231-975: The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit . The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference . The team plays its home games at Little Caesars Arena , located in Midtown Detroit . The team was founded as the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons , a semi-professional company basketball team based in Fort Wayne, Indiana , in 1937. The club would turn professional in 1941 as
462-627: A palming turnover by the Pistons' George Yardley with 18 seconds left, a foul by Frank Brian with 12 seconds left that enabled King's winning free throw, and a turnover by the Pistons' Andy Phillip in the final seconds which cost them a chance to attempt the game winning shot. In the following season , the Pistons made it back to the NBA Finals . However, they were defeated by the Philadelphia Warriors in five games. Though
693-417: A technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws . The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play ( overtime ) is mandated. Players advance the ball by bouncing it while walking or running (dribbling) or by passing it to a teammate, both of which require considerable skill. On offense, players may use
924-503: A "phantom foul". With Thomas unable to compete at full strength, the Pistons narrowly fell in Game 7, 108–105, as the Lakers became the first back-to-back NBA Champions since the 1969 Boston Celtics . Prior to the 1988–89 season , the Pistons moved to Auburn Hills to play at The Palace of Auburn Hills , the first NBA arena financed entirely with private funds. The 1989 Pistons completed
1155-407: A 3–2 series lead back to Los Angeles, Detroit appeared poised to win their first NBA title in Game 6. In that game, Isiah Thomas scored an NBA Finals record 25 points in the third quarter while playing on a severely sprained ankle. However, the Lakers won the game, 103–102, on a pair of last-second free throws by Abdul-Jabbar following a controversial foul called on Bill Laimbeer, referred to by many as
1386-423: A Laker, Chamberlain set a team record by averaging a league-leading 21.1 rpg. West, Baylor, and Chamberlain each averaged over 20 points, and Los Angeles won their division. The Lakers and Celtics again met in the finals , and Los Angeles had home court advantage against Boston for the first time in their rivalry. They won the first game behind Jerry West's 53 points, and had a 3–2 lead after five. Boston won
1617-404: A backboard that measures 6 by 3.5 feet (1.8 by 1.1 meters) and one basket is at each end of the court. The white outlined box on the backboard is 18 inches (46 cm) high and 2 feet (61 cm) wide. At almost all levels of competition, the top of the rim is exactly 10 feet (3.05 meters) above the court and 4 feet (1.22 meters) inside the baseline. While variation is possible in the dimensions of
1848-495: A basket mounted on a wall. Naismith wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto an elevated track. Naismith initially set up the peach basket with its bottom intact, which meant that the ball had to be retrieved manually after each "basket" or point scored. This quickly proved tedious, so Naismith removed the bottom of the basket to allow the balls to be poked out with a long dowel after each scored basket. Shortly after, Senda Berenson , instructor of physical culture at
2079-429: A book about the team's 2003–04 season, in which he heavily criticized Bryant and called him "uncoachable". The Lakers front office said that the book contained "several inaccuracies". The Lakers also traded Rick Fox and Gary Payton to Boston, for Chris Mihm , Marcus Banks , and Chucky Atkins before the 2004–05 season . Derek Fisher, frustrated with losing playing time, opted out of his contract and signed with
2310-468: A buzzer-beater by Mike Bibby , the Lakers were faced with a must-win game six. In one of the most controversial playoff games in league history ( Tim Donaghy 's betting scandal ), the Lakers would win by four points. The Lakers went on to win game seven in overtime, with the Kings missing numerous potentially game-saving shots and free throws. The Lakers then achieved a three-peat by sweeping Jason Kidd and
2541-501: A children's game called duck on a rock , as many had failed before it. Frank Mahan, one of the players from the original first game, approached Naismith after the Christmas break, in early 1892, asking him what he intended to call his new game. Naismith replied that he had not thought of it because he had been focused on just getting the game started. Mahan suggested that it be called "Naismith ball", at which he laughed, saying that
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#17327727064572772-595: A contributor for the Celtics during the mid-1980s. The franchise also returned to its traditional red, white, and blue colors. Carlisle helped lead the Pistons to their first 50-win season since 1997 , and their first playoff series victory since 1991 by defeating the Toronto Raptors in five games. They lost, however, to the Boston Celtics in five games. In the 2002 off-season, Joe Dumars revamped
3003-414: A defensive stalwart in the coming years. However, Hill played only 47 games in the following three seasons due to a recurring ankle injury. The Pistons suffered through another tough season in 2000–01 , going 32–50 despite Jerry Stackhouse averaging 29.8 points a game. After the season, the Pistons fired George Irvine as head coach and hired Rick Carlisle , a widely respected assistant coach who had been
3234-405: A dribble, the player cannot carry the ball by placing their hand on the bottom of the ball; doing so is known as carrying the ball . A team, once having established ball control in the front half of their court, may not return the ball to the backcourt and be the first to touch it. A violation of these rules results in loss of possession. The ball may not be kicked, nor be struck with the fist. For
3465-605: A first-round loss to the Rockets , Johnson decided to retire for the final time after the season. During the 1996 off-season, the Lakers acquired 17-year-old Kobe Bryant from the Charlotte Hornets for Vlade Divac ; Bryant was drafted 13th overall out of Lower Merion High School in Ardmore, Pennsylvania in that year's draft , by Charlotte. Los Angeles also signed free-agent Shaquille O'Neal . Trading for Bryant
3696-466: A half-time break under FIBA, NBA, and NCAA rules and 10 minutes in United States high schools. Overtime periods are five minutes in length except for high school, which is four minutes in length. Teams exchange baskets for the second half. The time allowed is actual playing time; the clock is stopped while the play is not active. Therefore, games generally take much longer to complete than
3927-465: A key behind-the-scenes role in helping put together the deal and later the team. Inspired by Minnesota's nickname, "Land of 10,000 Lakes", the team rechristened themselves the Lakers. Hartman helped them hire John Kundla from College of St. Thomas , to be their first head coach, by meeting with him and selling him on the team. As the franchise had the worst record in the NBL the previous season, it got
4158-636: A key player in leading the Knicks to two NBA titles. Howell had previously been dealt to the Baltimore Bullets in 1964 and former Pistons guard Gene Shue , who was the head coach of the Bullets at the time, assessed the Pistons thusly: "Detroit has the worst management in the league." Howell would go to win two championships as a member of the Boston Celtics . Yardley, Lanier, and Bing all ended their Pistons tenure being traded away, frustrated with
4389-594: A knee injury. O'Neal averaged 26.2 ppg and 12.5 rpg and finished third in the league in blocked shots (2.88 bpg) in 51 games. The Lakers defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs as O'Neal scored 46 points in Game ;1 against the Trail Blazers, marking the highest single-game playoff scoring output by a Laker since Jerry West scored 53 against
4620-721: A loss to the Indiana Pacers . The Pistons finished with a 27–55 record, their worst since 1994. Another 50-loss season, this time finishing at 30–52, led to the firing of Kuester at the end of the 2010–11 season. On April 7, 2011, Karen Davidson, the widow of the late Bill Davidson, reached a long-awaited agreement to sell the franchise to billionaire Tom Gores , which was approved by the NBA Board of Governors in May. The deal also included The Palace of Auburn Hills and DTE Energy Music Theatre . According to Crain's Detroit Business ,
4851-627: A member of the National Basketball League (NBL), where they won two NBL championships (1944 and 1945). The Pistons later joined the Basketball Association of America (BAA) in 1948. The NBL and BAA merged to become the NBA in 1949, and the Pistons became part of the merged league. In 1957, the franchise moved to Detroit. The Pistons have won three NBA championships: in 1989 , 1990 and 2004 . Fred Zollner owned
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#17327727064575082-512: A name like that would kill any game. Mahan then said, "Why not call it basketball?" Naismith replied, "We have a basket and a ball, and it seems to me that would be a good name for it." The first official game was played in the YMCA gymnasium in Albany , New York, on January 20, 1892, with nine players. The game ended at 1–0; the shot was made from 25 feet (7.6 m), on a court just half the size of
5313-492: A new NBA scoring record when he scored 71 points in a victory against the New York Knicks while grabbing 25 rebounds. In doing so, Baylor broke his own NBA record of 64 points. Despite a losing record, the Lakers made the playoffs . They came within two points of the NBA Finals when they lost in game seven of their second round series against St. Louis. Led by Baylor and West at 38.3 and 30.8 ppg respectively,
5544-665: A potential game-winning 18 foot jump shot in regulation, a miss which he said in June 2010 still haunted him more than 40 years later. Los Angeles won 53 games in 1962–63 , behind Baylor's 34.0 ppg and West's 27.1 ppg but lost in the NBA Finals in six games to the Celtics. After falling to 42–38 and losing in the first round of the 1964 NBA playoffs to the Hawks, the team won 49 games in 1964–65. The Lakers surged past
5775-441: A present-day Streetball or National Basketball Association (NBA) court. At the time, soccer was being played with 10 to a team (which was increased to 11). When winter weather got too icy to play soccer, teams were taken indoors, and it was convenient to have them split in half and play basketball with five on each side. By 1897–98, teams of five became standard. Basketball's early adherents were dispatched to YMCAs throughout
6006-437: A rebound. The team's starting power forward, Kermit Washington , who was averaging 11.5 points and 11.2 rebounds, entered the fight, and when Rudy Tomjanovich ran in from the bench to break up the action, Washington punched him in the face. Tomjanovich nearly died from the punch, suffering a fractured skull and other facial injuries, which prematurely ended his playing career. Washington, who stated that he assumed Tomjanovich
6237-471: A record for longest winning streak of any team in major American professional team sports. The Lakers won 69 games that season, which stood as the NBA record for 24 years until the Chicago Bulls won 72 games in 1995–96. Chamberlain averaged a low 14.8 points but led the league in rebounding at 19.2 a game. West's 9.7 assists per game (apg) led the league, he also averaged more than 25 points, and
6468-506: A series of venues, including Catholic University , Georgetown and George Mason . The National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament for Black High Schools was held from 1929 to 1942 at Hampton Institute . The National Invitational Interscholastic Basketball Tournament was held from 1941 to 1967 starting out at Tuskegee Institute . Following a pause during World War II it resumed at Tennessee State College in Nashville. The basis for
6699-423: A standard uniform consists of a pair of shorts and a jersey with a clearly visible number, unique within the team, printed on both the front and back. Players wear high-top sneakers that provide extra ankle support. Typically, team names, players' names and, outside of North America, sponsors are printed on the uniforms. A limited number of time-outs, clock stoppages requested by a coach (or sometimes mandated in
6930-490: A teammate's field goal attempt. Goaltending is a defender's touching of a ball that is on a downward flight toward the basket, while the related violation of basket interference is the touching of a ball that is on the rim or above the basket, or by a player reaching through the basket from below. Goaltending and basket interference committed by a defender result in awarding the basket to the offense, while basket interference committed by an offensive player results in cancelling
