Ricard Rubio i Vives (born October 21, 1990) is a Spanish professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Rubio became the youngest player ever to play in the Spanish ACB League on October 15, 2005, at age 14.[1][2] He made his EuroLeague debut on October 24, 2006, at age 16, becoming the first player born in the 1990s to play in a EuroLeague game.[3] He is the fifth-youngest player to make their debut in the EuroLeague. On June 25, 2009, he was drafted with the fifth pick in the first round of the 2009 NBA draft by the Timberwolves,[4] making him the first player born in the 1990s to be drafted by the NBA. The Timberwolves had an agreement in principle with his former Spanish team, DKV Joventut, to buy out his contract, but Rubio backed out of the deal.[5] On August 31, 2009, Joventut traded the rights to Rubio to FC Barcelona,[6] and Rubio signed a six-year contract with FC Barcelona the following day.[7] In 2011, Rubio joined the Minnesota Timberwolves,[8] and spent six seasons in Minnesota before being traded to the Jazz in June 2017.
Jason Chandler Williams (born November 18, 1975) is an American retired professional basketball player who was a point guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for twelve seasons during the late 1990s and 2000s. A native of West Virginia, Williams played college basketball for Marshall University and the University of Florida. The Sacramento Kings selected him in the first round of the 1998 NBA draft. Williams also played for the Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, and Orlando Magic throughout his career. Due to his flashy style of play, Williams was given the nickname "White Chocolate."
He started all of Miami's playoff games in 2006 when they won the NBA championship. The Heat named Williams one of their top 25 players of all time in 2007.[1]
Carmelo Kyam Anthony (born May 29, 1984)[1] is an American professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Anthony attended Towson Catholic High School and Oak Hill Academy before playing college basketball at Syracuse. In Anthony's freshman season, he led the Orangemen to their first and only National Championship and was named the NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Anthony then entered the 2003 NBA draft where he was selected with the third overall pick by the Denver Nuggets.
Since entering the NBA, Anthony has been named an All-Star ten times and an All-NBA Team member six times. While playing for Denver, he led the Nuggets to the playoffs every year from 2004 to 2010, winning two division titles in that span. In 2009, Anthony led the Nuggets to their first Conference Finals appearance since 1985. In 2011, he was traded from Denver to the New York Knicks just days prior to the NBA trade deadline. On January 24, 2014, against the Charlotte Bobcats, Anthony set the Madison Square Garden and Knicks' single-game scoring record with a career-high 62 points.[2] Anthony is also one of six players to record at least 24,000 points, 6,000 rebounds, 2,500 assists, 1,000 steals and 1,000 3-point field goals.[3]
Anthony has been a member of the USA Olympic basketball team a record four times, winning a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics and gold medals at the 2008, 2012, and 2016 Summer Olympics. He is the United States Olympic men's national basketball team all-time leading scorer,[4] leader in rebounds and games played.[5]
Russell Westbrook III1 is an American professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is a six-time NBA All-Star, and a two-time NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player, winning consecutive awards in 2015 and 2016. He is also a six-time All-NBA Team member and led the league in scoring in 2014–15 and 2016–17. In 2017, Westbrook became one of two players in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season, along with Oscar Robertson in 1962. He also set a record for the most triple-doubles in a season, with 42.[2] He was subsequently named the 2016–17 NBA Most Valuable Player.
Westbrook played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins and earned third-team all-conference honors in the Pac-10. He was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics, who then relocated to Oklahoma City six days later. Westbrook has represented the United States national team twice, winning gold medals in the 2010 FIBA World Championship and the 2012 Olympics.
Kevin Wayne Durant (born September 29, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has won an NBA championship, an NBA Most Valuable Player Award, the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award, the NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award, four NBA scoring titles, the NBA Rookie of the Year Award, and two Olympic gold medals. Durant has also been selected to seven All-NBA teams and eight NBA All-Star teams.
Durant was a heavily recruited high school prospect who was widely regarded as the second-best player in his class. He played one season of college basketball for the University of Texas, where he won numerous year-end awards and became the first freshman to be named Naismith College Player of the Year. In 2007, he was selected as the second overall pick by the Seattle SuperSonics in the NBA draft. After his rookie season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City and became the Thunder. Behind Durant's leadership and his pairing with All-Star guard Russell Westbrook, the Thunder emerged as a perennial title contender, advancing as far as the NBA Finals in 2012, where they were ousted by the Miami Heat. He played nine seasons in Oklahoma City before signing with the Warriors in 2016, winning the championship in his debut season with the team.
