document_title: Tomahawk chop

question_text: who started the tomahawk chop braves or fsu

text: Tomahawk chop

text: Florida State University[edit]

text: It is not known when the tomahawk chop was invented. However, it is claimed by a former Florida State University president that it was invented by the Florida State University Marching Chiefs in the 1980s to complement their war chants.[1] Another report claims it was first performed in 1984 by students from the university's fraternities behind the band. The action was adopted by fans of the FSU Seminoles over the following years.[2] Despite this, the university's board does not endorse the action stating "Some traditions we cannot control.....It's a term we did not choose and officially do not use".[2]

text: Atlanta Braves[edit]

text: The tomahawk chop was adopted by fans of the Atlanta Braves in 1991 following the signing of former FSU cornerback Deion Sanders, who was also playing for the National Football League's Atlanta Falcons at the time.[3] It was initially started by a few FSU fans in Atlanta who followed Sanders but this later grew to the whole of the Atlanta Braves' fanbase.[3] Initially fans would hold toy tomahawks when they did the action and the Atlanta Braves started to issue foam tomahawks which became popular at the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium,[4] which later earned the nicknamed of "the Chop Shop".[3] The action continued to remain popular after Sanders had left the Atlanta Braves. From 2008 until 2016 as part of a sponsorship deal Chick-fil-A installed a 40-foot cow at Atlanta Braves' Turner Field, which would do a slow version of the tomahawk chop.[5]

text: In 2016, when the Atlanta Braves played their last game at Turner Field before leaving for SunTrust Park, the last official act done at Turner Field was known as "The Final Chop", where the Atlanta Braves warchant was played one last time with fans doing the tomahawk chop.[6]

text: Initially, the chant was accompanied on the organ at both Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium and Turner Field, but by 2008, the team had switched to a recording of the FSU Marching Chiefs, as an homage to Sanders.

text: Foam tomahawk[edit]

text: A foam tomahawk is a foam rubber sports paraphernalia item in the shape of a tomahawk, often used to accompany the tomahawk chop. They were first created in 1991 for the Atlanta Braves baseball team following their adoption of the tomahawk chop.[7]

text: Creation[edit]

text: Foam tomahawks were invented by foam salesman Tom Braddy. Upon hearing Skip Carey saying during a radio broadcast of an Atlanta Braves game that they needed tomahawks to accompany their newly acquired tomahawk chop celebration,[8] he approached the Braves' concessions manager John Eifert with a suggestion of a foam rubber tomahawk. Eifert agreed providing they cost around $5, to which Braddy carved a tomahawk out of foam with an electric knife.[9][7] Eifert bought 5,000 for sale for the Atlanta Braves.[10] The foam tomahawks became very popular with Braves fans at the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium - [11] so much so, that Braddy was able to quit his $60,000 a year salesman's job in order to manufacture foam tomahawks full-time, and was able to create 8,000 a day.[12]

text: Braddy started selling them himself. However, he was approached by Major League Baseball a month into the venture, who claimed that the foam tomahawk infringed upon the Atlanta Braves' copyrighted tomahawk logo. In response, Braddy made a deal with Major League Baseball Properties to license the MLB symbol and receive logistical support in exchange for 10% of the profits.[8]

text: Controversy[edit]

text: The usage of foam tomahawks led to criticism from Native American groups that it was "demeaning" to them and called for them to be banned.[7] In response, the Braves' public relations director said that it was a "a proud expression of unification and family".[7] In preparation as a response to any potential ban, Braddy prepared to discuss deals with the Florida State University Seminoles, Kansas City Chiefs and Washington Redskins American football teams, as well as other universities with Native American mascots.[8]

text: Kansas City Chiefs[edit]

text: The Kansas City Chiefs started using the tomahawk chop when the FSU graduate conductor of the Northwest Missouri State University band played the FSU war chant during a match against the Buffalo Bills.[13]

text: Exeter Chiefs[edit]

text: The English rugby team Exeter Chiefs adopted the name of "Chiefs" in 1999.[14] They started using it along with the war chant in 2010, following their promotion to the English Premiership.[15] They use it as their walk out music at Sandy Park[16] as well as a chant by their fans during rugby matches.[17]

text: Controversy[edit]