7161-591: A total of three referees on the court. The table officials are responsible for keeping track of each team's scoring, timekeeping, individual and team fouls , player substitutions, team possession arrow , and the shot clock . The only essential equipment in a basketball game is the ball and the court: a flat, rectangular surface with baskets at opposite ends. Competitive levels require the use of more equipment such as clocks, score sheets, scoreboards, alternating possession arrows, and whistle-operated stop-clock systems. A regulation basketball court in international games
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7392-562: A touring Canadian women's team based in Edmonton , Alberta, operated between 1915 and 1940. The Grads toured all over North America, and were exceptionally successful. They posted a record of 522 wins and only 20 losses over that span, as they met any team that wanted to challenge them, funding their tours from gate receipts. The Grads also shone on several exhibition trips to Europe, and won four consecutive exhibition Olympics tournaments, in 1924, 1928, 1932, and 1936; however, women's basketball
7623-516: A trade to either New York or Los Angeles. He was traded for Elmore Smith , Brian Winters , Junior Bridgeman , and Dave Meyers . Abdul-Jabbar had his fourth MVP season in 1975–76 , leading the league in rebounding, blocked shots, and minutes played. The Lakers struggled in January, going 3–10, and finished out of the playoffs at 40–42. West and Cooke settled their differences—and the former Laker's lawsuit—and Cooke hired him to replace Sharman as
7854-638: A trade with the Utah Jazz ). The team adopted a physical, defense-oriented style of play, which eventually earned them the nickname "Bad Boys". In 1987, the team reached the Eastern Conference Finals against the Celtics . After pushing the defending champions to a 2–2 tie, the Pistons were on the verge of winning Game 5 at the Boston Garden with seconds remaining. After a Celtics turnover, Isiah Thomas attempted to quickly inbound
8085-523: A variety of shots – the layup , the jump shot , or a dunk ; on defense, they may steal the ball from a dribbler, intercept passes, or block shots; either offense or defense may collect a rebound , that is, a missed shot that bounces from rim or backboard. It is a violation to lift or drag one's pivot foot without dribbling the ball , to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands then resume dribbling . The five players on each side fall into five playing positions . The tallest player
8316-627: A winter season (April–September) and did so until the completion of the 20th season in 1998 . The 1998–99 season, which commenced only months later, was the first season after the shift to the current summer season format (October–April). This shift was an attempt to avoid competing directly against Australia's various football codes . It features 8 teams from around Australia and one in New Zealand. A few players including Luc Longley , Andrew Gaze , Shane Heal , Chris Anstey and Andrew Bogut made it big internationally, becoming poster figures for
8547-492: Is 28 meters (92 feet) long and 15 meters (49 feet) wide. In the NBA and NCAA the court is 94 by 50 feet (29 by 15 meters). Most courts have wood flooring , usually constructed from maple planks running in the same direction as the longer court dimension. The name and logo of the home team is usually painted on or around the center circle. The basket is a steel rim 18 inches (46 cm) diameter with an attached net affixed to
8778-404: Is called a shot. A successful shot is worth two points, or three points if it is taken from beyond the three-point arc 6.75 meters (22 ft 2 in) from the basket in international games and 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m) in NBA games. A one-point shot can be earned when shooting from the foul line after a foul is made. After a team has scored from a field goal or free throw, play
9009-585: Is currently no tournament to determine a national high school champion. The most serious effort was the National Interscholastic Basketball Tournament at the University of Chicago from 1917 to 1930. The event was organized by Amos Alonzo Stagg and sent invitations to state champion teams. The tournament started out as a mostly Midwest affair but grew. In 1929 it had 29 state champions. Faced with opposition from
9240-430: Is out of bounds if it touches a boundary line, or touches any player or object that is out of bounds. There are limits placed on the steps a player may take without dribbling, which commonly results in an infraction known as traveling . Nor may a player stop their dribble and then resume dribbling. A dribble that touches both hands is considered stopping the dribble, giving this infraction the name double dribble . Within
9471-453: Is resumed with a throw-in awarded to the non-scoring team taken from a point beyond the endline of the court where the points were scored. Games are played in four quarters of 10 ( FIBA ) or 12 minutes (NBA). College men's games use two 20-minute halves, college women's games use 10-minute quarters, and most United States high school varsity games use 8-minute quarters; however, this varies from state to state. 15 minutes are allowed for
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9702-593: Is the WNBA ( NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship is also popular), whereas the strongest European clubs participate in the EuroLeague Women . A game similar to basketball is mentioned in a 1591 book published in Frankfurt am Main that reports on the lifestyles and customs of coastal North American residents, Wahrhafftige Abconterfaytung der Wilden (German; translates as Truthful Depictions of
9933-599: Is usually the center , the second-tallest and strongest is the power forward , a slightly shorter but more agile player is the small forward , and the shortest players or the best ball handlers are the shooting guard and the point guard , who implement the coach's game plan by managing the execution of offensive and defensive plays (player positioning). Informally, players may play three-on-three, two-on-two, and one-on-one. Invented in 1891 by Canadian-American gym teacher James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts , in
10164-619: The 1951–52 season , the Lakers won 40 games, finishing second in their division. They faced the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals , which they won in seven games. In the 1952–53 season, Mikan led the NBA in rebounding, averaging 14.4 rebounds per game (rpg), and was named MVP of the 1953 NBA All-Star Game . After a 48–22 regular season, the Lakers defeated the Fort Wayne Pistons in the Western playoffs to advance to
10395-525: The 1953–54 and 1954–55 seasons. In particular, there are accusations that the team may have intentionally lost the 1955 NBA Finals to the Syracuse Nationals . In the decisive Game 7, the Pistons led 41–24 early in the second quarter before the Nationals rallied to win the game. The Nationals won on a free throw by George King with 12 seconds left in the game. The closing moments included
10626-552: The 1972–73 season , and took another Pacific Division title. Wilt Chamberlain, playing in his final season, again led the league in rebounding and set the NBA record for field-goal percentage at 72.7% which stood for several decades. The team defeated the Chicago Bulls in seven games in the conference semifinals, then the Golden State Warriors in five in the Western Division Finals. They played
10857-453: The 1984 Finals , but triumphed over them in 1985 and 1987 . After Riley departed and Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, and Worthy retired, the Lakers struggled in the early 1990s. It was not until 1996 when the team traded with the Charlotte Hornets for the draft rights to Kobe Bryant and signed center Shaquille O'Neal that the Lakers returned to dominance during the early 2000s. The superstar duo, along with Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson , led
11088-399: The 1985 playoffs , Detroit won its first-round series and faced the defending champion Boston Celtics in the conference semifinals. Though Boston prevailed in six games, Detroit's surprise performance promised that a rivalry had begun. In the 1985 NBA draft , the team selected Joe Dumars 18th overall, a selection that proved to be very wise. They also acquired Rick Mahorn in a trade with
11319-527: The 1986–87 season , the Lakers moved A.C. Green into the starting lineup, and acquired Mychal Thompson from the Spurs. Johnson won his first career MVP Award while leading the Lakers to a 65–17 record, and Michael Cooper was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year. Before the season, Riley had made the decision to shift the focus of the offense to Johnson over the 40-year-old Abdul-Jabbar. The Lakers advanced to
11550-404: The 1993–94 season , Pfund was fired during the season that would result in the Lakers failing to make the playoffs for the first time since 1976. Magic Johnson, would coach the final 16 games of the season with former teammate Michael Cooper as his lead assistant. Johnson decided not to take the job permanently due to what he felt was a lack of commitment from certain players, and Los Angeles ended
11781-664: The 1993–94 season , finishing with a 20–62 record. Following the 1993–94 season, they were able to draft Grant Hill , a promising small forward , with the third overall pick. However, this period also saw the team make numerous questionable personnel decisions, such as the loss of free agent Allan Houston to the New York Knicks , the signing of free agent washouts Loy Vaught and Bison Dele ; and head coaching changes from Ron Rothstein to Don Chaney to Doug Collins to Alvin Gentry to George Irvine in an eight-year span. Of these coaches, only Collins had any sort of success with
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#173277270645712012-473: The 2004 Athens Olympics , the United States suffered its first Olympic loss while using professional players, falling to Puerto Rico (in a 19-point loss) and Lithuania in group games, and being eliminated in the semifinals by Argentina . It eventually won the bronze medal defeating Lithuania, finishing behind Argentina and Italy . The Redeem Team , won gold at the 2008 Olympics , and the B-Team, won gold at
12243-539: The 2004 playoffs , after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in five games, they defeated the defending Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Nets in seven games after coming back from a 3–2 deficit. The Pistons then defeated the Pacers , coached by Rick Carlisle, in six tough games to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1990. Many analysts gave the Pistons little chance to win against their opponent,
12474-513: The 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey despite featuring no players from the 2008 squad. The United States continued its dominance as they won gold at the 2012 Olympics , 2014 FIBA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics . Worldwide, basketball tournaments are held for boys and girls of all age levels. The global popularity of the sport is reflected in the nationalities represented in the NBA. Players from all six inhabited continents currently play in
12705-517: The All American Red Heads Team , which competed against men's teams, using men's rules. By 1938, the women's national championship changed from a three-court game to two-court game with six players per team . The NBA-backed Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) began in 1997. Though it had shaky attendance figures, several marquee players ( Lisa Leslie , Diana Taurasi , and Candace Parker among others) have helped
12936-455: The Baltimore Bullets in the division finals, behind West's record-setting 46.3 ppg in the series. They lost again to the Celtics in the Finals however, this time in five games. Los Angeles lost in the finals to Boston in seven games again in 1966, this time by two points. Down by 16 entering the fourth quarter, and 10 with a minute and a half to go, the Lakers mounted a furious rally in
13167-570: The Basketball Association of America (BAA), and Mikan's 28.3 point per game (ppg) scoring average set a BAA record. In the 1949 BAA Finals they won the championship, beating the Washington Capitols four games to two. Following the season, the BAA and the NBL merged to form the National Basketball Association (NBA). In the newly formed league, the Lakers improved to 51–17 record and won their third straight professional championship. In
