2011 NBA Finals Countdown

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All eyes will be on AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami tonight for Game 1 of the 2011 NBA Finals, as the Dallas Mavericks look to avenge their loss to the Miami Heat in the 2006 NBA Finals.

The players that will be under the microscope the most of course are Miami's Big Three—LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh—along with Dallas's über forward from Wurzburg, Germany, Dirk Nowitzki. All of the above have been dominant in the postseason and it will be interesting to see how this duel plays out over a best-of-seven series.

With that said, let's examine the trivial-yet-oh-so-important things you need to know going in to this championship bout.

1. The Miami Heat, which began play in the 1988-89 season, selected a Dallas Maverick (Arvid Kramer) as their first choice in the 1988 NBA Expansion Draft. Oh, you knew that already?
2. Miami has a four-game winning streak over Dallas in NBA Finals play. In the 2006 NBA Finals, Dallas carried a 2-0 lead into Game 3 but lost four in a row to a white-hot Heat squad led by Wade and Shaquille O'Neal.
3. A third trip to the NBA Finals might be the charm for Mavs guard Jason Kidd, who played for two championship runners-up (New Jersey Nets in 2002 and 2003).
4. After playing for seven NBA clubs over 16 seasons, Juwan Howard took his talents to South Beach for Year 17 and has finally made it to the NBA Finals. Give it up for the last standing Fab Fiver in the league!
5. The Miami Heat's tradition of giving fans white t-shirts to wear for a mass show of support at games goes all the way back to the first-ever home game in 1988-89. On Nov. 5, 1988, fans were actually given white tuxedo t-shirts. Check it out in the early part of this video clip. For the record, the Heat lost to the Los Angeles Clippers, 111-91.

Opening Day Quick Quiz

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With Opening Day of the 2011 baseball season upon us, it's time for a pair of Opening Day Trivia questions to get things warmed up.

- . . . For the Yankees, No. 2, Derek Jeter, Jeter, Jeter . . . will be making his 15th Opening Day start at shortstop on Thursday, further distancing himself from the franchise's previous record for the position (11, by Phil Rizzuto). Who was the last shortstop to play as many or more games at SS for his team?

Answer: Barry Larkin, 17 seasons with Cincinnati.

- The San Francisco Giants-Los Angeles Dodgers rivalry gets an early start as the defending World Series champion Giants visit Dodger Stadium on Thursday night. Interestingly, this is how the teams kicked things off 53 years ago after each franchise moved from New York. At what stadium was that first L.A.-S.F. regular-season game played (April 15, 1958)?

Answer: Seals Stadium in San Francisco

Lakers Über All NBA Teams? Not So Fast

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There are currently only two NBA teams that have an all-time winning series record against the mighty Los Angeles Lakers. One of those teams is their longtime nemesis, the Boston Celtics. Can you name the other club? Hint: The Lakers lost to this team again on Monday night.

Answer: The Charlotte Bobcats, who ran their all-time record against the Lakers to 8-5 following a 109-89 pasting in Charlotte on Monday night. It should be noted that the San Antonio Spurs can claim the lead in their series with L.A. if they win their final two 2010-11 regular-season meetings (Los Angeles currently has a 71-70 edge).

Jerry Sloan Trivia Tribute

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Here's to Jerry Sloan, longtime head coach of the Utah Jazz, who today announced his resignation from the team. Sloan made his decision in the midst of his 26th season (23rd coaching the Jazz). The Basketball Hall of Famer's list of accomplishments is extraordinary, led by his 1,221 career wins. Karl Malone and John Stockton are often mentioned when Sloan's coaching career is discussed, but it's important to keep in mind that he led the Jazz to four NBA playoff berths after the two players' departures after the 2002-03 season. Only two other coaches have won more games in NBA history. Can you name them?


Highlight the area below to reveal the answer
Answer: Don Nelson (1,335 wins) and Lenny Wilkens (1,332).

Related articles

• Jerry Sloan resigns from Utah Jazz (sportingnews.com)

Oct. 15, 1989: Gretzky Scores, And Howe!

On this date back in 1989, Wayne Gretzky became the NHL's all-time leading scorer, surpassing Mr. Hockey himself, Gordie Howe (1,850). Apologies for the punny headline. Anyways, let's see if you're as slick as Gretz by answering these two trivia questions. (Highlight the areas underneath the questions to reveal the answers.)

1.) Against which team did "The Great One" achieve the milestone?

A: Edmonton. Yeah, I know. Who wrote this script, right?

2.) Who held the league's career points record before Howe?

A: Maurice Richard. That's "Rocket" to you, pally.

Amazing Facts About the 2010 Pro Football Hall of Fame Class

(2010 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees Floyd Little, Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith.)

Special congratulations go out to each of today's Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees - Dick LeBeau, John Randle, Russ Grimm, Rickey Jackson, Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith and Floyd Little. Here are some facts you may or may not have known about each member of the class of 2010:

Dick LeBeau - Started 171 consecutive games at cornerback for the Detroit Lions, a record for his position.

John Randle - In each season from 1992-99, Randle totaled 10 or more sacks for the Minnesota Vikings.

Russ Grimm - Key member of "The Hogs," the vaunted group of offensive linemen for the Washington Redskins in the 1980s. Helped pave the way for John Riggins' then-Super Bowl-record rushing record of 166 yards in Super Bowl XVII.

Rickey Jackson - At the time of his retirement in 1995, Jackson ranked third in the NFL record books in all-time sacks (128).

Jerry Rice - The holder of many all-time NFL receiving records, Rice played in eight conference title games and four Super Bowls (winning MVP honors in Super Bowl XXIII). Additionally, no one scored more touchdowns than Rice (208).

Emmitt Smith - The NFL's all-time leading rusher with 18,355 career yards, Smith also scored the most rushing TDs (164) and helped the Dallas Cowboys win three Super Bowls.

Floyd Little - Little totaled more than 12,000 all-purpose yards and 54 touchdowns during his career with the Denver Broncos (1967-75). He retired in 1975 as Denver's all-time leading rusher (6,323 yards) and kickoff return man (2,523 yards).

2K Trivia: The Quest For 2,000 Yards

Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson, fresh off a 2,006-yard season in 2009, has his eye on becoming the first player to turn the 2,000-yard season trick twice. Do you think he will do it? Last year, he was the sixth player to surpass the 2K milestone. O.J. Simpson was the first to do it (2,003 yds. in 1973), and Eric Dickerson set the NFL single-season mark with 2,105 yards in 1984. Can you name the other three players to gain 2,000-plus yards in a season? (Highlight the area following this post to reveal the answers.) Answers-->Barry Sanders (2,053 yds. in 1997), Terrell Davis (2,008 yds. in 1998) and Jamal Lewis (2,066 yds. in 2003).