MLK Assassination: To Play or Not to Play? 1968

Shortly after 7 p.m., Philadelphia general manager Jack Ramsay met in his office with Celtics president Marvin Kratter and general manager Red Auerbach to discuss the possibility of postponement. Both Ramsay and Auerbach left the office, and Kratter talked to league commissioner Walter Kennedy on the phone. 

The Master Plan to Change Wilt Chamberlain, 1962

The Warriors were sputtering in their early games, but Chamberlain was ripping up the record book like a barracuda with a can of tuna.

Wes Unseld: Most Valuable Player, 1970

In one season, this miniature oak tree, who stands 6-foot-7 ½, transformed Baltimore from Humpty Dumpties to the Cinderella team of the National Basketball Association.

Johnny Green: Basketball’s Talented Antique, 1972

When Johnny Green was a first-round draft choice, he received $2,000 as a bonus. Rookies now are getting more than an entire team’s payroll used to be.

Earl Strom: NBA’s Oldest Referee Does It His Way, 1982

Earl Strom officiates with his whistle in his hand. His partner, Joe Gushue, wore his on a lanyard. Strom suggested that Gushue remove the lanyard before they reach the exit, so that fans couldn’t get such an easy hold of him.  

Red Holzman: A Humpty-Dumpty Situation, 1968

Holzman knows the game of basketball. And he probably knows it better now than back in 1957, when St. Louis fired him after a losing record.