text: Usage of the tomahawk chop has led to complaints that it made fun of Native American culture.[18] It also was criticized for being a reference to the former practice of scalping.[14] Shortly after the Atlanta Braves adopted it, there were a number of calls from Native Americans for Braves fans to stop doing the tomahawk chop.[10] Prior to the 1991 World Series a number of Native Americans protested against the Braves using the tomahawk chop outside the Metrodome. During the protests Clyde Bellecourt, national director of the American Indian Movement, suggested that the team could be called "the Atlanta Negroes, Atlanta Klansmen or Atlanta Nazis".[19] In 2009, the Gill-Montague Regional School Committee, a local school board in Massachusetts, banned the use of the gesture at school sporting events, calling it offensive and discriminatory.[20] In 2016, Native American groups asked the Kansas City Chiefs to stop doing the tomahawk chop.[21] In the same year a similar request was made of Exeter Chiefs.[22]

text: In politics, during the 2012 Senate election in Massachusetts, staffers of candidate Scott Brown were filmed doing the tomahawk chop at a campaign rally towards supporters of Elizabeth Warren, to mock Warren's claim of Native American ancestry.[23]


document_title: Super Bowl ring

question_text: who has the record for most superbowl rings

root

text: Super Bowl ring

text: Details[edit]

text: These rings are typically made of yellow or white gold with diamonds. They usually include the team name, team logo, and Super Bowl number (usually indicated in Roman numerals). The NFL contributes up to $5,000 per ring for up to 150 rings for the winning team; any additional costs are borne by the team.[1] Most rings are manufactured by memorabilia company Jostens. In 2015, the rings for the New England Patriots reportedly cost $36,500 each, making them the most expensive rings Jostens has ever produced.[2]

tag: p

text: The winning team can typically present rings to whomever they choose, including usually, but not limited to: players (active roster or injured), coaches, trainers, executives, personnel, and general staff. Some teams have given rings to former players and coaches that were on the team at some point during the season, despite not having been on the winning roster for the Super Bowl itself.[3][4] Sometimes a team will give rings to fans as part of a charity raffle.[5] Teams can distribute any number of rings. A recent trend over the last 15–20 years has been lesser rings awarded to front office staff. These are commonly called "B" and "C" level rings and are smaller and contain fewer diamonds or contain faux diamonds. The first instance of this was the Redskins Super Bowl XVII ring when many in the front office received rings that were not solid gold and contained cubic zirconia stones (which resemble diamonds). When Tampa Bay won Super Bowl XXXVII, the players and coaches received rings with a diamond-centered Lombardi trophy. Some staff received rings with a metal Lombardi trophy and real diamonds surrounding the trophy and the "C" level ring did not contain any diamonds.

text: Many rings feature diamonds in the shape of the Vince Lombardi Trophy or a football. Some feature diamonds or gold in the shape of a team logo. Others illustrate the number of Super Bowls that franchise has won. Also, the rings are customized with the player's name and uniform number.

text: The Green Bay Packers Super Bowl XLV ring[6] contained more than 100 diamonds. The Packer logo, in the center of the ring, made up 13 diamonds, one for each title the team has won, dating back to 1929. In a break from tradition, this is the first Super Bowl ring to be made of platinum, not gold.[citation needed]

text: The New England Patriots Super Bowl LI ring has 283 diamonds, to commemorate their comeback from being down 28-3 versus the Atlanta Falcons late in the 3rd quarter.[7]

text: Value and resale[edit]

text: Replicas of the rings for various years are popular collectibles, along with genuine rings. Dave Meggett is known to have placed his ring for sale on eBay. Two Super Bowl rings from the 1970 Steelers sold on eBay for over $69,000 apiece in mid-2008.[8] Patriots safety Je'Rod Cherry raffled his ring from Super Bowl XXXVI in November 2008 to benefit several charities working to help children in Africa and Asia.[9] Tight end Shannon Sharpe, meanwhile, gave his first Super Bowl ring to his brother Sterling, who had his career cut short by injury.[10]

text: In 2011, a Super Bowl ring belonging to Steve Wright, a lineman for the Green Bay Packers in the 1960s, sold for over $73,000 at auction. Three Super Bowl rings belonging to former Raiders' punter Ray Guy brought over $96,000 at auction. In 2012, Lawrence Taylor's son sold his father's Super Bowl ring from 1990 for more than $250,000.

text: Most Super Bowl rings[edit]

text:
Seven: two people.