Off the court, Durant often ranks as one of the highest-earning basketball players in the world, due in part to endorsement deals with companies such as Foot Locker and Nike. He has developed a reputation for his philanthropy and regularly leads the league in All-Star votes and jersey sales. In recent years, he has contributed to The Players' Tribune as both a photographer and writer. In 2012, he tried his hand at acting, appearing in the film Thunderstruck.
James Edward Harden Jr. (born August 26, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Harden played college basketball for Arizona State, where he was named a consensus All-American and Pac-10 Player of the Year in 2009. Harden was selected with the third overall pick in the 2009 NBA draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder.[1] In 2012, he was named NBA Sixth Man of the Year with the Thunder and helped the team reach the NBA Finals.
Harden was traded to Houston prior to the 2012–13 NBA season. Upon joining the Rockets, Harden became one of the NBA's most prolific scorers and earned recognition as the best shooting guard in the NBA,[2][3] as well as one of the top overall players in the league.[4] He has earned All-Star nods five times, and has earned All-NBA Team honors four times as well – once to the All-NBA third team (2013) and three times to the All-NBA first team (2014, 2015 and 2017). In 2015, Harden was awarded the first National Basketball Players Association MVP Award, being voted by his peers as the league's most valuable player.[5]
Harden is a two-time member of the United States national basketball team, winning gold medals in both the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2014 FIBA World Cup
Kyrie Andrew Irving (/ˈkaɪriː/, born March 23, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was named NBA Rookie of the Year after being selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the first overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft. A four-time NBA All-Star, Irving was selected to the All-NBA Third Team in 2015. He won an NBA Championship with the Cavaliers in 2016.
Irving played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils before joining the Cavaliers. He was named the NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2014. He clinched the 2016 championship for Cleveland with his game-winning shot with 53 seconds remaining in Game 7. After losing to the Golden State Warriors in 2017, Cleveland's third straight Finals appearance, Irving requested a trade, and he was dealt to Boston. Irving has also played for the United States national team, with whom he has won gold at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics.
LeBron Raymone James (/ləˈbrɒn/; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). James has won three NBA championships, four NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, three NBA Finals MVP Awards, two Olympic gold medals, an NBA scoring title, and the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. He has also been selected to 13 NBA All-Star teams, 13 All-NBA teams, and six All-Defensive teams, is the Cavaliers' all-time leading scorer, and is the NBA career playoff scoring leader.
James played high school basketball at St. Vincent–St. Mary High School in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, where he was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar. After graduating, he was selected by his home team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, as the first overall pick of the 2003 NBA draft. James led Cleveland to the franchise's first Finals appearance in 2007, ultimately losing to the San Antonio Spurs. In 2010, he left the Cavaliers for the Miami Heat in a highly publicized ESPN special titled The Decision. James spent four seasons with the Heat, reaching the Finals all four years and winning back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013. In 2013, he led Miami on a 27-game winning streak, the third longest in league history. Following his final season with the Heat, James opted out of his contract and returned to the Cavaliers. He led the Cavaliers to three consecutive Finals series between 2015 and 2017, winning his third championship in 2016 to end Cleveland's 52-year professional sports title drought.
Off the court, James has accumulated considerable wealth and fame from numerous endorsement contracts. His public life has been the subject of much scrutiny, and he has been ranked as one of America's most influential and popular athletes. He has been featured in books, documentaries, and television commercials. He also hosted the ESPY Awards, Saturday Night Live, and appeared in the 2015 film Trainwreck.
