Rasheed Wallace

June 15, 2004: The NBA Championship is awarded to the best team in the league. Not the best collection of players, but the best team.

From 1972 to 2010, Larry Brown coached 10 different ABA or NBA teams (a record), and also coached 3 different college basketball teams. He took UCLA to the 1980 NCAA Final, and the University of Kansas to the Final Four in 1986 and 1988, winning the National Championship in 1988.

Brown was from Long Island, New York. As a teenager, he was a camp counselor there, and one of his students was Tony Kornheiser, later a great sportswriter and, with Michael Wilbon, co-host of the ESPN show Pardon the Interruption. A lifelong friendship was formed.

Here's how Kornheiser once described Brown's genius for coaching: "He took the Clippers to the Playoffs! Nobody takes the Clippers to the Playoffs!" From 1976, when the Los Angeles Clippers were still known as the Buffalo Braves, until 2012, when a change in management made them a perennial Playoff team, the only coaches to take them to the Playoffs were Larry Brown in 1992 and 1993, Bill Fitch in 1997, and Mike Dunleavy in 2006. That's it: 4 times, and Brown provided 2 of them.

And it wasn't just the Clippers: He took the NBA's other "little brother team," the New Jersey Nets, to the Playoffs in 1982. That was the good news. The bad news is that he never seemed to stay in one place too long. He either didn't like the job, or he angered somebody in management. But somebody was always willing to hire him. He got the Denver Nuggets to the last ABA Finals in 1976, and the Western Conference Finals in 1978; the Indiana Pacers to the Eastern Conference Finals in 1993 and 1994; and the Philadelphia 76ers to the NBA Finals in 2001.

But Brown and the Sixers' top player, Allen Iverson, couldn't co-exist. So, in 2003, Brown resigned, and took the head job with the Detroit Pistons. Despite this, in 2005, Iverson admitted, "I love him as a man. The coach, that's totally different. Yeah, I like him as a coach. He's the best coach in the world. I can't say it enough. He's the best in the world."

Joe Dumars, the guard who had led the Pistons' defense in their "Motor City Bad Boys" period -- losing the Finals to the Lakers in 7 games in 1988, then winning back-to-back titles in 1989 and 1990 -- was now the general manager. He had built a team with guards Chauncey Billups, Richard "Rip" Hamilton and Lindsey Hunter; forwards Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince and Corliss Williamson; and center Ben Wallace.

The Pistons beat the Milwaukee Bucks in the 1st round of the Playoffs, the New Jersey Nets in the next round, and the Indiana Pacers in the Conference Finals. Now, the NBA Finals were in front of them. Standing between them and glory: The Los Angeles Lakers.

Coached by Phil Jackson, and led by center Shaquille O'Neal and guard Kobe Bryant, the Lakers had won 3 straight NBA Championships: 2000, 2001 and 2002. There had been discussion of the Lakers getting favorable, but incorrect, calls from referees, especially in the Playoffs.

In 2003, the Lakers lost to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Semifinals. Their general manager, former Laker forward Mitch Kupchak, was determined to get the title back. He decided to build a "superteam." He signed 3 free agents: Karl Malone, who built a career as one of the all-time great power forwards with the Utah Jazz; Gary Payton, who had been a superstar point guard with the Seattle SuperSonics; and forward Horace Grant, who had helped Jackson win 3 titles as a forward with the Chicago Bulls, and teamed with O'Neal to get the Orlando Magic to the 1995 Finals.

Everything pointed to the Lakers going through the league like a hot knife through butter. But first, Bryant needed knee surgery in the off-season. He went to Colorado to get it. At his hotel, he was accused of sexually assaulting a female employee. The case was dropped, and, eventually, NBA fans decided, pretty much the way baseball fans did with David Ortiz and his steroid cheating, that it simply never happened, and that the man in question was a wonderful guy.

