Basketball History 101

 In the early 1900s, doctors and researchers were asking a very important question: Was basketball too strenuous for anyone but grown men to play? There were some in the medical community of the day that thought that basketball could have long term negative effects on the human body. That’s when Dr. James Naismith, the inventor of the game, stepped in and ran his own experiments... CREDITS Rick L...

Today, Rick interviews Kent Washington, the first American to play professional basketball behind the Iron Curtain. He shares his experience as an African-American playing in a communist country. He has an amazing story.  To purchase a copy of Kent Washington’s book, click here: kentomania:%20A%20Black%20Basketball%20Virtuoso%20in%20Communist%20Poland%20https%3A//a.co/d/1jZKzK0 CREDITS Rick Loayz...

 Muggsy Bogues had to prove doubters wrong at every level of basketball, but more so in the NBA than in either high school or university. After a rough start with the Washington Bullets, he found his stride with the expansion Charlotte Hornets, where he excelled as the league's shortest player ever. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publis...

Muggsy Bogues is still the shortest player in NBA history at 5’3”. And despite that, he played for 14 seasons in the NBA because of his athletic gifts in other areas. He was highly relatable to fans due to his short stature, and he had to overcome many obstacles just to be taken seriously by the NBA.  CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publ...

 Larry Bird and Julius Erving had one of the most massive fights in NBA history. It was near the end of the 3rd quarter. Bird had 42 points and Erving only had 6 points. Bird was talking major trash to Erving and that led to a throw-down. Between the players and coaches, there were 11 Hall of Famers participating in this game, and they all got in on the fight... CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head research...

 The current NBA logo is the 5th version of the logo, not counting special anniversary logos. The silhouette used is of Jerry West. But is it time to use a new player, perhaps Michael Jordan? Or should tradition win out? CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "Horizon" by Roa   SPORTS HISTORY NETWORK sportshistorynet...

Today, we conclude our story on Jerry Lucas. He played six All-Star seasons in Cincinnati before Bob Cousy traded him away to San Francisco. Eventually, he landed on a loaded Knicks team and won the 1973 NBA championship. But that was just the beginning. He then went into a career writing books and creating products to help people with their memory and education. He was a prolific writer who autho...

 Jerry Lucas is one of the greatest forwards of all time, but he hardly ever gets mentioned today. This our chance to shine our spotlight on the life and career of this Hall of Famer and member of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "60s and 70s Rock" by Hyde "Horizons" by Roa   SP...

In this bonus episode of BBH.101, Rick shares the story of Wilt Chamberlain’s custom-built home in Bel Air, Los Angeles. It was built with a 7-footer in mind, and it possessed an unusual name...  CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "Disco Funk" by Jam Morgan "Horizons" by Roa   SPORTS HISTORY NETWORK sportshistory...

 Larry Fleisher was never a player or coach, but is still a member of the Hall of Fame. He served as the legal counsel to the NBA Players Association and helped with the legal structure in forming the union in the first place. He also represented the players when they sued the NBA for free agency and in the merger between the NBA and the ABA. He negotiated the creation of the team salary cap, and...

 The ABCD Camp was the brainchild of Sonny Vaccaro, the same guy who helped create the Air Jordan basketball shoe. This camp brought together the 100 top high school basketball players in the country to play against each other every year to see who really were the greatest. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "Rock You...

Only 3% of NBA players end up in the Naismith Hall of Fame even once, and Lenny Wilkens made it in three separate categories. That is incredibly rare. Today we cover his story and go through his various contributions to the NBA that garnered Hall of Fame accolades.  CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "Take Care" by Ju...

 The 1980s Boston Celtics we’re close-knit group. They loved to play jokes on each other. Cedric Maxwell would often refer to Danny Ainge as Dolph Schayes whenever Ainge had a bad game. But one day, that joke came back to bite them... CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "80's Synthwave" by MokkaMusic "Horizons" by Roa...

  In our conclusion to our profile on Oscar Robertson we cover his NBA career, the creation of the Players’s Union, and his first championship. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "This or That" by Reks "Running" by Jens East "Horizons" by Roa   SPORTS HISTORY NETWORK sportshistorynetwork.com sportshistorynet...

 In Part 2 of the story of Oscar Robertson we cover Oscar’s college career at the University of Cincinnati. He took the team to the NCAA twice. He was also asked to participate with the national team in 1959 and again in 1960. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "This or That" by Reks "Horizons" by Roa   SPORTS HI...

Many consider Oscar Robertson to be the best all-around player in history. He would score, rebound, dish out assists, play defense, and was the floor general for his teams. The man had no weakness in his game. On Part 1 of his story, we cover his earliest days through the end of high school.  CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher &nb...

 A landmark research study in the 1980s revealed that there is no such thing as a hot hand in basketball. They demonstrated several different way that a player shoots at virtually his same shooting percentage whether he made his previous shot or missed his previous shot. We couldn’t believe it either, until we read the paper and followed the math... Link to research paper CREDITS Rick Loayza: Hea...

 The NBA started out by a different name: the Basketball Association of America, or BAA. The very first game was between the Toronto Huskies and the New York Knicks. Ossie Schectman scored the very first basket of the game for the Knicks. This is his story. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "Swing Has Swung" by Shane...

 The Dapper Dan Roundball Classic was the first national level high school basketball All-Star game. It was started in 1965 by Sonny Vaccaro, the same guy that invented the idea for the Air Jordan in 1984. The Dapper Dan game was a huge success by bringing together some of the best high school basketball players together into one single matchup. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and v...

 Today, everyone knows Dirk Nowitzki as one of the greatest players in NBA history. He scored more points than Wilt Chamberlain and will soon be inducted into the Hall of Fame. But back in the spring of 1998, Dirk’s talent was not so obvious. He was a 19-year-old wunderkind who was dominating the 2nd division of Germany’s pro league. Was he really ready for the NBA? The Mavericks and the Celtics...

 Today, we conclude our 3-part story on Coach Bob Knight. We review several of his most controversial incidents, including the one that eventually got him fired from Indiana University. He was a man who could not get out of his own way. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "60s & 70s Rock" by Hyde "Horizons" by Roa...

 In part 2 of this profile on Coach Bob Knight, Rick covers his first two National Championships and a few of his controversial incidents. The man had no problem berating people, and he often got himself in trouble. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publisher   MUSIC "60s & 70s Rock" by Hyde "Horizons" by Roa   SPORTS HISTORY...

 In this first part of the Bob Knight story, we cover his early days from childhood through his time coaching at West Point Military Academy. He is an absolute conundrum who said detestable things. He is also a man who tirelessly raised money for a former player who was paralyzed in a car accident. So who was he, really? That's what Rick hopes to unpack in these Bob Knight episodes. CREDITS Rick...

 In the early 1950s, there was a player named George Marcus who was averaging 50 points per game in a lower-level professional basketball league. He even won the league's MVP trophy. There were just three problems: He was only 16 years old, he was still in high school, and his name was not actually George Marcus. His real name was Wilt Chamberlain. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, an...

 Al Spalding was a professional baseball player, but his impact on basketball was tremendous. He was the founder of the Spalding Sporting Goods Company, and he invented the ball used for the game of basketball. His invention in 1894 gave this new game legitimacy and helped spread it across the world. CREDITS Rick Loayza: Head researcher, writer, and voice Jacob Loayza: Editor, producer, and publi...