Bill Belichick: two as defensive coordinator of the New York Giants and five as head coach of New England Patriots
Neal Dahlen:[11][12] five with San Francisco 49ers (staff and player personnel) and two with Denver Broncos (general manager)

Six: six people.

Dan Rooney and Art Rooney II: each as an executive with Pittsburgh Steelers
Chuck Noll: four as head coach and two as a team consultant with Pittsburgh Steelers
Bill Nunn: each as a scout with Pittsburgh Steelers[13][14]
"Mean Joe" Greene: four as a defensive tackle, two as a special assistant for player personnel, all with the Pittsburgh Steelers[15]
Conditioning coach Mike Woicik: three with Dallas Cowboys and three with New England Patriots

Five: twenty people.

Charles Haley, five (two as a linebacker with the San Francisco 49ers and three as a defensive end with the Dallas Cowboys)
Tom Brady, five as starting quarterback with New England Patriots; he has the most rings of any active player (as of the end of the 2017–18 season), he is the only player to win five playing for one team, and he has more than any other quarterback in Super Bowl history.
Robert Kraft, five as owner of New England Patriots
Edward J. DeBartolo, Jr., five as owner of San Francisco 49ers
Keith Simon: five as CFO and Executive VP with San Francisco 49ers
Bobb McKittrick: five as offensive line coach with San Francisco 49ers
Ray Rhodes: five as an assistant coach with San Francisco 49ers
Bill McPherson: five as defensive line coach with San Francisco 49ers
Dick Hoak: each as a running backs coach with Pittsburgh Steelers
Romeo Crennel: two as a defensive coach with New York Giants and three as a defensive coordinator with New England Patriots
George Seifert: three as an assistant coach and two as a head coach all with San Francisco 49ers
Dwight Clark: two as a player and three as a member of the front office, all with San Francisco 49ers
Pepper Johnson: two as a linebacker for New York Giants and three as an assistant coach with New England Patriots
Monsignor Peter Armstrong: five as chaplain for San Francisco 49ers
Markus Paul: three as an assistant strength and conditioning coach with the New England Patriots, and two as an assistant strength and conditioning coach with the New York Giants[16]
Tim Rooney: Three with Pittsburgh Steelers and two with New York Giants (as Pro Personnel Director/Scout)
Josh McDaniels has won five with the New England Patriots his first as personnel assistant, second as defensive coaching assistant, third as quarterbacks coach and his fourth and fifth as offensive coordinator.
Ivan Fears has won five with New England Patriots his first as wide receivers coach and the remaining as running backs coach.
Ernie Adams has won five with New England Patriots as a football research director
Brian Daboll has won five with New England Patriots, one as a defensive coaching assistant, two as wide receivers coach, and two as tight ends coach

Four: at least 39 players, many coaches and staff.

The first player to win four Super Bowl rings was tight-end Marv Fleming, who got a pair with Green Bay Packers in 1966 and 1967, and another pair with Miami Dolphins in 1972 and 1973.
Twenty-two players earned four rings with Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1970s: Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Lynn Swann, John Stallworth, Mel Blount, Jack Lambert, Jack Ham, Mike Webster, Donnie Shell, L. C. Greenwood, Rocky Bleier, Gerry Mullins, Larry Brown, Mike Wagner, J.T. Thomas, Loren Toews, Jon Kolb, Sam Davis, Steve Furness, Dwight White, Randy Grossman and the previously mentioned Joe Greene (who later added two more rings). At least five coaches were with the team all four years: George Perles, Louis Riecke, Woody Widenhofer and (as noted above) Chuck Noll and Dick Hoak. The list of Steelers front office staff receiving four rings during that era includes Director of Player Personnel Dick Haley.
Tom Flores: First person to have rings as a player (Kansas City Chiefs), assistant coach and head coach (Oakland Raiders)
Joe Montana, Keena Turner, Jesse Sapolu, Eric Wright, Mike Wilson and Ronnie Lott each won four Super Bowl rings with the 49ers.
Kicker Adam Vinatieri won three with the New England Patriots and one with the Indianapolis Colts
Russ Grimm won three with Washington Redskins and one with Pittsburgh Steelers
Ted Hendricks won one with Baltimore Colts and three with Oakland Raiders
Bill Romanowski won two with San Francisco and two with Denver Broncos
Coach Charlie Weis won one with New York Giants and three with New England Patriots
Matt Millen has four rings while playing for four different cities and three different teams, one with Oakland Raiders, one with Los Angeles Raiders, one with San Francisco 49ers, and one with Washington Redskins (only player to earn a ring with four different cities)
Sherman Lewis won three as running backs coach with San Francisco 49ers and one as offensive coordinator with Green Bay Packers
Willie Davis[17] Won all four rings with Green Bay Packers: two as a player, one as a member of the team's board of directors, and one as an emeritus director. He is the only person to possess all four of Green Bay's Super Bowl rings. Davis also won rings as a member of the 1961, 1962 and 1965 NFL Championship Green Bay Packer teams, bringing his unofficial championship ring count to seven, as the first three were awarded prior to the creation of the Super Bowl.
Mike Pope won all four of his Super Bowl rings as the long time Tight End coach for New York Giants
Ken Norton, Jr. was the first member of 3 Super Bowl-winning teams in a row as a player, and gained a 4th ring as the Linebacker coach for the 2013 Seattle Seahawks
Larry Izzo won three Super Bowls with New England Patriots, and one as the special teams assistant coach with New York Giants
Coach Gary Kubiak won one with San Francisco 49ers as quarterbacks coach, two with Denver Broncos as offensive coordinator, and one as the head coach of the Broncos
Dante Scarnecchia has won four with New England Patriots as an offensive line coach, along with being assistant head coach for three of them
Brian Pariani has won four rings. One as an offensive assistant coach with San Francisco 49ers and three as the tight ends coach with the Denver Broncos

