Key dates in NBA history:
Jan | Feb | Mar | April | May | June | July | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec
Sept. 1, 1963
Walter Kennedy began his tenure as the commissioner of the NBA, succeeding Maurice Podoloff.
Sept. 1, 2020
The Denver Nuggets defeat the Utah Jazz, 80-78, in Game 7 of a thrilling first-round series. The series was marked by a scoring showdown between Utah’s Donovan Mitchell and Denver’s Jamal Murray, but Game 7 was decided by defense as neither team shot better than 38% in the contest.
Sept. 2, 1948
Nate “Tiny” Archibald was born in New York City.
Sept. 3, 2008
Oklahoma City team officials unveil the team’s new name and logo. The former Seattle SuperSonics franchise is now known as the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Sept. 5, 1979
Ann Meyers of UCLA signed a contract with the Indiana Pacers. Although Meyers did not make the team, she became the first woman given a tryout by an NBA team, and she worked with the team through training camp.
Sept. 5 , 2003
Charlotte Bobcats owner Robert L. Johnson announces that Michael Jordan will not become an investor nor front office employee of the Charlotte Bobcats.
Sept. 8, 2020
The Los Angeles Lakers’ 112-102 victory against the Houston Rockets in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinals series gives LeBron James 162 individual playoffs wins in his career, surpassing Derek Fisher for the most in NBA history.
Sept. 10, 1948
Bob Lanier was born in Buffalo, New York.
Sept. 12, 1984
The Chicago Bulls signed their No. 1 draft pick, Michael Jordan.
Sept. 12, 2010
Kevin Durant‘s 28 points led Team USA basketball to a gold medal-clinching 81-64 victory over Turkey in the FIBA World Championships. Lamar Odom became first player to win the NBA championship and the FIBA World championship in same year.
Sept. 13, 2015
Hall of Famer Moses Malone, a 12-time All-Star and three-time MVP, dies at the age of 60.
Sept. 15, 1982
The Houston Rockets trade star center Moses Malone to the Philadelphia 76ers for Caldwell Jones and a future first-round pick. Malone, then the reigning MVP, would help the 76ers to a long-sought title in the 1982-83 season and was named MVP once again.
Sept. 15, 2020
The Denver Nuggets defeat the LA Clippers 104-89 in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals. In doing so, Denver became the first team in NBA history to rally from a 3-1 series deficit twice in the same postseason. The team beat Utah in Game 7 in the first round.
Sept. 16, 1934
Elgin Baylor was born in Washington, D.C.
Sept. 16, 2020
LeBron James is named to the All-NBA first team, the 16th time he was named to an All-NBA team in his career. In doing so, James moved past NBA legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tim Duncan and Kobe Bryant for the most All-NBA selections in a career.
Sept. 17, 1999
The NBA Board of Governors approved several playing rules modifications for the 1999-2000 season. The modifications had been recommended by a special committee of current and former players, general managers, coaches and other basketball experts last June and were tested in several NBA summer leagues.
They are: A defender may not make contact with his hands and/or forearms on an offensive player except below the free throw line extended; A five-second rule that mandates that a player must either shoot, pass or pick up his dribble within five seconds if he begins dribbling the ball with his back toward the basket below the free throw line extended; The 24-second shot clock will be re-set to 14 seconds if the violations listed below occur with less than 14 seconds remaining on the 24-second clock, and will remain unchanged if the violation occurs with 14 or more seconds remaining on the 24-second clock: 1. A personal foul that does not result in free throw attempts. 2. Kicking the ball or blocking the ball with any part of the leg. 3. Punching the ball with a fist. 4. An illegal defense violation that does not result in free throw attempts; No illegal defense guidelines will apply to a player who is defending an offensive player who is positioned on the strong side of the court.
Sept. 17, 2011
Ron Artest, the player at the center of the infamous “Malice at the Palace”, legally changes his name to Metta World Peace.
Sept. 20, 1917
Arnold “Red” Auerbach was born in Brooklyn, New York.
Sept. 21, 1991
USA Basketball announced the “Dream Team” for the 1992 Olympics. Charles Barkley, Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Karl Malone, Chris Mullin, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, and John Stockton were named. Christian Laettner and Clyde Drexler were named to the team on May 12, 1992.
Sept. 24, 1985
The Chinese national basketball team arrived in New York to begin a month of training and practice with NBA personnel, as part of the cultural and educational agreements between China and the United States.
Sept. 24, 1998
The NBA announced that the opening of training camps for the 1998-99 season have been postponed indefinitely because of the stalled collective bargaining negotiations with the National Basketball Players Association. Training camps were scheduled to open on October 5.
Sept. 25, 2001
Michael Jordan announces that he is coming out of retirement for the second time and returning to play in the NBA with the Washington Wizards.
Sept. 25, 2015
Three-time All-Star Bill Bridges dies at the age of 76.
Sept. 26, 2020
The Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals to clinch their first Finals berth in 10 years. It was also the Lakers’ 32nd Finals appearance — the most in NBA history — and the 10-year gap between Finals appearances was the longest drought in team history.
Sept. 27, 2020
The Miami Heat defeat the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals to clinch a spot in The Finals. One day earlier, the Los Angeles Lakers clinched their Finals berth, making the 2020 Finals the first NBA championship series featuring two teams that missed the playoffs the previous season (2018-19).
Sept. 27, 2023
In a blockbuster move, the Portland Trail Blazers trade franchise icon Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks in a three-team deal also involving the Phoenix Suns. Lillard, the Blazers’ all-time leading scorer, heads East while the Bucks send Jrue Holiday and three future Draft picks to Portland. The Blazers also get Deandre Ayton from the Suns, while Phoenix get Grayson Allen from Milwaukee and Keon Johnson, Nassir Little and Jusuf Nurkic from Portland.
Sept. 28, 1983
The NBA and the Players’ Association established a landmark program in sports to battle drug abuse, providing treatment and rehabilitation that also mandated expulsion of repeat offenders and players convicted of using or selling drugs.
Sept. 28, 2002
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame formally opens its new 80,000 square-foot, $103 million building.
Sept. 30, 2000
The USA Olympic Men’s Basketball Team captured its 12th gold medal in 14 Olympic basketball competitions with an 85-75 victory over France in the gold medal game in Sydney, Australia. The U.S. team, comprised of NBA players, had a close call in the semifinals, defeating Lithuania 85-83 in the semifinals when a three-point attempt by Sarunas Jasikevicius of Lithuania missed at the buzzer.