13398-468: The Denver Nuggets for Allen Iverson . McDyess was later waived on November 10 and rejoined the Pistons on December 9. The trade was marked as the start of a new rebuilding process due to Iverson's free agent status at the end of the season. Indeed, Joe Dumars previously made it clear that no player on the team was guaranteed a position, bluntly saying they lost their sacred cow status. The season
13629-525: The Detroit Gems and played in the National Basketball League (NBL) during the 1946–47 season where it finished last in the league with only 4 wins in 44 games. Though the team was scheduled to continue in the NBL the following season, its ownership, faced with high losses due to low attendance and lack of homecourt, decided on selling the team to Ben Berger and Morris Chalfen of Minnesota for $ 15,000 Minneapolis sportswriter Sid Hartman played
13860-478: The Detroit Gems of the National Basketball League (NBL). After one season, a new ownership relocated the team to Minneapolis , Minnesota , and renamed the team as the Minneapolis Lakers . The Lakers won the 1948 NBL championship before joining the rival Basketball Association of America , where they won the 1949 BAA championship. Following the merger of the NBL and the BAA into the NBA in 1949,
14091-532: The Eastern Conference Finals . Miami defeated the Pistons in six games en route to the 2006 NBA championship . During the off-season, the Pistons offered Ben Wallace a four-year, $ 48 million contract, which would have made him the highest-paid player in franchise history at the time. However, Wallace agreed to a 4-year, $ 60 million contract with the Chicago Bulls. To replace Ben Wallace, the Pistons signed Nazr Mohammed . He struggled to fill
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#173277270645714322-732: The EuroLeague and the Basketball Champions League Americas . The FIBA Basketball World Cup and Men's Olympic Basketball Tournament are the major international events of the sport and attract top national teams from around the world. Each continent hosts regional competitions for national teams, like EuroBasket and FIBA AmeriCup . The FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup and Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament feature top national teams from continental championships. The main North American league
14553-477: The Golden State Warriors later achieved this feat in 2022 . In the 1985–86 season , the Lakers started 24–3 and went on to win 62 games and their fifth straight division title. The Rockets , however, defeated the Lakers in five games in the Western Conference Finals . Houston won the series when Ralph Sampson hit a 20-foot jumper as time expired in game five at The Forum. Prior to
14784-540: The Great Western Forum . Before the 1999–2000 season , West was prepared to hire Rambis as the team's full-time coach before an outcry from fans and members of the organization caused him to seek out a bigger name. Los Angeles hired former Chicago Bulls coach Phil Jackson , who had coached that team to six championships, and gave him a lucrative $ 6 million a year contract. He brought along assistant Tex Winter and they installed Winter's version of
15015-488: The Los Angeles Lakers , who had won three out of the previous four NBA championships and who fielded a star-studded lineup that included Shaquille O'Neal , Kobe Bryant , Gary Payton , and Karl Malone . However, the Pistons won the series in dominating fashion, defeating Los Angeles in five games for the team's third NBA championship. The Pistons posted double-digit wins in three of their four victories and held
15246-627: The NBA Finals by sweeping the Nuggets , defeating the Warriors in five games, and sweeping the SuperSonics in the Western Conference Finals . The Lakers defeated Boston in the first two games of the Finals, and the teams split the next four games, giving Los Angeles their second championship in three seasons. The series was highlighted by Johnson's running "baby hook" shot to win game four at Boston Garden with two seconds remaining. Johnson
15477-564: The NBA Finals in 10 years, they once again faced the Detroit Pistons . Hampered by injuries to Byron Scott and Johnson, the Lakers were swept by Detroit. Following the 1989 Finals, on June 28, 1989, after 20 professional seasons, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar announced his retirement. The Lakers still cruised through the Pacific Division, winning their ninth consecutive division crown with a 63–19 record. However, after beating
15708-502: The NBA Finals . In the Finals, they would lose to Detroit in five games. During the 2004 off-season, the team entered a rebuilding phase when O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat for Lamar Odom , Brian Grant , Caron Butler , and a first-round draft pick. Bryant and O'Neal had clashed in the past , and the media credited their feud as one of the motivating factors for the trade. Jackson did not return as head coach, and wrote
15939-682: The National Federation of State High School Associations and North Central Association of Colleges and Schools that bore a threat of the schools losing their accreditation the last tournament was in 1930. The organizations said they were concerned that the tournament was being used to recruit professional players from the prep ranks. The tournament did not invite minority schools or private/parochial schools. The National Catholic Interscholastic Basketball Tournament ran from 1924 to 1941 at Loyola University . The National Catholic Invitational Basketball Tournament from 1954 to 1978 played at
16170-822: The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in New York, was organized in 1938; the NCAA national tournament began one year later. College basketball was rocked by gambling scandals from 1948 to 1951 , when dozens of players from top teams were implicated in game-fixing and point shaving . Partially spurred by an association with cheating, the NIT lost support to the NCAA tournament. Before widespread school district consolidation, most American high schools were far smaller than their present-day counterparts. During
16401-476: The New Jersey Nets in the NBA Finals . O'Neal won each of the Finals series' MVP awards, making him the only player besides Michael Jordan to win three consecutive Finals MVPs. The Lakers would attempt a four-peat the following year, but started the 2002–03 season 11–19. However, they finished the season 39–13 to finish 50–32. They defeated Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs , but
16632-708: The Original Celtics and two all-African American teams, the New York Renaissance Five ("Rens") and the (still existing) Harlem Globetrotters played up to two hundred games a year on their national tours. In 1946, the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was formed. The first game was played in Toronto , Ontario, Canada between the Toronto Huskies and New York Knickerbockers on November 1, 1946. Three seasons later, in 1949,
16863-541: The Pistons were considered a strong contender to win a second consecutive title in 2005. They won 54 games during the regular season , their fourth consecutive season of 50 or more wins. During the 2005 playoffs , they easily defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 4–1 and then rallied from a 2–1 deficit to finish off the Indiana Pacers , 4–2. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pistons faced the Miami Heat . Once again,
17094-493: The Rockets in the first round, they lost four games to one in the second round of the playoffs to the Suns . Riley announced he was stepping down after the season citing burnout , and was replaced by Mike Dunleavy . Riley's departure received a mixed reaction from the players. They respected his contributions, but some, such as Worthy and Scott, had grown tired of his intense practices and felt he tried to take too much credit for
17325-572: The Soviet Union , Brazil and Australia rivaling the American squads. In 1989, FIBA allowed professional NBA players to participate in the Olympics for the first time. Prior to the 1992 Summer Olympics , only European and South American teams were allowed to field professionals in the Olympics. The United States' dominance continued with the introduction of the original Dream Team . In
17556-535: The Spurs in the first round of the Western Conference Finals before pulling out a tough seven-game series win over the Utah Jazz led by youngsters Karl Malone and John Stockton . A seven-game Western Conference finals win over the Dallas Mavericks propelled the Lakers to the NBA Finals once again. In their seventh trip to the Finals in nine years, they met the Detroit Pistons . Los Angeles would take
17787-543: The Syracuse Nationals in seven games. Following Mikan's retirement in the 1954 off-season, the Lakers struggled but still managed to win 40 games. Although they defeated the Rochester Royals in the first round of the playoffs, they were defeated by the Fort Wayne Pistons in the semifinals. Although they had losing records the next two seasons, they made the playoffs each year. Mikan came back for
18018-400: The University of Chicago , Columbia University , Cornell University , Dartmouth College , the University of Minnesota , the U.S. Naval Academy , the University of Colorado and Yale University began sponsoring men's games. In 1905, frequent injuries on the football field prompted President Theodore Roosevelt to suggest that colleges form a governing body, resulting in the creation of
18249-478: The University of Chicago , while Adolph Rupp , a student of Naismith's at Kansas, enjoyed great success as coach at the University of Kentucky . On February 9, 1895, the first intercollegiate 5-on-5 game was played at Hamline University between Hamline and the School of Agriculture, which was affiliated with the University of Minnesota . The School of Agriculture won in a 9–3 game. In 1901, colleges, including
18480-481: The Washington Bullets . However, the team took a step backwards, losing in the first round of the 1986 playoffs to the more athletic Atlanta Hawks . After the series, changes were made in order to make the team more defensive-minded. Prior to the 1986–87 season , the Pistons acquired more key players: John Salley (drafted 11th overall), Dennis Rodman (drafted 27th) and Adrian Dantley (acquired in
18711-761: The Western Conference . The Lakers play their home games at Crypto.com Arena , an arena they share with the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association , and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League . The Lakers are one of the most successful teams in the history of the NBA with 17 championships, the second most in the league behind the Boston Celtics . The franchise began in 1946 as
18942-511: The Western Conference playoffs . In the NBA Finals , the Celtics were again the Lakers' final hurdle. Los Angeles lost game one of the NBA Finals by a score of 148–114, in what is remembered as the "Memorial Day Massacre". The Lakers, behind 38-year-old Finals MVP Abdul-Jabbar, recovered to defeat the Celtics in six games. The team won the title in the Boston Garden and became the first visiting team to ever win an NBA championship in Boston, as
19173-619: The World Professional Basketball Tournament in 1944, 1945 and 1946. In 1948, the team became the Fort Wayne Pistons and jumped to the Basketball Association of America (BAA). In 1949, Fred Zollner brokered the formation of the National Basketball Association from the BAA and the NBL at his kitchen table. There are suggestions that Pistons players conspired with gamblers to shave points and throw various games during
19404-569: The playoffs , they swept Portland and defeated San Antonio four games to one to advance to the Western Conference Finals to face Sacramento . The series would go on to be known as one of the greatest playoff matchups in NBA history. The series extended to all seven games and ended in a Lakers victory. In game one, Bryant scored 30 points as the Lakers won, 106–99. The series would then shift in Sacramento's favor, with
19635-536: The triangle offense . The Lakers signed veterans Brian Shaw , John Salley , Ron Harper , and A.C. Green , who was a Laker during the "Showtime" era. The team also moved to a new arena, the Staples Center. Led by league MVP O'Neal, the Lakers won 31 of their first 36 games. They finished 67–15, the highest win total since they won 65 in the 1986–87 season . Then eliminated Sacramento and Phoenix in
19866-557: The 1950–51 season, Mikan won his third straight scoring title at 28.4 ppg and the Lakers went 44–24 to win their second straight division title. One of those games, a 19–18 loss against the Fort Wayne Pistons , became infamous as the lowest scoring game in NBA history. In the playoffs, they defeated the Indianapolis Olympians in three games but lost to the Rochester Royals in the next round. During