Eventually. But not in the 2003-04 season. Bryant heard it from fans all over the league, and he missed a few games. While the Lakers' record of 56-26 was enough to win the Pacific Division, it was not historically notable, and they only finished 2nd overall in the Western Conference to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

They knew they would truly be measured by what they did in the Playoffs, and they did raise their game: They beat the Houston Rockets in the 1st round, the Spurs in the next round, and the Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals, to set up the Finals matchup with the Pistons.

Few people gave the Pistons the chance. The Lakers were considered a team of destiny. They forgot that a collection of players can be beaten by a team. The Pistons won Game 1 in Los Angeles, 87-75, despite 34 points from Shaq, and the basketball world was stunned. They pushed the Lakers to overtime in Game 2, with the Lakers winning 99-91, with Kobe scoring 33.

But getting a split in L.A. energized the Pistons. At The Palace in the Detroit suburb of Auburn Hills, Michigan, the Lakers never had a chance. The Pistons won Game 3, 88-68. The Lakers were never in the game. Shaq had 36 points and 17 rebounds in Game 4. But Rasheed Wallace had 26, and he and Ben Wallace (no relation) each had 13 rebounds. The Pistons won, 88-80. Malone did not play in Game 5, and he retired after the Finals, so this was the last game for "The Mailman."

Game 5 was played at The Palace on June 15. The Pistons led 25-24 after the 1st quarter, but pulled away in the 2nd, pulled away further in the 3rd, and the Lakers simply couldn't come back. The Pistons won, 100-87, and the World Champions were, as the chant echoing through Auburn Hills said, "DEE-troit BAS-ket-BALL!"

The Pistons had done this despite not having a single player on their roster who was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame until Ben Wallace was elected in 2021. Billups was named the Most Valuable Player of the Finals. None of the '04 Pistons were named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary 75 Greatest Players. In contrast, Shaq, Kobe, Payton and Malone all were.

Brown finally had his 1st NBA Championship, as either a player or a coach, at the age of 63. (He had won the 1969 ABA Championship while playing for the Oakland Oaks.) He remains the only head coach to win championships in both the NCAA and the NBA.

There was actually another "Double" going on: Bill Davidson was the owner of the Pistons, and also of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who had won the Stanley Cup 8 days earlier. This made him the 1st owner of 2 World Championship teams at once since Edward Bennett Williams of the 1983 Baltimore Orioles and Washington Redskins; and the 1st ever NBA-NHL double-title owner.

Born in Detroit in 1922, William Morse Davidson founded Guardian Industries, manufacturers of architectural and automotive glass, 2 good fields for someone from Detroit to be in. He bought the Pistons in 1975, and the team's court, first at The Palace and, since 2017, at the Little Caesars Arena, is named for him. He owned the Lightning from 1999 to 2007, and died in 2009.

The Lakers? They were now the biggest flop in NBA history -- or, at least, since their 1969 edition, when Wilt Chamberlain was added to Jerry West, Elgin Baylor and Gail Goodrich, and lost Game 7 of the Finals at home.

And after the season, Bryant told the team's owner, Dr. Jerry Buss, that he could no longer coexist with either O'Neal or Jackson. Jackson told Buss that Bryant was "uncoachable." So Buss told Kupchak to appease Bryant. He did: O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat. And Jackson resigned.

With Bryant as "The Man," The Lakers fell apart. And Shaq, along with Dwyane Wade, helped the Miami Heat win the 2006 NBA Championship. In 2007, the Lakers got knocked out by the Phoenix Suns in the 1st round. Shaq was recorded rapping in a nightclub, saying, "Kobe, tell me how my ass taste!" (The implication was not that Kobe could kiss Shaq's ass, but that he already had.)

Sportswriter Dave Zirin wrote, "Kobe did to the Lakers what Jimmy Hoffa did to the Teamsters: Both made them a national force & ruined them forever." (Ironically, when Hoffa disappeared, it was in the northern suburbs of Detroit, at a restaurant in Bloomfield Hills, then Machus' Red Fox, now named Andiamo, just 14 miles from where The Palace would be built.)