Three: many players, coaches and staff

Among the many figures with three are Bill Walsh, John Elway, Mike Ditka, Mike Shanahan, Art Shell, Jerry Rice, Steve Young, Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Jay Novacek, Michael Irvin, Larry Brown, Eric Mangini, Joe Gibbs, Dave Dalby, Cliff Branch, Roger Craig, Shannon Sharpe, Ed McCaffrey, Mark Schlereth, Forrest Gregg, Herb Adderley, Tom Coughlin, LeGarrette Blount, and Matt Cavanaugh.
Twenty-two players earned three rings with the New England Patriots during the early 2000s: Troy Brown, Willie McGinest, Richard Seymour, Ty Law, Mike Vrabel, Tedy Bruschi, Kevin Faulk, Matt Light, Patrick Pass, Ted Johnson, Lonie Paxton, Stephen Neal, Joe Andruzzi, David Patten, Roman Phifer, Tom Ashworth, Adrian Klemm, Je'Rod Cherry, Matt Chatham, the aforementioned Adam Vinatieri (who later added a fourth ring with the Colts), the aforementioned Tom Brady (who went on to win two additional Super Bowls with the Patriots), and the aforementioned Larry Izzo (who won a fourth with the Giants).

tag: ul

text: Players with Super Bowl and Grey Cup rings[edit]

text: As of 2017, ten players have won championships in both the NFL and Canada’s equivalent Canadian Football League (CFL).

text:
O. J. Brigance (linebacker) won a Grey Cup ring in 1995 with the CFL’s Baltimore Stallions and won a Super Bowl ring in 2001 with the Baltimore Ravens. He is the only player to win both a Grey Cup and a Super Bowl with teams from the same city.
Brandon Browner (cornerback) won a ring in 2008 with the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders and then won a Super Bowl ring in 2013 with the Seattle Seahawks, although he did not play in that game due to a suspension. He went on to play against the Seahawks in the following year's Super Bowl, when he won a second ring with the 2014 New England Patriots.
Terry Greer (wide receiver) was the first person to win both championships; he won the Grey Cup as a member of the Toronto Argonauts in 1983, and two Super Bowl rings as a member of the San Francisco 49ers in 1988 and 1989.
Harald Hasselbach (defensive end) won a ring in 1992 with the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders and won a Super Bowl ring in 1997 with the Denver Broncos.
Bobby Singh (guard) is the only player to win a Super Bowl (1999 with the St. Louis Rams), and a Grey Cup (2006 with the BC Lions), and the XFL Championship (2001 with the Los Angeles Xtreme).
Alvin Walton (safety) won two Super Bowl rings with the NFL's Washington Redskins (1987 and 1991 seasons, but he did not participate in the 1991 season Super Bowl victory) and won a Grey Cup ring with the Baltimore Stallions in 1995.
Barry Wilburn (cornerback) won a Super Bowl with the Washington Redskins in 1988 and the Grey Cup in 1994 with the BC Lions.
Tyrone Williams (wide receiver) won two Super Bowl rings with Dallas in 1992 and 1993, although he did not participate in either game. He then won a Grey Cup ring with the Toronto Argonauts in 1996.
Andre Rison (wide receiver) won a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers in 1996, and a Grey Cup with the Toronto Argonauts in 2004.
Josh Miller (punter) won a Grey Cup with the Baltimore Stallions in 1995, and a Super Bowl with the New England Patriots in 2004.


