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2008–09 Orlando Magic Season
The 2008–09 Orlando Magic season was the 20th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Led by 23-year-old center Dwight Howard, the team finished the regular season with a 59–23 record, the most wins since the 1995–96 season. The Magic would go on to defeat the Philadelphia 76ers in six games in the First Round, highlighted by forward Hedo Türkoğlu's game winner in game four of the first round of the playoffs, then defeated the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics in a tough, hard-fought seven-game series in the semi-finals, and finally, defeated the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in six games in the conference finals, thanks to all-star defensive player of the year center Dwight Howard's 40 points and 10 rebounds in Game 6, to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1995, only to lose to the Los Angeles Lakers in five games. Following the season, Türkoğlu was traded to the Toronto Raptors in a three-team deal and Rafer Alston, T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stan Van Gundy
Stanley Alan Van Gundy (born August 26, 1959) is an American former basketball coach who is a National Basketball Association (NBA) game analyst for TNT. Prior to TNT, Van Gundy was most recently the head coach for the New Orleans Pelicans of the NBA. He also served as the head coach and president of basketball operations for the Detroit Pistons from 2014 to 2018. From 2003 to 2005, he was the head coach of the Miami Heat but resigned in 2005 mid-season, turning the job over to Pat Riley. Van Gundy then coached the Orlando Magic for five seasons from 2007 to 2012, leading them to the 2009 NBA Finals. He is the older brother of former New York Knicks and Houston Rockets head coach Jeff Van Gundy. Playing career Van Gundy was a starting guard at Alhambra High School in Martinez, California in the San Francisco Bay Area. He played basketball for his father, Bill Van Gundy, at SUNY-Brockport, a Division III school, until he graduated in 1981 with a B.A. in English and a B.S. in Phys ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1995 NBA Finals
The 1995 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1994–95 National Basketball Association (NBA) season. The series pitted the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic against the defending NBA champion and Western Conference champion Houston Rockets. The pre-series hype and buildup of the Finals was centered on the meeting of the two centers opposing each other: Shaquille O'Neal of the Magic and Hakeem Olajuwon of the Rockets. Going into the series the matchup was compared to the Bill Russell–Wilt Chamberlain matchup of the 1960s. The Rockets became the first team in NBA history to beat four 50-win teams in a single postseason en route to the championship. The Rockets would win a playoff-record nine road games in the 1995 playoffs. It was the second NBA Finals sweep in the 2–3–2 Finals format (after the Detroit Pistons did so against the Los Angeles Lakers in 1989). The Rockets also became the first repeat NBA Champion in history to keep the title with a swee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
JJ Redick
Jonathan Clay "JJ" Redick (born June 24, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player who is a podcaster and sports analyst for ESPN. He was selected 11th overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2006 NBA draft. He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils. In college, Redick was known for his excellent three-point and free-throw shooting. He set ACC records during his career for most points and most career ACC tournament points at the time. Redick is the all-time leading scorer for Duke. He also set several other Duke records, including most points in a single season. After being drafted by the Magic, he played for seven seasons in Orlando, followed by a short spell with the Milwaukee Bucks, then four seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. In 2017, he signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, and re-signed with them on a one-year deal the following year. In 2019, Redick signed a two-year deal with the New Orleans Pelicans. He was traded to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jameer Nelson
Jameer Lamar Nelson Sr. (born February 9, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who serves as assistant general manager for the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Saint Joseph's Hawks, where he was named national college player of the year in 2004. Drafted 20th overall in the 2004 NBA draft, Nelson spent the first ten years of his NBA career with the Orlando Magic. In 2009, he was named an All-Star and made an appearance in the NBA Finals with the Magic. He has also played for the Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans and Detroit Pistons. High school career Nelson attended Chester High School in Chester, Pennsylvania and was a letterman in basketball. In 2000, he helped lead his team to the PIAA AAAA State championship. College career Nelson began his play at Saint Joseph's University in the 2000–01 season. He had a breakout freshman season in which he was named unanimous Nationa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest team