May 1

From Hoopedia

• 1898 - Hall of Fame referee Dave Tobey is born in New York City.

• 1901 - Hall of Fame coach Slats Gill, who led his Oregon State Beavers to two NCAA Final Four appearances, is born in Salem, Oregon.

• 1959 - Eddie Johnson, who scored 19,202 points with six NBA teams, is born in Chicago, Illinois.

• 1963 - Walter Kennedy is named the NBA’s second President, succeeding Maurice Podoloff. The job title was later changed to Commissioner.

• 1980 - Dallas is granted an expansion franchise, bringing the total of NBA teams to 23.

• 1988 - Michael Jordan becomes the first player to score 50 or more points in consecutive playoff games when he drills Cleveland for 55 in Chicago's 106-101 victory in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference first round series. In Game 1 on April 28, Jordan scored 50 points in Chicago's 104-93 victory.

• 1998 - He Got Game, Spike Lee's film about college basketball recruitment set in Coney Island, starring Ray Allen and Denzel Washington, opens in the United States.