document_title: National Basketball Association

question_text: how many games in a regular nba season

question_tokens: how many games in a regular nba season

text: National Basketball Association

text: History

text: Creation and merger (1946–1956)

text: The Basketball Association of America was founded in 1946 by owners of the major ice hockey arenas in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Canada. On November 1, 1946, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the Toronto Huskies hosted the New York Knickerbockers at Maple Leaf Gardens, in a game the NBA now refers to as the first played game in NBA history.[6] The first basket was made by Ossie Schectman of the Knickerbockers. Although there had been earlier attempts at professional basketball leagues, including the American Basketball League and the NBL, the BAA was the first league to attempt to play primarily in large arenas in major cities. During its early years, the quality of play in the BAA was not significantly better than in competing leagues or among leading independent clubs such as the Harlem Globetrotters. For instance, the 1948 ABL finalist Baltimore Bullets moved to the BAA and won that league's 1948 title, and the 1948 NBL champion Minneapolis Lakers won the 1949 BAA title. Prior to the 1948–49 season, however, NBL teams from Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, and Rochester jumped to the BAA, which established the BAA as the league of choice for collegians looking to turn professional.[7]

text: On August 3, 1949, the remaining NBL teams–Syracuse, Anderson, Tri-Cities, Sheboygan, Denver, and Waterloo–merged into the BAA. In deference to the merger and to avoid possible legal complications, the league name was changed to the present National Basketball Association, even though the merged league retained the BAA's governing body, including Podoloff.[7] To this day, the NBA claims the BAA's history as its own. It now reckons the arrival of the NBL teams as an expansion, not a merger, and does not recognize NBL records and statistics.

text: The new league had seventeen franchises located in a mix of large and small cities,[8] as well as large arenas and smaller gymnasiums and armories. In 1950, the NBA consolidated to eleven franchises, a process that continued until 1953–54, when the league reached its smallest size of eight franchises: the New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, Philadelphia Warriors, Minneapolis Lakers, Rochester Royals, Fort Wayne Pistons, Tri-Cities Blackhawks, and Syracuse Nationals, all of which remain in the league today. The process of contraction saw the league's smaller-city franchises move to larger cities. The Hawks shifted from the Tri-Cities to Milwaukee in 1951, and then to St. Louis in 1955. The Rochester Royals moved from Rochester, New York, to Cincinnati in 1957 and the Pistons relocated from Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Detroit in 1957.

text: Japanese-American Wataru Misaka broke the NBA color barrier in the 1947–48 season when he played for the New York Knicks. He remained the only non-white player in league history prior to the first African-American, Harold Hunter, signing with the Washington Capitols in 1950.[9][10] Hunter was cut from the team during training camp,[9][11] but several African-American players did play in the league later that year, including Chuck Cooper with the Celtics, Nathaniel "Sweetwater" Clifton with the Knicks, and Earl Lloyd with the Washington Capitols. During this period, the Minneapolis Lakers, led by center George Mikan, won five NBA Championships and established themselves as the league's first dynasty.[12] To encourage shooting and discourage stalling, the league introduced the 24-second shot clock in 1954.[13] If a team does not attempt to score a field goal (or the ball fails to make contact with the rim) within 24 seconds of obtaining the ball, play is stopped and the ball given to its opponent.

text: Celtics' dominance, league expansion and competition (1956–1979)

text: In 1957, rookie center Bill Russell joined the Boston Celtics, which already featured guard Bob Cousy and coach Red Auerbach, and went on to lead the club to eleven NBA titles in thirteen seasons. Center Wilt Chamberlain entered the league with the Warriors in 1959 and became a dominant individual star of the 1960s, setting new single game records in scoring (100) and rebounding (55). Russell's rivalry with Chamberlain became one of the greatest rivalries in the history of American team sports.