20097-494: The 1960s and 1970s, the Pistons were characterized by talented players including George Yardley, Bailey Howell , Dave Debusschere , Dave Bing , and Bob Lanier , questionable trades, and frequent coaching changes. At one point, DeBusschere was the youngest player-coach in the history of the NBA. Then a trade during the 1968–69 season sent DeBusschere to the New York Knicks for Howard Komives and Walt Bellamy , both of whom had their best seasons behind them. DeBusschere became
20328-558: The 1998–99 season, was hired as the team's president of basketball operations. He quickly faced what appeared to be a setback for the franchise, as Grant Hill elected to leave for the Orlando Magic . However, Dumars worked a sign and trade with Orlando that brought the Pistons Ben Wallace and Chucky Atkins in exchange for Hill. Both quickly entered the Pistons' starting lineup. Wallace in particular developed into
20559-447: The 2015 off-season, Pistons head coach Stan Van Gundy began to change the roster by making such acquisitions as Ersan İlyasova , Marcus Morris , Aron Baynes , and Steve Blake . They also drafted rookie Stanley Johnson with the eighth pick in the 2015 NBA draft and re-signed point guard Reggie Jackson . The Pistons entered the 2015–16 season with a stronger roster than the previous season, although they lost starter Greg Monroe to
20790-546: The 2016–17 season, 980,673 boys and girls represented their schools in interscholastic basketball competition, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations . The states of Illinois , Indiana and Kentucky are particularly well known for their residents' devotion to high school basketball, commonly called Hoosier Hysteria in Indiana; the critically acclaimed film Hoosiers shows high school basketball's depth of meaning to these communities. There
21021-476: The 50th anniversary of the franchise in Detroit. At the start of the 2007–08 season , Rasheed Wallace became the Pistons' new center. Upon entering his third season, Saunders became the longest-tenured Pistons coach since Chuck Daly. Detroit finished the season with the second-best record in the league at 59–23. The Boston Celtics held the first seed, and many speculated that Boston was their main competition in
21252-464: The BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) to form the National Basketball Association (NBA). By the 1950s, basketball had become a major college sport, thus paving the way for a growth of interest in professional basketball. In 1959, a basketball hall of fame was founded in Springfield , Massachusetts, site of the first game. Its rosters include the names of great players, coaches, referees and people who have contributed significantly to
21483-577: The Bulls, the Pistons traded James Edwards and waived Vinnie Johnson during the off-season. In the 1991–92 season , the Pistons finished with a 48–34 record. In the first round of the 1992 NBA playoffs , the Pistons were defeated by the New York Knicks in five games. Chuck Daly resigned as head coach after the season. Following Daly's departure, the Pistons went through a transitional period, as key players were either traded (Salley and Rodman) or retired (Laimbeer in 1993 and Thomas in 1994). They bottomed out in
21714-465: The Celtics in 1969. In the next round, the Lakers lost in five games to the Utah Jazz . In the 1997–98 season , O'Neal and the Lakers had the best start in franchise history, 11–0. O'Neal would miss 20 games on the season due to an abdominal injury. Los Angeles battled Seattle for the Pacific Division title most of the season. In the final two months, the Lakers won 22 of their final 25 games, finishing 61–21, but still finished second to Seattle in
21945-533: The Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. Thus, the sport quickly spread throughout America's schools, colleges and universities with uniform rules for both sexes. Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball . These round balls from " association football " were made, at the time, with a set of laces to close off the hole needed for inserting
22176-531: The Eastern Conference. In the 2008 NBA playoffs , Detroit started out poorly with a Game 1 loss to the seventh-seeded Philadelphia 76ers and found themselves in a 2–1 deficit. However, the Pistons rallied to defeat the Sixers in six games. In the semifinals, the Pistons faced the Orlando Magic . The Pistons rolled out to a Game 1 romp, and won a tight Game 2 amid mild controversy. At the very end of
22407-506: The Finals in 12 years. The 1991 Finals represented a changing of the guard as the Lakers were defeated in five games by the Chicago Bulls , led by superstar Michael Jordan . On November 7, 1991, Magic Johnson announced he had tested positive for HIV and would retire immediately. In their first season without Johnson, the team won 43 games to earn the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoffs . The Lakers were defeated in
22638-492: The G League has 31 teams. FIBA (International Basketball Federation) was formed in 1932 by eight founding nations: Argentina , Czechoslovakia , Greece , Italy , Latvia , Portugal , Romania and Switzerland . At this time, the organization only oversaw amateur players. Its acronym, derived from the French Fédération Internationale de Basket-ball Amateur , was thus "FIBA". Men's basketball
22869-665: The Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (IAAUS). In 1910, that body changed its name to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The first Canadian interuniversity basketball game was played at YMCA in Kingston , Ontario on February 6, 1904, when McGill University – Naismith's alma mater – visited Queen's University . McGill won 9–7 in overtime;
23100-405: The Kings winning the next two games. Facing a deficit in game 4, the Lakers had the ball with under 20 seconds to play. After misses by both Bryant and O'Neal, Kings center Vlade Divac tapped the ball away from the rim in an attempt to wind down the clock. It went straight into Robert Horry 's hands, who drained a game-winning three with under three seconds to play. After the Kings won game five on
23331-447: The Lakers defeated Reggie Miller and the Indiana Pacers four games to two win their first title since 1988 . West retired from his spot in the team's front office after the season after a power struggle between him and Jackson over control of the team's operations. After the season, starters Rice and Green left the team, and Los Angeles signed Horace Grant . The following season , the Lakers won 11 fewer regular season games than
23562-461: The Lakers had the first overall pick (the result of a trade with Cleveland midway through the 1979–80 season, when the Lakers had sent Don Ford and a 1980 first-round pick to the Cavaliers for Butch Lee and their 1982 selection) and selected James Worthy from North Carolina . The Lakers won the Pacific Division at 58–24, but Worthy suffered a leg injury in the last week of the season and missed
23793-401: The Lakers improved to 54–26 in 1961–62 , and made the finals . In a game five victory, Baylor grabbed 22 rebounds and set the still-standing NBA record for points in a finals game with 61, despite fouling out of the game. The Lakers, however, lost to the Celtics by three points in overtime of game seven. Frank Selvy , after making two jumpers in the final 40 seconds to tie the game, missed
24024-471: The Lakers rallied to finish 47–35 and win the Pacific Division. They made the playoffs but managed just one win against Milwaukee in the conference semifinals. Following the season, West retired due to contract disagreements with Cooke, and filed a suit for unpaid back wages. After missing the playoffs in the 1974–75 season , the Lakers acquired Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , who had won three league MVPs by that time. Abdul-Jabbar wanted out of Milwaukee, demanding
24255-541: The Lakers to a franchise-low 68 points in Game 3. Chauncey Billups was named NBA Finals MVP. With the win, Bill Davidson became the first owner to win both an NBA and NHL championship in the same calendar year, as he had also won the Stanley Cup as owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning . Despite losing key members of their bench during the off-season (including Okur, Mike James and Corliss Williamson ),
24486-469: The Lakers to three consecutive championships between 2000 and 2002 , securing the franchise's second " three-peat ". The dynamic " Shaq-and-Kobe " era ended when the Lakers traded away O'Neal after the team lost to the Detroit Pistons in the 2004 Finals . It was not until the Lakers traded for Pau Gasol that Bryant and Jackson returned to the NBA Finals, losing to the Celtics in 2008 but winning championships in 2009 and 2010 . The 2010 Finals marked
24717-413: The Lakers with superstars to anchor their roster. The promotion of head coach Pat Riley in 1981 and addition of forward James Worthy through the 1982 draft established the Lakers as an NBA powerhouse throughout the 1980s. The franchise won five championships in a nine-year span, including two out of three marquee Finals matchups against the Celtics. The Lakers were defeated by their Boston archrivals in
24948-474: The Lakers won four of the next five NBA championships. After struggling financially in the late 1950s, they relocated to Los Angeles before the 1960–61 season . The Lakers made the NBA Finals six times in the 1960s, but lost every series to the Celtics, beginning their long and storied rivalry . In 1968, the Lakers acquired four-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Wilt Chamberlain , and won their sixth NBA title in 1972 , led by coach Bill Sharman . After
25179-526: The Los Angeles Lakers, who appeared in eight straight conference finals from the 1981–82 to 1988–89 seasons. They lost Game 1 88–79, but won in Game 2 on the road, 103–97, marking the Celtics' first home court loss in the postseason. Immediately following that, the Celtics won their first road game of the postseason, 94–80, in Game 3. Game 4 saw the Pistons win 94–75. In the pivotal Game 5 they lost 106–102, despite rallying from 17 points down late in
25410-574: The Milwaukee Bucks in free agency. Andre Drummond started the season strong, earning consecutive Eastern Conference Player of the Week awards for the weeks of November 1 and 8. Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court , compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately 9.4 inches (24 cm) in diameter) through
25641-510: The Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at the Conference of Physical Training in Springfield to draw up general rules for women's basketball. These rules, designed by Berenson, were published in 1899. In 1902 Berenson became the editor of A. G. Spalding 's first Women's Basketball Guide. The same year women of Mount Holyoke and Sophie Newcomb College (coached by Clara Gregory Baer ), began playing basketball. By 1895,
25872-493: The NBA Finals . They then defeated the New York Knicks to win their second straight championship. Though Lakers star George Mikan suffered from knee problems throughout the 1953–54 season, he was still able to average 18 ppg. Clyde Lovellette , who was drafted in 1952 , helped the team win the Western Division. The team won its third straight championship in the 1950s and fifth in six seasons when it defeated
26103-484: The NBA) for a short meeting with the players, are allowed. They generally last no longer than one minute (100 seconds in the NBA) unless, for televised games, a commercial break is needed. The game is controlled by the officials consisting of the referee (referred to as crew chief in the NBA), one or two umpires (referred to as referees in the NBA) and the table officials. For college, the NBA, and many high schools, there are
26334-404: The NBA, and U Sports (Canadian universities) play for both sexes, and 30 seconds in NCAA play for both sexes), holding the ball while closely guarded (5 seconds), and remaining in the restricted area known as the free-throw lane, (or the " key ") (3 seconds). These rules are designed to promote more offense. There are also limits on how players may block an opponent's field goal attempt or help
26565-704: The NBA. Top international players began coming into the NBA in the mid-1990s, including Croatians Dražen Petrović and Toni Kukoč , Serbian Vlade Divac , Lithuanians Arvydas Sabonis and Šarūnas Marčiulionis , Dutchman Rik Smits and German Detlef Schrempf . In the Philippines, the Philippine Basketball Association 's first game was played on April 9, 1975, at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao , Quezon City , Philippines. It