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials, MJ,[3] is an American retired professional basketball player, businessman, and principal owner and chairman of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and also is a part owner of the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball (MLB).[4]
Jordan played 15 seasons in the NBA for the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards. His biography on the NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time."[5] Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s.[6]
Jordan played three seasons for coach Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina. As a freshman, he was a member of the Tar Heels' national championship team in 1982. Jordan joined the Bulls in 1984 as the third overall draft pick. He quickly emerged as a league star, entertaining crowds with his prolific scoring. His leaping ability, demonstrated by performing slam dunks from the free throw line in slam dunk contests, earned him the nicknames Air Jordan and His Airness. He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball.[7] In 1991, he won his first NBA championship with the Bulls, and followed that achievement with titles in 1992 and 1993, securing a "three-peat". Although Jordan abruptly retired from basketball before the beginning of the 1993–94 NBA season and started a new career playing minor league baseball, he returned to the Bulls in March 1995 and led them to three additional championships in 1996, 1997, and 1998, as well as a then-record 72 regular-season wins in the 1995–96 NBA season. Jordan retired for a second time in January 1999, but returned for two more NBA seasons from 2001 to 2003 as a member of the Wizards.
Jordan's individual accolades and accomplishments include five Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards, ten All-NBA First Team designations, nine All-Defensive First Team honors, fourteen NBA All-Star Game appearances, three All-Star Game MVP Awards, ten scoring titles, three steals titles, six NBA Finals MVP Awards, and the 1988 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. Among his numerous accomplishments, Jordan holds the NBA records for highest career regular season scoring average (30.12 points per game) and highest career playoff scoring average (33.45 points per game). In 1999, he was named the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century by ESPN, and was second to Babe Ruth on the Associated Press's list of athletes of the century. Jordan is a two-time inductee into the Basketball Hall of Fame, having been enshrined in 2009 for his individual career, and again in 2010 as part of the group induction of the 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team ("The Dream Team"). He became a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2015.
Jordan is also known for his product endorsements. He fueled the success of Nike's Air Jordan sneakers, which were introduced in 1985 and remain popular today.[8] Jordan also starred in the 1996 film Space Jam as himself. In 2006, he became part-owner and head of basketball operations for the then-Charlotte Bobcats, buying a controlling interest in 2010. In 2015, Jordan became the first billionaire NBA player in history as a result of the increase in value of NBA franchises. He is the third-richest African-American, behind Oprah Winfrey and Robert F. Smith.
Kobe Bean Bryant (born August 23, 1978) is an American retired professional basketball player and businessman.[3] He played his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He entered the NBA directly from high school and won five NBA championships with the Lakers. Bryant is an 18-time All-Star, 15-time member of the All-NBA Team, and 12-time member of the All-Defensive team. He led the NBA in scoring during two seasons, and ranks third on the league's all-time regular season scoring and fourth on the all-time postseason scoring list. He holds the NBA record for the most seasons playing with one franchise for an entire career.
The son of former NBA player Joe Bryant, Kobe Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania, where he was recognized as the top high school basketball player in the country. He declared for the NBA draft upon graduation, and was selected with the 13th overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the Charlotte Hornets, who traded him to the Lakers. As a rookie, Bryant earned himself a reputation as a high-flyer and a fan favorite by winning the 1997 Slam Dunk Contest, and he was named an All-Star by his second season. Despite a feud between them, Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal led the Lakers to three consecutive championships from 2000 to 2002.
In 2003, Bryant was accused of sexual assault in Colorado, but the charges were eventually dropped, and a civil suit was settled out of court. After the Lakers lost the 2004 NBA Finals, O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat. Bryant became the cornerstone of the Lakers, and he led the NBA in scoring during the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons. In 2006, he scored a career-high 81 points against the Toronto Raptors, the second most points scored in a single game in league history behind Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game in 1962. Bryant was awarded the regular season's Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) in 2008. After losing in the 2008 NBA Finals, he led the Lakers to two consecutive championships in 2009 and 2010, earning the Finals MVP Award on both occasions. He continued to be among the top players in the league through 2013, when the 34-year-old Bryant suffered a torn Achilles tendon. Although he recovered, his play was limited the following two years by season-ending injuries to his knee and shoulder, respectively. Citing his physical decline, he announced that he would be retiring after the 2015–16 season.
At 34 years and 104 days of age, Bryant became the youngest player in league history to reach 30,000 career points. He became the all-time leading scorer in Lakers franchise history on February 1, 2010, when he surpassed Jerry West. Following his second year in the league, Bryant was chosen to start every All-Star Game until his retirement for a record 18 consecutive appearances, and his four All-Star MVP Awards are tied for the most in NBA history. At the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics, he won gold medals as a member of the U.S. national team. Sporting News and TNT named Bryant the top NBA player of the 2000s.
