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Curated playlist

21st-century American sportsmen

  • Kevin DurantKevin Durant wore number 35 to honor his murdered youth coach. Charles Craig was 35 when he died.
  • Dwyane WadeDwyane Wade's sister tricked him into a car ride at age eight. She said movies but took him to live with their father.
  • LeBron JamesLeBron James led Cleveland back from a 3-1 Finals deficit, a first in NBA history. It ended a 52-year title wait.
  • Clyde DrexlerClyde Drexler couldn't make his high school basketball team as a sophomore. He later reached the Hall of Fame twice.
  • Kobe BryantKobe Bryant scored 81 points against Toronto in 2006, the second-highest NBA game total ever.
  • Elvin HayesElvin Hayes scored 39 points and ended UCLA's 47-game winning streak in 1968. He held Lew Alcindor to 15 points.
  • Karl MaloneKarl Malone played 193 playoff games without winning a championship. That is more than any player without a ring.
  • Tim DuncanTim Duncan was a swimmer until a hurricane destroyed his island's only Olympic-sized pool.
  • Stephen CurryVirginia Tech offered Stephen Curry only a walk-on spot. He later became the NBA's all-time three-point leader.
  • Joel EmbiidJoel Embiid scored 70 points against the Spurs on January 22, 2024, breaking a 76ers record from 1967.
  • Kawhi LeonardKawhi Leonard's Game 7 shot bounced off the rim four times before it fell.
  • Tom BradyTom Brady was once drafted by the Montreal Expos as a catcher. He chose football at Michigan instead.
  • Isiah ThomasIsiah Thomas scored 25 points in one Finals quarter on a badly sprained ankle. It was a 1988 NBA Finals record.
  • Kevin LoveKevin Love grabbed 31 rebounds in one game in November 2010. It set a Timberwolves record.
  • Scottie PippenScottie Pippen got no college scholarship offers, yet he ended up with six championship rings.
  • Tony ParkerTony Parker was nearly sent home from a Spurs camp after 10 minutes. A highlight tape won him a second chance.
  • Magic JohnsonMagic Johnson told the world he had HIV from the free throw line in 1991. He was 32 and a five-time NBA champion.
  • Chris BoshBlood clots ended Chris Bosh's NBA career after two straight championships with Miami.
  • Klay ThompsonKlay Thompson scored 37 points in one quarter against the Kings in 2015, an NBA record.
  • Kyrie IrvingKyrie Irving was born in Australia to two American parents. His father had followed basketball there.
  • George GervinGeorge Gervin won a 1978 NBA scoring title by seven-hundredths of a point. He scored 63 to edge David Thompson.
  • Big Three (Miami Heat)LeBron James nicknamed the Miami Heat's new trio the Heatles before they had played a playoff game.
  • Chauncey BillupsChauncey Billups went from a draft bust to NBA Finals MVP. The Pistons guard led a 2004 upset of the Lakers.
  • Dikembe MutomboDikembe Mutombo came to Georgetown to become a doctor, not a basketball star. A coach changed those plans entirely.
  • Terry RozierTerry Rozier's first NBA start was a triple-double. He had 17 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
  • Walt FrazierWalt Frazier had 36 points and 19 assists in Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals. Willis Reed played two minutes.
  • Jake PaulOn the 15th of November 2024, Jake Paul climbed into a boxing ring in Texas and beat Mike Tyson by unanimous decision. Tyson had once been the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. The judges scored the fight 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73…
  • Kareem Abdul-JabbarKareem Abdul-Jabbar broke Wilt Chamberlain's career scoring record with a skyhook over a 7-foot-4 defender.
  • Ben SimmonsBen Simmons went first overall in the 2016 NBA draft without ever playing in the NCAA tournament.
  • Andrei KirilenkoAndrei Kirilenko's nickname, AK-47, came from the city where the rifle was first made. He was born there in 1981.
  • Damon JonesDamon Jones hit an overtime shot in 2006 that won Cleveland a playoff series.
  • Earl LloydEarl Lloyd became the first Black player in an NBA game on Halloween night, 1950. He scored six points.
  • Joakim NoahPresident Obama called Joakim Noah's shot the ugliest he had ever seen.
  • Jesús FerreiraJesús Ferreira scored four goals in one game against Grenada. The US forward earned a Caribbean pirate nickname.
  • Cam Ward (American football)Quarterback Cam Ward had just two scholarship offers, yet the Titans picked him first overall in 2025.

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