26796-486: The New York Knicks in the 1973 NBA Finals . Los Angeles took the first game by three points, but New York won the series in five games. During the 1973–74 season , the team was hampered by the loss of West, who played only 31 games before his legs gave out. Goodrich, averaging 25.3 points, helped the team to a late-season surge. Trailing the Golden State Warriors by three games with seven left to play,
27027-582: The New York Knicks, who defeated them 4–3. The next season the Lakers were defeated by the Milwaukee Bucks , led by future Laker Lew Alcindor (now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ) in the Western Conference Finals. The 1971–72 season brought several changes. Owner Jack Kent Cooke brought in Bill Sharman as head coach, and Elgin Baylor announced his retirement early in the season after realizing that his legs were not healthy enough. Sharman increased
27258-615: The Palace erupted between the Pacers and the Pistons, one of the largest fan-player incidents in the history of American sports. It resulted in heavy fines and suspensions for several players and a great deal of NBA and media scrutiny. Meanwhile, Brown was forced to leave the team on two occasions due to health concerns. During this time, he was the subject of a series of rumors linking him to other job openings. Concerned about Brown's health and angered over his alleged pursuit of other jobs during
27489-624: The Pistons acquired Vinnie Johnson in a trade with the Seattle SuperSonics . They later acquired center Bill Laimbeer in a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers in February 1982. Another key move by the Pistons was the hiring of head coach Chuck Daly in 1983. Initially, the Pistons had difficulty moving up the NBA ladder. In 1984 , the Pistons lost a tough five-game series to the underdog New York Knicks , 3–2. In
27720-429: The Pistons closed out the series, 95–85, in Game 6 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the fifth consecutive season. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Pistons faced the Cleveland Cavaliers . After both teams split the first four games of the series, the turning point happened in Game 5. The game is best remembered for LeBron James ' performance where he scored the Cavaliers' final 29 of 30 points, including
27951-440: The Pistons enjoyed a solid local following, Fort Wayne's small size made it difficult for them to be profitable, especially as other early NBA teams based in smaller cities started folding or relocating to larger markets. After the 1956–57 season, Fred Zollner decided that Fort Wayne was too small to support an NBA team and announced the team would be playing elsewhere in the coming season. He ultimately settled on Detroit. Although it
28182-480: The Pistons fell behind. However, they ultimately won the series in seven games. In the NBA Finals , the Pistons faced the San Antonio Spurs . After the teams split the first four games of the series, the turning point came at the end of Game 5 in Detroit, which went into overtime. The Pistons were ahead 95–93 when Robert Horry sank the game-winning three-point basket for the Spurs with 5.8 seconds left in
28413-454: The Pistons, winning 54 games in the 1996–97 season . The franchise even changed its team colors in 1996 from its traditional red and blue to teal , burgundy , gold and black in what proved to be a highly unpopular move with fans. The only color that did not change was white . This period has become known, often derisively, as the "teal era". After being swept by the Miami Heat in the 2000 playoffs , Joe Dumars, who had retired following
28644-553: The Red Wings to the under-construction Joe Louis Arena next door. Instead, in 1978, he moved the team to the suburb of Pontiac , where they played in the 82,000 capacity Silverdome , a structure built for professional football (and the home of the Detroit Lions at the time). The franchise's fortunes finally began to turn in 1981, when they drafted point guard Isiah Thomas from Indiana University . In November 1981,
28875-593: The Savages : "Among other things, a game of skill is described in which balls must be thrown against a target woven from twigs, mounted high on a pole. There's a small reward for the player if the target is being hit." In December 1891, James Naismith , a Canadian-American professor of physical education and instructor at the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School (now Springfield College ) in Springfield, Massachusetts ,
29106-428: The United States, and it quickly spread through the United States and Canada. By 1895, it was well established at several women's high schools. While YMCA was responsible for initially developing and spreading the game, within a decade it discouraged the new sport, as rough play and rowdy crowds began to detract from YMCA's primary mission. However, other amateur sports clubs, colleges, and professional clubs quickly filled
29337-459: The United States, basketball has evolved to become one of the world's most popular and widely viewed sports. The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the most significant professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition (drawing most of its talent from U.S. college basketball ). Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as
29568-454: The WNBA to break even this year." Measurements and time limits discussed in this section often vary among tournaments and organizations; international and NBA rules are used in this section. The object of the game is to outscore one's opponents by throwing the ball through the opponents' basket from above while preventing the opponents from doing so on their own. An attempt to score in this way
29799-497: The Warriors. The team hired Rudy Tomjanovich to replace Jackson. After sitting out the first half of the 2004–05 season , Malone announced his retirement on February 13, 2005. Tomjanovich coached the team to a 22–19 record before resigning due to health problems. Assistant Frank Hamblen was named interim head coach to replace Tomjanovich for the remainder of the season. Bryant (ankle) and Odom (shoulder) suffered injuries, and
30030-498: The Western Conference Finals. During the off-season, Los Angeles picked up Jamaal Wilkes from Golden State and signed first-round draft pick Norm Nixon . In the first two minutes of the first game of the 1977–78 season, Abdul-Jabbar punched Bucks center Kent Benson for an overly aggressive elbow and broke his hand. Two months later, a healthy Abdul-Jabbar got into an altercation with Houston Rockets center Kevin Kunnert after
30261-635: The Year Gary Payton to join O'Neal and Bryant, forming the first "superteam" of the 21st century. Three of the "big four", however, struggled with injuries: O'Neal suffered from a strained calf, Malone an injured knee, and Bryant an injured shoulder. The Lakers started 18–3 and finished 56–26 and won the Pacific Division title, entering the playoffs as the No. 2 seed. They defeated Houston , San Antonio , and Minnesota to advance to
30492-692: The Zollner Corporation, a foundry that manufactured pistons , primarily for car, truck, and locomotive engines in Fort Wayne, Indiana . In 1937, Zollner sponsored a semi-professional company basketball team called the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons after he received a request from his workers. In 1941, the Zollner Pistons shed their works team roots and joined the National Basketball League (NBL). The Zollner Pistons were NBL champions in 1944 and 1945. They also won
30723-473: The act of shooting, depending on whether the shot was successful. One point is awarded for making a free throw, which is attempted from a line 15 feet (4.6 m) from the basket. Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles . The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of
30954-407: The allotted game time, typically about two hours. Five players from each team may be on the court at one time. Substitutions are unlimited but can only be done when play is stopped. Teams also have a coach, who oversees the development and strategies of the team, and other team personnel such as assistant coaches, managers, statisticians, doctors and trainers. For both men's and women's teams,
31185-419: The ball and missed Chuck Daly's timeout signal from the bench. Larry Bird stole the inbound pass and passed it to Dennis Johnson for the game-winning layup. While the Pistons did win Game 6 in Detroit, they lost the series in a tough Game 7 back in Boston. Motivated by their loss to the Celtics, the Pistons , aided by midseason acquisition James Edwards , improved to a then-franchise-record 54 victories and
31416-490: The basket if one is scored. The defense gains possession in all cases of goaltending or basket interference. An attempt to unfairly disadvantage an opponent through certain types of physical contact is illegal and is called a personal foul. These are most commonly committed by defensive players; however, they can be committed by offensive players as well. Players who are fouled either receive the ball to pass inbounds again, or receive one or more free throws if they are fouled in
31647-414: The basketball is also regulated. For men, the official ball is 29.5 inches (75 cm) in circumference (size 7, or a "295 ball") and weighs 22 oz (620 g). If women are playing, the official basketball size is 28.5 inches (72 cm) in circumference (size 6, or a "285 ball") with a weight of 20 oz (570 g). In 3x3 , a formalized version of the halfcourt 3-on-3 game, a dedicated ball with
31878-423: The building of their roster by trading Adrian Dantley for Mark Aguirre , a trade that Pistons fans criticized heavily initially, but later praised. The team won 63 games, shattering their one-year-old franchise record, and steamrolled through the playoffs and into an NBA Finals rematch with the Lakers . This time, the Pistons came out victorious in a four-game sweep to win their first NBA championship. Joe Dumars
32109-556: The center of the automobile industry. George Yardley set the NBA single-season scoring record in the Pistons' first season in Detroit, becoming the first player to score 2,000 points in a season. The Pistons played in Olympia Stadium (home of the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL) at the time) for their first four seasons, then moved to Cobo Arena beginning in the 1961–62 season . During
32340-516: The champion dwindled after 1954 when Brown v. Board of Education began an integration of schools. The last tournaments were held at Alabama State College from 1964 to 1967. Teams abounded throughout the 1920s. There were hundreds of men's professional basketball teams in towns and cities all over the United States, and little organization of the professional game. Players jumped from team to team and teams played in armories and smoky dance halls. Leagues came and went. Barnstorming squads such as
32571-419: The circumference of a size 6 ball but the weight of a size 7 ball is used in all competitions (men's, women's, and mixed teams). The ball may be advanced toward the basket by being shot, passed between players, thrown, tapped, rolled or dribbled (bouncing the ball while running). The ball must stay within the court; the last team to touch the ball before it travels out of bounds forfeits possession. The ball
32802-575: The closing moments, which fell just short. After dropping to 36 wins and losing in the first round of the 1967 NBA playoffs , they lost in the finals to the Celtics again in 1968. Los Angeles moved to a brand-new arena, The Forum , in 1967, after playing seven seasons at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena . On July 9, 1968, the team acquired Wilt Chamberlain from the Philadelphia 76ers for Darrell Imhoff, Archie Clark , and Jerry Chambers . In his first season as
33033-439: The court and backboard, it is considered important for the basket to be of the correct height – a rim that is off by just a few inches can have an adverse effect on shooting. The net must "check the ball momentarily as it passes through the basket" to aid the visual confirmation that the ball went through. The act of checking the ball has the further advantage of slowing down the ball so the rebound does not go as far. The size of
33264-428: The court in the last game just before it ended, willingly letting the final seconds tick away, unwilling to shake hands with the Bulls. After the series, Michael Jordan said, "You see two different styles with us and them. The dirty play and the flagrant fouls and unsportsmanlike conduct. Hopefully, that will be eliminated from the game. I think we play clean basketball. We don't go out and try to hurt people and dirty up
