June 21

From Hoopedia

• 1982 - Hall of Famer Fred Zollner, founder and longtime owner of the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons (which later became the Detroit Pistons), passes away at age 81.

• 1995 - The NBA fines the Chicago Bulls $100,000 for allowing Michael Jordan to change his jersey number from No. 45 to No. 23 during the playoffs. The Bulls were fined an initial $25,000 when Jordan wore No. 23 in Game 2 of the Orlando-Chicago series and warned the additional punishment would be assessed after the playoffs ended if he continued to wear No. 23. The fine amounts to $25,000 per game for Games 3-6 of the series.

• 1997 - The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) opens to a worldwide audience. Fifteen of the top international women's pro basketball players are on team rosters, including all of the top international stars from the 1996 Olympic Games, including Michele Timms of Australia, Janeth Arcain of Brazil, Haixia Zheng of China and Elena Baranova of Russia. The inaugural WNBA season tips off with the New York Liberty taking on the Los Angeles Sparks (right) at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, Calif. A crowd of 14,284 watched as Sparks guard Penny Toler scores the first basket in WNBA history.