text: The 1960s were dominated by the Celtics. Led by Russell, Bob Cousy and coach Red Auerbach, Boston won eight straight championships in the NBA from 1959 to 1966. This championship streak is the longest in NBA history. They did not win the title in 1966–67, but regained it in the 1967–68 season and repeated in 1969. The domination totaled nine of the ten championship banners of the 1960s.[14]

text: Through this period, the NBA continued to evolve with the shift of the Minneapolis Lakers to Los Angeles, the Philadelphia Warriors to San Francisco, the Syracuse Nationals to Philadelphia to become the Philadelphia 76ers, and the St. Louis Hawks moving to Atlanta, as well as the addition of its first expansion franchises. The Chicago Packers (now Washington Wizards) became the ninth NBA team in 1961. From 1966 to 1968, the league expanded from 9 to 14 teams, introducing the Chicago Bulls, Seattle SuperSonics (now Oklahoma City Thunder), San Diego Rockets (who relocated to Houston four years later), Milwaukee Bucks, and Phoenix Suns.

text: In 1967, the league faced a new external threat with the formation of the American Basketball Association (ABA). The leagues engaged in a bidding war. The NBA landed the most important college star of the era, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then known as Lew Alcindor). However, the NBA's leading scorer, Rick Barry, jumped to the ABA, as did four veteran referees—Norm Drucker, Earl Strom, John Vanak, and Joe Gushue.[15]

text: In 1969, Alan Siegel, who oversaw the design of Jerry Dior's Major League Baseball logo a year prior, created the modern NBA logo inspired by the MLB's. It incorporates the silhouette of the legendary Jerry West based on a photo by Wen Roberts, although NBA officials denied a particular player as being its influence because, according to Siegel, "They want to institutionalize it rather than individualize it. It's become such a ubiquitous, classic symbol and focal point of their identity and their licensing program that they don't necessarily want to identify it with one player." The iconic logo debuted in 1971 (with a small change to the typeface on the NBA wordmark in 2017) and would remain a fixture of the NBA brand.[16][17]

text: The ABA succeeded in signing a number of major stars in the 1970s, including Julius Erving of the Virginia Squires, in part because it allowed teams to sign college undergraduates. The NBA expanded rapidly during this period, one purpose being to tie up the most viable cities. From 1966 to 1974, the NBA grew from nine franchises to 18. In 1970, the Portland Trail Blazers, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Buffalo Braves (now the Los Angeles Clippers) all made their debuts expanding the league to 17.[18] The New Orleans Jazz (now in Utah) came aboard in 1974 bringing the total to 18. Following the 1976 season, the leagues reached a settlement that provided for the addition of four ABA franchises to the NBA, raising the number of franchises in the league at that time to 22. The franchises added were the San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, and New York Nets (now the Brooklyn Nets). Some of the biggest stars of this era were Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Rick Barry, Dave Cowens, Julius Erving, Elvin Hayes, Walt Frazier, Moses Malone, Artis Gilmore, George Gervin, Dan Issel, and Pete Maravich. The end of the decade, however, saw declining TV ratings, low attendance and drug-related player issues – both perceived and real – that threatened to derail the league.

text: Surging popularity (1979–1998)

text: This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

tag: table

text: The league added the ABA's innovative three-point field goal beginning in 1979 to open up the game. That same year, rookies Larry Bird and Magic Johnson joined the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers respectively, initiating a period of significant growth in fan interest in the NBA throughout the country and the world. The two had faced each other in the 1979 NCAA Division I Basketball Championship Game, and they later played against each other in three NBA Finals (1984, 1985, and 1987, featuring 11 players and coaches who would later be inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame). Like the 1960s, when the Celtics and Lakers faced each other in six NBA Finals, the two teams again dominated the NBA. In the 10 seasons of the 1980s, Johnson led the Lakers to five titles in eight Finals while Bird led the Celtics to three titles in five Finals. Also in the early 1980s, the NBA added one more expansion franchise, the Dallas Mavericks, bringing the total to 23 teams. Later on, Larry Bird won the first three three-point shooting contests. Former league commissioner David Stern, who took office on February 1, 1984, oversaw the expansion and growth of the NBA to a global commodity.