33495-403: The defender's hoop (a basket 18 inches (46 cm) in diameter mounted 10 feet (3.048 m) high to a backboard at each end of the court), while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line , when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot
33726-626: The development of the game. The hall of fame has people who have accomplished many goals in their career in basketball. An upstart organization, the American Basketball Association , emerged in 1967 and briefly threatened the NBA's dominance until the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. Today the NBA is the top professional basketball league in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, talent, and level of competition. The NBA has featured many famous players, including George Mikan ,
33957-417: The direction and opportunities with Detroit. In 1974, Zollner sold the team to glass magnate Bill Davidson , who remained the team's principal owner until his death in 2009. The team had a winning season in 1971 , having spent the 1960s below .500, and then had a brief period of sustained success in the mid-1970s, qualifying for the playoffs in four straight seasons ( 1974 , 1975 , 1976 and 1977 ). Hope
34188-488: The division finals, they returned to the NBA Finals, but were swept by the Celtics, beginning their long rivalry. In their last year in Minneapolis, the Lakers went 25–50. On January 18, 1960, the team was coming off a loss and traveling to St. Louis when their plane crash-landed. Snow storms had driven the pilot 150 miles off course when he was forced to land in a cornfield. No one was hurt. Their record earned them
34419-833: The ending of the game was replayed three times until the Soviet Union finally came out on top. In 1950 the first FIBA World Championship for men, now known as the FIBA Basketball World Cup , was held in Argentina. Three years later, the first FIBA World Championship for women, now known as the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup , was held in Chile. Women's basketball was added to the Olympics in 1976, which were held in Montreal , Quebec, Canada with teams such as
34650-476: The extra session. The Pistons fought back to win Game 6 in San Antonio, setting up the first NBA Finals Game 7 since 1994. The Pistons then lost a hard-fought, low-scoring game to the Spurs, who won their third NBA championship since 1999. The Pistons' 2004–05 season was marked by a major controversy, as well as distracting issues involving Larry Brown. In the first month of the season, the infamous Malice at
34881-409: The final sale price was $ 325 million, far lower than expected. In the 2011 NBA draft , the Pistons selected Brandon Knight , Kyle Singler and Vernon Macklin . Prior to the start of the 2011–12 season , the Pistons made several leadership changes, including appointing Dennis Mannion as president of the franchise and Palace Sports & Entertainment . The team decided to hire Lawrence Frank as
35112-407: The first NBA team to sweep the middle three games on the road. The decisive game came down to the final second. Trailing 90–83 with two minutes remaining, the Pistons rallied to tie the game, then took a 92–90 lead when Vinnie Johnson sank a 15-foot jumper with 00.7 seconds left in the game; this shot earned Johnson a new nickname in Detroit, "007", to go with his original, "The Microwave". Isiah Thomas
35343-478: The first decades of the 20th century, basketball quickly became the ideal interscholastic sport due to its modest equipment and personnel requirements. In the days before widespread television coverage of professional and college sports, the popularity of high school basketball was unrivaled in many parts of America. Perhaps the most legendary of high school teams was Indiana's Franklin Wonder Five , which took
35574-803: The first dominating "big man"; ball-handling wizard Bob Cousy and defensive genius Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics ; charismatic center Wilt Chamberlain , who originally played for the barnstorming Harlem Globetrotters ; all-around stars Oscar Robertson and Jerry West ; more recent big men Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , Shaquille O'Neal , Hakeem Olajuwon and Karl Malone ; playmakers John Stockton , Isiah Thomas and Steve Nash ; crowd-pleasing forwards Julius Erving and Charles Barkley ; European stars Dirk Nowitzki , Pau Gasol and Tony Parker ; Latin American stars Manu Ginobili , more recent superstars, Allen Iverson , Kobe Bryant , Tim Duncan , LeBron James , Stephen Curry , Giannis Antetokounmpo , etc.; and
35805-536: The first overall pick. It took Johnson's teammates time to acclimate themselves to his passing ability, as his "no-look" passes often caught them unaware. Once they adjusted, his passing became a key part of Los Angeles' offense. The Lakers won 60 games in Johnson's rookie year, and defeated the Philadelphia 76ers in six games in the 1980 NBA Finals . Johnson won the Finals MVP award, after starting at center for
36036-472: The first pick in the 1947 Professional Basketball League of America dispersal draft, which they used to select George Mikan . Led by Mikan, the Lakers had a solid roster, which also featured forward Jim Pollard and playmaker Herm Schaefer . In their first season, they led the league with a 43–17 record, later winning the NBL Championship that season. In 1948, the Lakers moved from the NBL to
36267-535: The first round by Portland . Following the season, head coach Mike Dunleavy was fired. The Lakers would lose 43 games in 1992–93 under Randy Pfund , their first losing season since 1976. The Lakers would still make the playoffs, and would become the first eighth seed to win the opening two games on the road against a number one seed when they took a 2–0 lead against Phoenix . They lost the next two games at home however, then game five in Phoenix in overtime. During
36498-492: The first three games. However, Kevin McHale 's hard clothesline foul of Lakers forward Kurt Rambis on a fast break is credited as a turning point of the series. Boston won three of the next four to win the title and send Los Angeles's record to 0–8 in Finals series against the Celtics. Using the past year's Finals defeat as motivation, the team won the Pacific Division for the fourth straight year and lost just two games in
36729-409: The first two rounds of the playoffs . After the Lakers took a three games to one lead in the Western Conference Finals against Portland , the Trail Blazers won the next two games to force a game seven. The Lakers, who trailed by 15 points in the fourth quarter, would go on 19–4 run to tie the game and eventually win 89–84 to advance to the NBA Finals . In their first trip to the Finals since 1991 ,
36960-406: The first-ever rights fees to be paid to a women's professional sports league. Over the eight years of the contract, "millions and millions of dollars" were "dispersed to the league's teams." In a March 12, 2009, article, NBA commissioner David Stern said that in the bad economy, "the NBA is far less profitable than the WNBA. We're losing a lot of money among a large number of teams. We're budgeting
37191-408: The four-peat attempt ended as they were eliminated by San Antonio in six games in the second round. During the 2003–04 season , the team was the subject of intense media coverage generated by the teaming of four stars and the sexual-assault case involving Kobe Bryant . Before the season, the Lakers signed two-time MVP Karl Malone formerly of the Jazz , and former Seattle Defensive Player of
37422-413: The fourth-best start through 42 games in NBA history. Four of the five Pistons starters (Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace, and Ben Wallace) were named to the All-Star team, and Flip Saunders served as the Eastern Conference All-Star team coach. The Pistons finished the regular season with a record of 64–18, setting new franchise records for both overall and road victories (27). In addition,
37653-473: The franchise's first division title in 32 years. In the postseason , the Pistons avenged their two previous playoff losses to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, defeating them in six games and advancing to the NBA Finals for the first time since the franchise moved to Detroit. The Pistons' first trip to the Finals in 32 years saw them face the Los Angeles Lakers , who were led by Magic Johnson , James Worthy , and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar . After taking
37884-425: The game had spread to colleges across the country, including Wellesley , Vassar , and Bryn Mawr . The first intercollegiate women's game was on April 4, 1896. Stanford women played Berkeley , 9-on-9, ending in a 2–1 Stanford victory. Women's basketball development was more structured than that for men in the early years. In 1905, the executive committee on Basket Ball Rules (National Women's Basketball Committee)
38115-408: The game. In Game 6, the Pistons entered the fourth quarter leading 70–60, but a lack of focus, a poor game from Rasheed Wallace, and a rally-killing turnover by Tayshaun Prince ultimately led to their demise; the Pistons ended their season with an 89–81 loss. In what would ultimately be a bellwether moment in the franchise's history, Wallace refused to take any post-game questions, simply walking back to
38346-528: The game. You never lose respect for the champions. But I haven't agreed with the methods they used. I think people are happy the game will get back to a clean game [with a Bulls triumph] and away from the 'Bad Boy' image." It was later revealed that the real reason the Pistons walked off the court without shaking hands with the Bulls was due to comments said by Jordan in a pre-game interview before Game 4, where he said, "The Pistons are undeserving champions. The Bad Boys are bad for basketball." After getting swept by
38577-411: The head coach. The 2011–12 season was an improvement from previous years for the Pistons, although they still posted a losing record. While they started the season 4–20, they won half their remaining games to finish a lockout -shortened season with a record of 25–41. The team continued to build its young core with the drafting of the talented center Andre Drummond . Following the 2012–13 season , Frank
38808-489: The inflatable bladder after the other sewn-together segments of the ball's cover had been flipped outside-in. These laces could cause bounce passes and dribbling to be unpredictable. Eventually a lace-free ball construction method was invented, and this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith (whereas in American football , the lace construction proved to be advantageous for gripping and remains to this day). The first balls made specifically for basketball were brown, and it
39039-401: The injured Abdul-Jabbar in game six, and tallying 42 points, 15 rebounds, and seven assists. The team fell off in the 1980–81 season , though, as the Lakers lost Johnson for most of the season to a knee injury. The team turned in a 54–28 record and finished second behind the Phoenix Suns in the Pacific Division. The Rockets , led by Moses Malone , defeated Los Angeles in the first round of
39270-416: The last few years, veterans Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess. On July 8, 2009, the Pistons hired former Cavaliers assistant coach John Kuester to be the new head coach. The Pistons later re-signed Ben Wallace on August 12, 2009. Despite these changes, the team regressed even further, as they were hampered by setbacks and injuries. On March 23, 2010, the Pistons were eliminated from playoff contention with
39501-430: The last half of the 1955–56 season , but struggled and retired for good after the season. Led by Lovellette's 20.6 points and 13.5 rebounds, they advanced to the Conference Finals in 1956–57. The Lakers had one of the worst seasons in team history in 1957–58 when they won a league-low 19 games. They had hired Mikan, who had been the team's general manager for the previous two seasons, as head coach to replace Kundla. Mikan
39732-503: The latest matchup of the Lakers and Celtics, with Los Angeles winning its 16th title. Jackson retired in 2011, and the Lakers endured their longest playoff drought in franchise history. Gasol departed in 2014, and Bryant retired in 2016. After rebuilding seasons with young, highly rated prospects, the Lakers signed superstar LeBron James in 2018. In 2019, the team traded several of those prospects for star big man Anthony Davis . The Lakers—led by James, Davis, and coach Frank Vogel —won