in the NBA, and the first and only team in the major professional North American sports leagues located in Sacramento. The team plays its home games at the Golden 1 Center. Their best seasons to date in the city were in the early 2000s, including a very successful 2001–02 season when they had the best record in the NBA at 61–21 (a winning percentage of ). The franchise began with the Rochester Seagrams (a semi-professional team) from Rochester, New York, that formed in 1923 and hosted a number of teams there over the next 20 years. They joined the National Basketball League in 1945 as the renamed Rochester Royals, winning that league's championship in their first season, 1945–46. They later jumped with three other NBL teams ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at State Farm Arena. The team's origins can be traced to the establishment of the Buffalo Bisons in 1946 in Buffalo, New York, a member of the National Basketball League (United States), National Basketball League (NBL) owned by Ben Kerner and Leo Ferris. After 38 days in Buffalo, the team moved to Moline, Illinois, where they were renamed the Tri-Cities Blackhawks. In 1949, they joined the NBA as part of the merger between the NBL and the Basketball Association of America (BAA), and briefly had Red Auerbach as coach. In 1951, Kerner moved the team to Milwaukee, where they changed their name to the Milwaukee Hawks. Kerner and the team moved again in 1955 to St. Louis, where they won their only ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Free Agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is allowed to solicit offers from other teams. In some circumstances, the free agent's options are limited by league rules. Types Terms Unrestricted free agent Unrestricted free agents are players without a team. They have either been released from their club, had the term of their contract expire without a renewal, or were not chosen in a league's draft of amateur players. These people, generally speaking, are free to entertain offers from all other teams in the player's most recent league and elsewhere and to decide with whom to sign a contract. Players who have been bought out of league standard contracts may have restrictions within that league, such as not being able to sign with the buy-out club for a period of time in the NHL, b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Central Division (NBA), Central Division. The team began play as an expansion team in 1970–71 NBA season, 1970, along with the Portland Trail Blazers and Buffalo Braves. Home games were first held at Cleveland Arena from 1970 to 1974, followed by the Richfield Coliseum from 1974 to 1994. Since 1994, the Cavs have played home games at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in downtown Cleveland, which is shared with the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League. Dan Gilbert (businessman), Dan Gilbert has owned the team since March 2005. The Cavaliers opened their inaugural season by losing their first 15 games and struggled in their early years, placing no better than sixth in the Eastern Conference during their first five sea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tyronn Lue
Tyronn Jamar Lue (pronounced ''Ta-RON LEW''; born May 3, 1977) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He formerly served as the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, helping them win their first NBA title in franchise history. A former point guard, Lue played college basketball for the Nebraska Cornhuskers before being selected by the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the 1998 NBA draft with the 23rd overall pick. He was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers shortly thereafter. As a member of the Lakers, Lue won two NBA championships in his first three seasons. After his playing career ended in 2009, Lue became Director of Basketball Development for the Boston Celtics. In 2014, he was hired by the Cavaliers as associate head coach. Lue was promoted to head coach during the 2015–16 season, replacing the fired David Blatt. That same season, Lue coached the Caval ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Courtney Lee
Courtney Lee (born October 3, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball at Western Kentucky University. Lee was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the 22nd overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft and was traded in June 2009 to the New Jersey Nets. In August 2010, he was traded to the Houston Rockets. In July 2012, Lee was dealt to the Boston Celtics. He was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in January 2014 before being dealt to the Charlotte Hornets in February 2016. In July, Lee signed with the New York Knicks, where he spent three seasons before being traded to the Dallas Mavericks in January 2019. Early life Lee was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. High school career Lee attended Pike High School in Indianapolis and played on their Indiana 4A state championship winning team in 2003. He starred for the Indy Hornet's AAU team, winning several state championships and annually placing high at the AAU nationals. Considered a three-star recr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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