text: Michael Jordan entered the league in 1984 with the Chicago Bulls, providing an even more popular star to support growing interest in the league. This resulted in more cities demanding teams of their own. In 1988 and 1989, four cities got their wishes as the Charlotte Hornets, Miami Heat, Orlando Magic, and Minnesota Timberwolves made their NBA debuts, bringing the total to 27 teams. The Detroit Pistons won the back-to-back in 1989 and 1990, led by coach Chuck Daly and guard Isiah Thomas. Jordan and Scottie Pippen led the Bulls to two three-peats in eight years during the 1991–98 seasons. Hakeem Olajuwon won back-to-back titles with the Houston Rockets in 1994 and 1995.

text: The 1992 Olympic basketball Dream Team, the first to use current NBA stars, featured Michael Jordan as the anchor, along with Bird, Johnson, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Scottie Pippen, Clyde Drexler, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Chris Mullin, Charles Barkley, and star NCAA amateur Christian Laettner. The team was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, while 11 of the 12 players on the roster (all but Laettner) and three of the four coaches have been elected to the Hall of Fame as individuals.

text: In 1995, the NBA expanded to Canada with the addition of the Vancouver Grizzlies and the Toronto Raptors. In 2001, the Vancouver Grizzlies relocated to Memphis, which left the Raptors as the only Canadian team in the NBA.

text: In 1996, the NBA created a women's league, the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).

text: In 1998, the NBA owners began a lockout which lasted 191 days and was settled on January 18, 1999. As a result of this lockout the 1998–99 NBA season was reduced from 82 to 50 games (61% of a normal season), and the All-Star Game was cancelled. The San Antonio Spurs won their first championship, and first by a former ABA team, by beating the New York Knicks, who were the first, and are the only, eighth seed to ever make it to the NBA Finals.

text: Modern era (1998–present)

text: Since the breakup of the Chicago Bulls championship roster in the summer of 1998, the Western Conference has dominated, with the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs combining to win the title nine out of the next fourteen seasons. Tim Duncan and David Robinson won the 1999 championship with the Spurs, and Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant started the 2000s with three consecutive championships for the Lakers. The Spurs reclaimed the title in 2003 against the Nets. In 2004, the Lakers returned to the Finals, only to lose in five games to the Detroit Pistons.

text: After the Spurs took home the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy in 2005, the 2006 Finals featured two franchises making their inaugural Finals appearances. The Miami Heat, led by their star shooting guard, Dwyane Wade, and Shaquille O'Neal, who had been traded from the Lakers during summer 2004, won the series over the Dallas Mavericks in six after losing the first two games. The Lakers/Spurs dominance continued in 2007 with a four-game sweep by the Spurs over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who were led by LeBron James. The 2008 Finals saw a rematch of the league's highest profile rivalry, the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, with the Celtics winning, for their 17th championship, thanks to their new big three of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett.

text: In 2009, Kobe Bryant and the Lakers returned to the Finals, this time defeating the Dwight Howard-led Orlando Magic. Bryant won his first Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award in his 13th season after leading the Lakers to their first NBA championship since the departure of Shaquille O'Neal.[19]

text: The 2010 NBA All-Star Game was held at Cowboys Stadium in front of the largest crowd ever, 108,713.[20] At the end of that season, the Celtics and the Lakers renewed their rivalry from 2008 when they met again in the NBA Finals for a record 12th time. The Lakers won the title by winning Game 7, 83–79.[21] Before the start of the 2010–11 season the NBA had an exciting summer with one of the most anticipated free agent classes of all time. Two of which signed, and one resigned, with the Miami Heat, leading to a season that was heavily centered on their eventual success or failure at taking home the championship. The Heat, led by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh, did in fact make the Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, in a rematch for the franchises of the 2006 Finals. The Mavericks, led by Dirk Nowitzki (the eventual NBA Finals MVP), took the series in six games. This was the Mavericks' first title. Veterans Shawn Marion, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, and Peja Stojaković celebrated their first NBA championship.

text: On July 1, 2011, at 12:01 am, the NBA announced another lockout.[22] After the first few weeks of the season were canceled, the players and owners ratified a new collective bargaining agreement on December 8, 2011, setting up a shortened 66-game season.[23] Following the shortened season, the Miami Heat made a return to the Finals with the trio of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh against Oklahoma City Thunder's Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden. The Heat went on to defeat the Thunder in five games, capturing their second NBA title in six years. Their success would continue into the following season, which concluded with their victory over the San Antonio Spurs in the 2013 NBA Finals. The two teams would meet for a rematch in the following year's Finals, where the Spurs defeated the Heat in five games. Off the court, commissioner David Stern retired on February 1, 2014, exactly 30 years to the day from taking office. He was succeeded by his deputy, Adam Silver.