39963-477: The league's popularity and level of competition. Other professional women's basketball leagues in the United States, such as the American Basketball League (1996–98) , have folded in part because of the popularity of the WNBA. The WNBA has been looked at by many as a niche league. However, the league has recently taken steps forward. In June 2007, the WNBA signed a contract extension with ESPN . The new television deal ran from 2009 to 2016. Along with this deal, came
40194-441: The locker room after, aware that Joe Dumars would likely start dismantling the team, saying only "It's over, man." After that, the Celtics went on to win the 2008 NBA Finals . On June 3, 2008, the Pistons announced that Flip Saunders would not return as head coach. On June 10, 2008, the Pistons hired Michael Curry to be their new head coach. On November 3, 2008, the Pistons traded key members Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess to
40425-423: The mezzanine balcony of the playing court, but this proved impractical when spectators in the balcony began to interfere with shots. The backboard was introduced to prevent this interference; it had the additional effect of allowing rebound shots. Naismith's handwritten diaries, discovered by his granddaughter in early 2006, indicate that he was nervous about the new game he had invented, which incorporated rules from
40656-489: The nation by storm during the 1920s, dominating Indiana basketball and earning national recognition. Today virtually every high school in the United States fields a basketball team in varsity competition. Basketball's popularity remains high, both in rural areas where they carry the identification of the entire community, as well as at some larger schools known for their basketball teams where many players go on to participate at higher levels of competition after graduation. In
40887-402: The nearby Smith College , went to Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by the new sport and the values it could teach, she started to organize games with her pupils, following adjusted rules. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played barely 11 months later, between the University of California and the Miss Head's School. In 1899, a committee was established at
41118-400: The new sport and the values it could teach, she instantly introduced the game as a class exercise and soon after teams were organized. The first women's collegiate basketball game was played on March 21, 1893, when her Smith freshmen and sophomores played against one another. The first official women's interinstitutional game was played later that year between the University of California and
41349-410: The number two pick in the 1960 NBA draft . The team selected Jerry West from West Virginia University . During the 1960 off-season, the Lakers became the NBA's first West Coast team when owner Bob Short decided to move the team to Los Angeles. Led by Baylor's 34.8 ppg and 19.8 rpg, Los Angeles won 11 more than the year before in West's first season. On November 15 that season, Baylor set
41580-407: The offense, a violation of these rules results in loss of possession; for the defense, most leagues reset the shot clock and the offensive team is given possession of the ball out of bounds. There are limits imposed on the time taken before progressing the ball past halfway (8 seconds in FIBA and the NBA; 10 seconds in NCAA and high school for both sexes), before attempting a shot (24 seconds in FIBA,
41811-417: The play took 4.6 seconds, and since there were 5.1 seconds remaining when it began, the field goal was counted. The NBA later admitted that the play actually took 5.7 seconds and the basket should not have counted. In addition to losing Game 3 badly, 111–86, the Pistons also lost all-star point guard and team leader Chauncey Billups to a hamstring injury. Despite his absence, the Pistons rallied from 15 down in
42042-531: The playoffs . Early in the 1981–82 season , Johnson complained to the media about head coach Paul Westhead and demanded a trade. Westhead was fired shortly after Johnson's criticisms, and although Lakers' owner Jerry Buss stated that Johnson's comments did not factor into the decision, Johnson was vilified by the national media and booed both on the road and at home. Buss promoted assistant coach Pat Riley to "co-head coach" with Jerry West (although West considered himself Riley's assistant) on November 19 and
42273-466: The playoffs. The Pistons opened the 2007 NBA playoffs with a 4–0 victory over the Orlando Magic , their first playoff series sweep since 1990. The team advanced to face the Chicago Bulls , marking the first time that the Central Division rivals had met in the postseason since 1991. After winning the first two games by 26 and 21 points, the Pistons overcame a 19-point deficit to win Game 3, 81–74. The Bulls avoided elimination by winning Games 4 and 5, but
42504-424: The prior year, but swept the first three rounds of the playoffs , defeating the Portland , Sacramento , and San Antonio . They met Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA Finals . Although the Sixers took game one in overtime, the Lakers won the next four games to win their second straight title. Their 15–1 postseason record was the best in NBA history. The Lakers won 58 games in 2001–02 . In
42735-421: The rest of the season. Nevertheless, they advanced to play Philadelphia in the 1983 NBA Finals after defeating Portland and San Antonio . The Sixers, however, won the series and the championship in four games. After the season West replaced Sharman as the team's GM. In the 1983–84 season , Los Angeles went 54–28, and played Boston in the Finals for the first time since 1969 . The Lakers won two of
42966-412: The retirement of Chamberlain, the team traded for superstar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar . Two big changes came in 1979, first, Jerry Buss purchased the Lakers, and pioneered a vision of basketball as entertainment as well as sport. Second, the Lakers drafted Magic Johnson first overall in the 1979 NBA draft . The combination of Johnson, a prodigy point guard , and dominant center in Abdul-Jabbar provided
43197-416: The roster by signing free agent Chauncey Billups , acquiring Richard "Rip" Hamilton from the Washington Wizards , and drafting Tayshaun Prince from Kentucky . The Pistons posted consecutive 50-win seasons and advanced to the 2003 Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1991. There, however, they were swept in four games by the New Jersey Nets . Despite the team's improvement, Rick Carlisle
43428-439: The score was 7–7 at the end of regulation play, and a ten-minute overtime period settled the outcome. A good turnout of spectators watched the game. The first men's national championship tournament, the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball tournament, which still exists as the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) tournament , was organized in 1937. The first national championship for NCAA teams,
43659-487: The season with a 10-game losing streak to finish 33–49. Under new coach Del Harris , Los Angeles made the playoffs each of the next two seasons but was eliminated in the second and first rounds respectively. The team was led by young guards Nick Van Exel and Eddie Jones . Johnson came out of retirement to return as a player in the 1995–96 season to lead the then 24–18 Lakers to a 29–11 finish. After some run-ins with Van Exel, displeasure with Harris's strategies, and
43890-401: The season, the Pistons bought out his contract soon after the 2005 NBA Finals. Brown was promptly named head coach of the New York Knicks, while the Pistons hired Flip Saunders , formerly of the Minnesota Timberwolves. During the 2005–06 season , the Pistons recorded the NBA's best overall record. Their 37–5 start exceeded the best start for any Detroit sports franchise in history and tied for
44121-402: The series in seven games however, and earned their 11th NBA Championship in 13 seasons. West was named the first-ever Finals MVP ; this remains the only time that a member of the losing team has won the award. In 1970 , West won his first scoring title at 31.2 ppg, the team returned to the finals , and for the first time in 16 years, they did not have to face the Celtics; instead playing
44352-411: The series in seven games, and James Worthy's game seven triple-double earned him a Finals MVP award. The win marked their fifth title in nine years, but would also mark their last title until 2000 . In the 1988–89 season , Los Angeles won 57 games and their eighth consecutive Pacific Division crown. They swept through the playoffs defeating Portland , Seattle , and Phoenix . In an eighth trip to
44583-411: The sport in Australia. The Women's National Basketball League began in 1981. Women began to play basketball in the fall of 1892 at Smith College through Senda Berenson , substitute director of the newly opened gymnasium and physical education teacher, after having modified the rules for women. Shortly after Berenson was hired at Smith, she visited Naismith to learn more about the game. Fascinated by
44814-507: The standings. The Lakers defeated Portland three games to one in the first round to advance to face Seattle. Although the Sonics won the first game, the Lakers responded with four straight wins, taking the series, but were swept by the Jazz in the Western Conference Finals . During the 1998–99 season , All-Star guard Eddie Jones and center Elden Campbell were traded to the Charlotte Hornets. The team also acquired J. R. Reid , B. J. Armstrong , and Glen Rice . Head coach Del Harris
45045-399: The team set an NBA record by starting the same lineup in 73 consecutive games from the start of the season. The top-seeded Pistons defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 4–1 in the first round of the 2006 NBA playoffs , but struggled in the second round against the Cleveland Cavaliers , falling behind 3–2 before winning in seven games. Things did not improve against the second-seeded Miami Heat in
45276-441: The team won 17 of its next 20 games. Nicknamed " Showtime " due to the team's new Johnson-led fast break-offense, the Lakers won the Pacific Division title and swept both the Suns and Spurs in the 1982 playoffs . Los Angeles stretched its postseason winning streak to nine games by taking the first contest of the NBA Finals from the 76ers . The team won the Finals 4–2 to finish a 12–2 playoff run. On draft night in 1982 ,
45507-407: The team's 17th championship in 2020 , tying the Celtics for the most titles until 2024. The Lakers hold the record for NBA's longest winning streak , 33 straight games, set in 1971–72. 26 Hall of Famers have played for Los Angeles, while four have coached the team. Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, O'Neal, and Bryant won a combined eight NBA MVP awards with the Lakers. The franchise was founded in 1946 as
45738-399: The team's coach. West became upset, however, when Cooke refused to spend the money necessary to acquire forward Julius Erving , who the Nets were selling. Behind another MVP season from Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles won the Pacific Division, finishing the 1976–77 season a league-best 53–29. They defeated the Warriors in a seven-game series to open the postseason before being swept by Portland in
45969-438: The team's discipline. He introduced the concept of the shootaround , where players would arrive at the arena early in the morning before a game to practice shots. They won 14 straight games in November and all 16 games played in December. They won three straight to open the year of 1972 but on January 9, the Milwaukee Bucks ended their winning streak by defeating the Lakers, 120–104. By winning 33 straight games, Los Angeles set
46200-447: The team's final 25 points, to help defeat the Pistons 109–107 in double overtime. The Pistons never recovered as they were eliminated in Game 6, 98–82. In the 2007 NBA draft , the Pistons selected Rodney Stuckey with the 15th overall pick and Arron Afflalo with the 27th overall pick. They also re-signed Chauncey Billups to a long-term contract, as well as top prospect Amir Johnson and key reserve Antonio McDyess . This season marked
46431-430: The team's successes. Following the season, 1987 Defensive Player of the Year winner Michael Cooper decided to play in Europe and was waived at his request. The 1990–91 Lakers failed to win the Pacific Division for the first time in 10 years, but still finished with a 58–24 record. After cruising through the Western Conference playoffs , the Lakers found themselves in the NBA Finals once again, their ninth trip to
46662-429: The team's void at center, however, and the team began looking for additional help. On January 16, 2007, the Pistons signed free agent Chris Webber . The Pistons quickly began playing better basketball. They were only 21–15 before Webber was acquired; with him, the team went 32–14. On April 11, the Pistons clinched the best record in the Eastern Conference, which guaranteed them home-court advantage for first three rounds of