Well, not forever, as it turned out. Shaq's teasing was the wakeup call that Bryant needed. He made peace with Jackson, who returned. The Lakers got Pau Gasol. Together, they got back to the Finals in 2008, and won the title in 2009 and 2010. Meanwhile, O'Neal never won another. The final total: Bryant 6 titles, O'Neal 5; separately, Kobe 2, Shaq 1.

Kobe and Shaq made peace with each other before Kobe's death in a helicopter crash in 2020.

*

June 15, 2004 was a Tuesday. Football was out of season. The Stanley Cup had been won 8 days earlier, by the Tampa Bay Lightning, controversially (especially in Game 6) in 7 games over the Calgary Flames.

These Major League Baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 4-2 at Chase Field in Phoenix. Gary Sheffield hit a home run. He, Derek Jeter and Bernie Williams each had 3 hits. Alex Rodriguez went 1-for-4 with a walk.

* The New York Mets beat the Cleveland Indians, 7-2 at Shea Stadium.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Montreal Expos, 8-2 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 10-3 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Kansas City Royals, 3-2 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Florida Marlins, 7-5 at Pro Player Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida. In the top of the 10th inning, Nate Bump walked Miguel Olivo with the bases loaded, then gave up an RBI single to Kelly Dransfeldt.

* The Anaheim Angels beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-2 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Texas Rangers, 5-4 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. Barry Larkin singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 11th inning. Ken Griffey Jr. went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Seattle Mariners, 3-0 at Miller Park (now American Family Field) in Milwaukee. Victor Santos pitched 7 innings of 2-hit shutout ball, and 2 relievers finished the 2-hit shutout. Ichiro Suzuki did not get either of those 2 hits, going 0-for-3.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Oakland Athletics, 8-4 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Albert Pujols went 1-for-4 with 2 RBIs.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Houston Astros, 4-2 at Minute Maid Park in Houston.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Boston Red Sox, 6-3 at Coors Field in Denver.

* The Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the San Diego Padres, 5-2 at Petco Park in San Diego.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Baltimore Orioles, 5-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the San Francisco Giants beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-3 at SBC Park (now Oracle Park) in San Francisco. Barry Bonds went 0-for-2 with 2 walks.

February 9, 1997: The NBA's 50th Anniversary 50 Greatest Players

February 9, 1997: The NBA hosts its All-Star Game at the Gund Arena (now the Rocket Arena) in Cleveland. The East beat the West, 132-120. Glen Rice, then with the Charlotte Hornets, was named the game's Most Valuable Player.

But the game was secondary to the halftime entertainment. Although the names had already been announced a few weeks earlier, to coincide with the NBA's actual 50th Anniversary -- the 1st game was played on November 1, 1946 -- the 50 Greatest Players, as chosen by a special panel (including, as it turned out, some of the players in question) were introduced.

Of the 50, 49 were still alive at the time. The only one who had died was Pete Maravich, who suffered a heart attack in 1988, only 40 years old. He was represented at the ceremony by his sons, Jaeson and Josh.

Of the 49 living players, 47 were on hand. The two who weren't? One had a good excuse: Jerry West, the legendary guard and executive of the Los Angeles Lakers, was in a hospital, recovering from surgery. (He did recover, and was still alive to be selected to the 75th Anniversary 75 Greatest Players.)

The other player who didn't show up did not have a good excuse. It was Shaquille O'Neal. He'd played 4 seasons, thrilling fans with ferocious dunks, and leading the Orlando Magic to the 1995 NBA Finals. This was his 1st season with the Lakers, and there were people who said his worthiness as a selection as an all-time great was premature. (That turned out to be true.)

But it wasn't humility, a belief that he didn't yet belong, that kept him away. No, it was an injury. He decided that, if he couldn't play in the game, he wouldn't show up. So he didn't. And so, when his name was announced, the crowd in Cleveland -- a city which had absolutely no reason to dislike him, or the Lakers, or even the Magic -- booed him hard.

Hakeem Olajuwon of the Houston Rockets was selected, for both the All-Star Game and the 50 Greatest Players. So was Patrick Ewing of the New York Knicks. Like Shaq, both of these men were injured, and unable to play in the game. But both of them showed up, anyway, wearing suits instead of their uniforms. And each of them was solidly cheered by a crowd in a city for which he had never played.

The members of the 50 Greatest Players who were still active, and selected for the games, wore their East or West uniforms. All the others wore suits. All of them were given special leather jackets, with the NBA 50th Anniversary logo, white sleeves, and torsos in the solid color of the team with which they were the most identified.

Only 4 of the NBA's 1st 50 Championship teams were not represented: The 1947 Philadelphia Warriors, the 1948 Baltimore Bullets, the 1951 Rochester Royals, and the 1979 Seattle SuperSonics, although their head coach, Lenny Wilkens, was named as one of the 50 Greatest Players.

Here they were, in (roughly) chronological order:

* From the Minneapolis Lakers' dynasty of the 1950s: George Mikan.

* From the Syracuse Nationals' 1955 NBA Champions: Dolph Schayes.

* From the Philadelphia Warriors' 1956 NBA Champions: Paul Arizin.

* From the St. Louis Hawks' 1958 NBA Champions: Bob Pettit.

* From the Boston Celtics' dynasty of the 1950s and '60s: Bob Cousy, Bill Sharman, Bill Russell, Sam Jones, John Havlicek.

* From the Philadelphia 76ers' 1967 NBA Champions: Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer and Billy Cunningham.

* From the New York Knicks' 1970 NBA Champions: Willis Reed, Walt "Clyde" Frazier and Dave DeBusschere. From their 1973 Champions: Those 3, plus Jerry Lucas and Earl "the Pearl" Monroe. But not, interestingly, Bill Bradley.

* From the Milwaukee Bucks' 1971 NBA Champions: Oscar Robertson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

* From the Los Angeles Lakers' 1972 NBA Champions: Chamberlain and Jerry West.

* From the Celtics' Champions of 1974 and '76: Havlicek and Dave Cowens.

* From the Golden State Warriors' 1975 NBA Champions: Rick Barry.

* From the Portland Trail Blazers' 1977 NBA Champions: Bill Walton.

* From the Washington Bullets' 1978 NBA Champions: Wes Unseld and Elvin Hayes.

* From the Lakers' dynasty of the 1980s: Abdul-Jabbar, Earvin "Magic" Johnson and James Worthy.

* From the Celtics' dynasty of the 1980s: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. Nate "Tiny" Archibald was selected, and played on their 1981 title team. Walton was selected, and played on their 1986 title team.

* From the 76ers' 1983 NBA Champions: Julius "Dr. J" Erving and Moses Malone.

* From the Detroit Pistons' back-to-back titlists of 1989 and '90: Isiah Thomas.

* From the Chicago Bulls' dynasty of the 1990s: Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen.

* From the Houston Rockets' 1994 NBA Champions: Hakeem Olajuwon. From their 1995 Champions: Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler.

* From a sort-of dynasty yet to begin, that of the San Antonio Spurs of 1999-2007: David Robinson. Tim Duncan was still in college at this point.

* From a dynasty yet to begin, that of the Lakers in the early 2000s: Shaquille O'Neal. Kobe Bryant was a rookie, but was selected for the All-Star Game, and led all scorers with 31 points.

* Selected, but never won a title, though they did reach the NBA Finals at least once: Elgin Baylor, 1959 Minneapolis Lakers, Los Angeles Lakers of 1962, '63, '65, '66, '68, '69 and '70; Lenny Wilkens, 1961 St. Louis Hawks; Nate Thurmond, 1964 and '67 San Francisco Warriors; Charles Barkley, 1993 Phoenix Suns; Patrick Ewing, 1994 and '99 Knicks; and Karl Malone and John Stockton, both 1997 and '98 Utah Jazz.