46893-474: The third quarter to win Game 4 90–89 on a field goal by Tayshaun Prince with just 8.9 seconds to play, taking a 3–1 series lead. Again with Billups sitting on the sideline, they then proceeded to win Game 5 in Detroit, winning the series 4–1. Detroit advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the sixth straight season, squaring off against the Celtics. This put the Pistons second on the all-time list of most consecutive conference finals appearances, behind only
47124-411: The third quarter, Chauncey Billups hit a three-point field goal that gave the Pistons a three-point lead. However, the clock had stopped shortly into the play. League rules currently prohibit officials from using both instant replay and a timing device to measure how much time has elapsed when a clock malfunctions, nor is a replay from the time of the malfunction onward allowed. The officials estimated that
47355-458: The third straight season, the Pistons and Bulls split the first six games before the Pistons finished the series with a decisive 93–74 victory in Game 7. Advancing to their third consecutive NBA Finals , the Pistons faced the Portland Trail Blazers . After splitting the first two games at The Palace, the Pistons went to Portland , where they had not won a game since 1974, to play Games 3, 4 and 5. The Pistons won all three games in Portland, becoming
47586-416: The three players who many credit with ushering the professional game to its highest level of popularity during the 1980s and 1990s: Larry Bird , Earvin "Magic" Johnson , and Michael Jordan . In 2001, the NBA formed a developmental league, the National Basketball Development League (later known as the NBA D-League and then the NBA G League after a branding deal with Gatorade ). As of the 2023–24 season,
47817-411: The void. In the years before World War I , the Amateur Athletic Union and the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (forerunner of the NCAA ) vied for control over the rules for the game. The first pro league, the National Basketball League, was formed in 1898 to protect players from exploitation and to promote a less rough game. This league only lasted five years. James Naismith
48048-412: Was West's idea, and he was influential in the team's signing of the all-star center. "Jerry West is the reason I came to the Lakers", O'Neal later said. They used their 24th pick in the draft to select Derek Fisher . During the season , the team traded Cedric Ceballos to Phoenix for Robert Horry . O'Neal led the team to a 56–26 record, their best effort since 1990–91, despite missing 31 games due to
48279-508: Was a combatant, was suspended for two months by the NBA, and released by the Lakers. The team won 45 games despite being down a starter in Washington and not having Abdul-Jabbar for nearly two months, but lost in the first round of the playoffs to Seattle. During the 1978–79 season, the team posted a 47–35 record but lost to the SuperSonics in the semifinal round of the playoffs. In the 1979 NBA draft , Los Angeles selected 6-foot, 9-inch point guard Magic Johnson from Michigan State with
48510-403: Was common by 1896, with a rule against the double dribble by 1898. The peach baskets were used until 1906 when they were finally replaced by metal hoops with backboards. A further change was soon made, so the ball merely passed through. Whenever a person got the ball in the basket, his team would gain a point. Whichever team got the most points won the game. The baskets were originally nailed to
48741-461: Was created by the American Physical Education Association . These rules called for six to nine players per team and 11 officials. The International Women's Sports Federation (1924) included a women's basketball competition. 37 women's high school varsity basketball or state tournaments were held by 1925. And in 1926, the Amateur Athletic Union backed the first national women's basketball championship , complete with men's rules. The Edmonton Grads ,
48972-462: Was fired as head coach on April 18, 2013, after two losing seasons, and on June 10, 2013, the Pistons hired former player and coach Maurice Cheeks . His tenure lasted for just a bit more than half a season, as he was replaced by interim coach John Loyer . In April, the Pistons announced that Joe Dumars would step down as president of basketball operations but remain as an advisor to the organization and its ownership team. On May 14, 2014, Stan Van Gundy
49203-416: Was fired as head coach. Iverson signed with the Memphis Grizzlies during the off-season. In the off-season, the Pistons reached an agreement with former Chicago Bulls guard Ben Gordon on a five-year/$ 55 million contract, as well as an agreement with former Milwaukee Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva on a five-year contract worth $ 35 million. That same month, the Pistons lost their two key members during
49434-399: Was fired in February after a three-game losing streak and replaced on an interim basis by former Laker Kurt Rambis . The team finished 31–19 in the strike-shortened season, which was fourth in the Western Conference. The Lakers defeated Houston in the first round of the playoffs, but were swept by San Antonio in the next round. Game four of the series would be the last game ever played at
49665-419: Was fired in January when the team was 9–30, and Kundla was rehired. The Lakers earned the top pick in the 1958 NBA draft and used it to select Elgin Baylor . Baylor, who was named NBA Rookie of the Year and co-MVP of the 1959 NBA All-Star Game , averaged 24.9 ppg and 15.0 rpg helping the Lakers improve to second in their division despite a 33–39 record. After upsetting the Hawks in six games in
49896-459: Was fired in the 2003 off-season. There were believed to be five reasons for the firing: first, that Carlisle had appeared reluctant to play some of the team's younger players, such as Prince and Mehmet Okur , during the regular season; second, that some of the players had not gotten along with Carlisle; third, that Carlisle's offense was thought to be conservative; fourth, that Hall of Famer Larry Brown had become available; and fifth, that Carlisle
50127-401: Was first included at the Berlin 1936 Summer Olympics , although a demonstration tournament was held in 1904. The United States defeated Canada in the first final, played outdoors. This competition has usually been dominated by the United States, whose team has won all but three titles. The first of these came in a controversial final game in Munich in 1972 against the Soviet Union, in which
50358-474: Was founded as a "rebellion" of several teams from the now-defunct Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association, which was tightly controlled by the Basketball Association of the Philippines (now defunct), the then-FIBA recognized national association. Nine teams from the MICAA participated in the league's first season that opened on April 9, 1975. The NBL is Australia's pre-eminent men's professional basketball league. The league commenced in 1979 , playing
50589-410: Was hired. Van Gundy signed a 5-year, $ 35 million contract to become the head coach and president of basketball operations for the team. After starting the 2014–15 season with a 5–23 record, the Pistons waived Josh Smith , who was acquired in the summer of 2013. The team went on a lengthy winning streak, but finished the season with a record of only 32–50 after Brandon Jennings ' Achilles injury. In
50820-418: Was instrumental in establishing college basketball . His colleague C. O. Beamis fielded the first college basketball team just a year after the Springfield YMCA game at the suburban Pittsburgh Geneva College . Naismith himself later coached at the University of Kansas for six years, before handing the reins to renowned coach Forrest "Phog" Allen . Naismith's disciple Amos Alonzo Stagg brought basketball to
51051-407: Was marked with many controversies and injuries. As a result of this and poor play, the Pistons dropped down the standings, only clinching a playoff berth on April 10, 2009. The Pistons finished the season at 39–43, their first losing season in eight years. The Pistons were then swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in four games in the first round of the 2009 NBA playoffs . On June 30, 2009, Michael Curry
51282-439: Was named NBA Finals MVP . The Pistons successfully defended their title in 1990, despite losing Rick Mahorn to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the expansion draft. After winning 59 games and a third straight division title, the Pistons cruised through the first two rounds of the playoffs before playing a tough Eastern Conference Finals series against Michael Jordan , Scottie Pippen , and the Chicago Bulls . Facing each other for
51513-474: Was named MVP of the 1972 NBA All-Star Game . The team failed to score 100 points just once all year, and at the end of the season, Bill Sharman was named Coach of the Year . The Lakers went on to reach the finals against the New York Knicks where they would avenge their 1970 finals loss by defeating them 4 games to 1. Chamberlain tallied 24 points and 29 rebounds in game five and won the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award . The Lakers won 60 games in
51744-401: Was named NBA Finals MVP. The Pistons' championship run came to an end in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals, as they were swept by the eventual NBA champion Chicago Bulls in four games. The most critical injury during this time belonged to Isiah Thomas, who had suffered a wrist injury a few months prior to the NBA playoffs . The Conference Finals is best remembered for the Pistons walking off
51975-422: Was named the NBA Finals MVP, in addition to regular season MVP. At the Lakers' championship celebration in Los Angeles, coach Riley brashly declared that Los Angeles would repeat as NBA champions, which no team had done since the 1968–69 Boston Celtics . Looking to make good on Riley's promise in the 1987–88 season , the Lakers took their seventh consecutive Pacific Division title with a 62–20 record. They swept
52206-412: Was not an official Olympic sport until 1976. The Grads' players were unpaid, and had to remain single. The Grads' style focused on team play, without overly emphasizing skills of individual players. The first women's AAU All-America team was chosen in 1929. Women's industrial leagues sprang up throughout the United States, producing famous athletes, including Babe Didrikson of the Golden Cyclones , and
52437-424: Was only in the late 1950s that Tony Hinkle , searching for a ball that would be more visible to players and spectators alike, introduced the orange ball that is now in common use. Dribbling was not part of the original game except for the "bounce pass" to teammates. Passing the ball was the primary means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the asymmetric shape of early balls. Dribbling
52668-401: Was rumored to have alienated owner Bill Davidson with his personality. Brown accepted the job that summer. The Pistons' transformation into a championship team was completed with the February 2004 acquisition of Rasheed Wallace . The Pistons now had another big man to pose a threat from all parts of the court. The Pistons finished the season 54–28, recording their best record since 1997. In
52899-423: Was the fifth largest city in the United States at the time, Detroit had not seen professional basketball in a decade. They lost the Detroit Eagles due to World War II , both the Detroit Gems of the NBL (who became the Minneapolis Lakers ) and the Detroit Falcons of the BAA in 1947, and the Detroit Vagabond Kings in 1949. Zollner decided to keep the Pistons name, believing it made sense given Detroit's status as
53130-479: Was then placed in Dick Vitale in 1978 , the former head coach at the University of Detroit , but he was fired the following season, and the team limped into the 1980s with a 16–66 record in 1979–80 . The 1979–80 team lost its last 14 games of the season which, when coupled with the seven losses at the start of the 1980–81 season , constituted a then-NBA record losing streak of 21 games . Over time, Davidson became displeased with Cobo Arena, but opted not to follow
53361-402: Was trying to keep his gym class active on a rainy day. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied and at proper levels of fitness during the long New England winters. After rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums , he invented a new game in which players would pass a ball to teammates and try to score points by tossing the ball into
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