* Selected, but never even made the NBA Finals: Dave Bing, 1970s Pistons; Pete Maravich, 1970s Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Jazz; and George Gervin, 1970s and '80s Spurs.

Every one of these players has been elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame, including those who were still active at the time. Shaq was the last one still active, in 2011.

And every one of these players was also re-selected in 2021 for the 75 Greatest Players. No one was demoted. One player already retired in 1997 who was not selected for the 50, but was promoted to the 75, was Bob McAdoo, who played on the Lakers' 1982 and '85 Champions. And Dominique Wilkens, still playing in 1997 (with the Spurs) but close to the end of the line, whatever legacy he had already secure (and, as a 1980s Atlanta Hawk, his dunking got him nicknamed "The Human Highlight Reel"), was not selected for the 50, but was selected for the 75.

One final note: In the locker room, waiting for the ceremony to begin, Michael Jordan was holding court, smoking a cigar, and telling anyone who would listen that he was the greatest basketball player of all time.

Wilt Chamberlain heard this. He'd been hearing for a few years that Jordan was the greatest, and not just from Jordan himself. He decided to put an end to this. He walked over, towering over the seated Jordan, and said, "Michael, my man, when you played, they changed the rules to make it easier for you. When I played, they changed the rules to make it harder for me. And it didn't work."

And he walked off. Dead silence in the room. Talk about "dropping the Mike."

It didn't put an end to it: There are still people who consider Jordan the greatest ever. LeBron James was then 12 years old, and now, some people think he was greater than either of them. But neither Jordan nor LeBron can ever touch Wilt.

UPDATE: Added for the 75th Anniversary, in addition to McAdoo and Wilkins, were: Dennis Rodman, who won the titled with the 1989 and '90 Pistons, and the 1996, '97 and '98 Bulls; Tim Duncan, 1999, 2003, '05, '07 and '14 Spurs; Kobe Bryant, 2000, '01, '02, '09 and '10 Lakers; Gary Payton and Dwyane Wade, 2006 Miami Heat; Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, 2008 Celtics; Ray Allen, 2008 Celtics and 2012 and '13 Heat; Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki, 2011 Dallas Mavericks; LeBron James, 2012 and '13 Heat, 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, 2020 Lakers; Kawhi Leonard, 2014 Spurs and 2019 Toronto Raptors; Steph Curry, 2015, '17, '18 and '22 Warriors; Kevin Durant, 2017 and '18 Warriors; Anthony Davis, 2020 Lakers; Giannis Antetokounmpo, 2021 Bucks; Reggie Miller, who reached the Finals on the 2000 Indiana Pacers; Allen Iverson, who reached the Finals on the 2001 76ers; Russell Westbrook and James Harden, who reached the Finals with Durant on the 2012 Oklahoma City Thunder; Chris Paul, who reached the Finals on the 2021 Suns; and never-finalists Carmelo Anthony, Steve Nash and, so far, Damian Lillard.

*

February 9, 1997 was a Sunday. There were no other NBA games played that day. Baseball and football were out of season. But there were 5 NHL games played:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Florida Panthers, 4-3 at the Miami Arena.

* The Buffalo Sabres beat the Ottawa Senators, 2-1 at the Marine Midland Arena (now the KeyBank Center) in Buffalo.

* The Dallas Stars beat the Los Angeles Kings, 2-1 at the Reunion Arena in Dallas. Neal Broten scored the winning goal with 44 seconds left in overtime.

* The Calgary Flames beat the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, 6-1 at the Saddledome in Calgary.

* And the Edmonton Oilers beat the Washington Capitals, 4-1 at the Edmonton Coliseum (as the Northlands Coliseum was known at the time).

And football star Saquon Barkley was born on this day.

January 26, 2020: The Death of Kobe Bryant

January 26, 2020: Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna boarded a helicopter he owned at John Wayne Airport in the Los Angeles suburb of Santa Ana. They were on their way to a basketball camp at which Gianna was scheduled to play.

But fog set in. At 9:47 AM Pacific Time (12:47 PM Eastern), the helicopter crashed in Calabasas, on the other side of Los Angeles. All 9 people on board were killed. Kobe was 41, Gianna 13.

Reaction quickly came in from all over the world, from President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama to Franco Baresi, who knew the Bryants from Kobe's father Joe's time playing basketball in Italy, making Kobe a fan of the soccer team Baresi long served as player and captain, A.C. Milan.

Shaquille O'Neal, whose relationship with Kobe had been such a rollercoaster ride, became the father of his youngest daughter Me'Arah on the same day that Gianna was born, which may have helped bring the families closer together, to where he thought of Kobe's daughters as his "nieces."

He may have said it best: "There's no words to express the pain I'm going through with this tragedy of losing my niece Gigi and my brother Kobe Bryant. I love you and you will be missed. My condolences go out to the Bryant family and the families of the other passengers on board. I'm sick right now."

Shaq and Kobe will be forever linked. And maybe, in spite of his huge size (and bigger personality), he's the right mirror for the public: His feelings for Kobe rose, fell, and rose again, as ours did.

Together, Shaq and Kobe led the Lakers to the NBA Championship in 2000, 2001 and 2002, and to the Finals in 2004, following a criminal investigation in 2003 that resulted in no charges being filed, but Kobe's reputation damaged, at least temporarily.

But their combined egos led to Shaq leaving. He won a title with the Miami Heat in 2006. Kobe brought the Lakers back to the Finals in 2008, but lost, and Shaq mocked him for it. Properly motivated, Kobe led the Lakers back to the title in 2009 and 2010.

The French author Voltaire wrote, "To the living, we owe respect; but to the dead, we owe only the truth." Well, Voltaire had his issues, like anyone would. So did Kobe. That's a truth that cannot be ignored.

Whether Kobe made up for his issues is for each of us to decide. The reaction to his death suggests that most of us have decided in his favor.

That doesn't mean that we should forget. It does mean that it is still possible to decide that the good he did outweighs the harm.

*

January 26, 2020 was a Sunday. The Lakers themselves were not scheduled to play that day. But 8 NBA games were, and a moment of silence for the victims was held before each of them:

* The New York Knicks defeated the crosstown Brooklyn Nets, 110-97 at Madison Square Garden.

* The Atlanta Hawks beat the Washington Wizards, 152-133 at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Trae Young scored 45 points for the Hawks, Bradley Beal 40 for the Wiz.

* The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Orlando Magic, 112-97 at the Amway Center in Orlando. (It's now named the Kia Center.) Kawhi Leonard scored 31 for the Clips.

* The Memphis Grizzlies beat the Phoenix Suns, 114-109 at the FedEx Forum in Memphis. Devin Booker scored 36 for the Suns, but it wasn't enough.

* The New Orleans Pelicans beat the Boston Celtics, 123-108 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Kemba Walker scored 35 in defeat for the Celtics.

* The Denver Nuggets beat the Houston Rockets, 117-110 at the Ball Arena in Denver. Russell Westbrook scored 32 in defeat.

* The Toronto Raptors beat the San Antonio Spurs, 110-106 at the AT&T Center (now the Frost Bank Center) in San Antonio. Pascal Siakam scored 35 for the Raps.

* And the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Indiana Pacers, 139-129 at the Moda Center in Portland. Damian Lillard led all scorers on the day, with 50.

It was a Sunday, but it was the week between the NFL's Conference Championships and the Super Bowl, in which the Kansas City Chiefs would beat the San Francisco 49ers, 31-20 in the Miami suburbs. There were also no NHL games, as the day before, the All-Star Game was held in St. Louis.