text: Following the 2014 Finals, LeBron James announced that he would return to the Cleveland Cavaliers. James led the Cavaliers to their second Finals appearance, where they lost to the Golden State Warriors in six games. The following year, in a rematch, the 2016 NBA Finals concluded with the Cavaliers defeating the Warriors in seven games to win their first NBA Championship. The dominance of those two teams continued in 2017, when the Warriors, having signed Kevin Durant as a free agent, took the third straight Finals matchup between the two teams in five games, with Durant named Finals MVP, and again in 2018 when they went to a fourth straight Finals matchup.

text: International influence

text: Following pioneers like Vlade Divac (Serbia) and Dražen Petrović (Croatia) who joined the NBA in the late 1980s, an increasing number of international players have moved directly from playing elsewhere in the world to starring in the NBA. Since 2006, the NBA has faced EuroLeague teams in exhibition matches in the NBA Europe Live Tour, and since 2009, in the EuroLeague American Tour. The 2013–14 season opened with a record 92 international players on the opening night rosters, representing 39 countries and comprising over 20% of the league[24]. The beginning of the 2017-18 season saw a record 108 international players representing 42 different countries marking 4 consecutive years of at least 100 international players and each team having at least one international player[25].

text: Other developments

text: In 2001, an affiliated minor league, the National Basketball Development League, now called the NBA G League, was created.[26] Before the league was started, there were strong rumors that the NBA would purchase the Continental Basketball Association, and call it its developmental league.

text: Two years after the Hornets' relocation to New Orleans, the NBA returned to North Carolina, as the Charlotte Bobcats were formed as an expansion team in 2004.

text: The Hornets temporarily relocated to Oklahoma City in 2005 for two seasons because of damage caused by Hurricane Katrina. The team returned to New Orleans in 2007.

text: A new official game ball was introduced on June 28, 2006, for the 2006–07 season, marking the first change to the ball in over 35 years and only the second ball in 60 seasons.[27] Manufactured by Spalding, the new ball featured a new design and new synthetic material that Spalding claimed offered a better grip, feel, and consistency than the original ball. However, many players were vocal in their disdain for the new ball, saying that it was too sticky when dry, and too slippery when wet.

text: Commissioner Stern announced on December 11, 2006, that beginning January 1, 2007, the NBA would return to the traditional leather basketball in use prior to the 2006–07 season. The change was influenced by frequent player complaints and confirmed hand injuries (cuts) caused by the microfiber ball.[28] The Players' Association had filed a suit in behalf of the players against the NBA over the new ball.[29] As of the 2017–18 season, the NBA team jerseys are manufactured by Nike, replacing the previous supplier, Adidas. All teams will wear jerseys with the Nike logo except the Charlotte Hornets, whose jerseys will instead have the Jumpman logo associated with longtime Nike endorser Michael Jordan, who owns the Hornets.[30]

text: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) began an investigation on July 19, 2007, over allegations that veteran NBA referee Tim Donaghy bet on basketball games he officiated over the past two seasons and that he made calls affecting the point spread in those games.[31] On August 15, 2007, Donaghy pleaded guilty to two federal charges related to the investigation. Donaghy claimed in 2008 that certain referees were friendly with players and "company men" for the NBA, and he alleged that referees influenced the outcome of certain playoff and finals games in 2002 and 2005. NBA commissioner David Stern denied the allegations and said Donaghy was a convicted felon and a "singing, cooperating witness".[32] Donaghy served 15 months in prison and was released in November 2009.[33] According to an independent study by Ronald Beech of Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings, although the refs increased the Lakers' chances of winning through foul calls during the game, there was no collusion to fix the game. On alleged "star treatment" during Game 6 by the refs toward certain players, Beech claimed, "there does seem to be issues with different standards and allowances for different players." [34]

text: The NBA Board of Governors approved the request of the Seattle SuperSonics to relocate to Oklahoma City on April 18, 2008.[35] The team, however, could not move until it had settled a lawsuit filed by the city of Seattle, which was intended to keep the SuperSonics in Seattle for the remaining two seasons of the team's lease at KeyArena. Following a court case, the city of Seattle settled with the ownership group of the SuperSonics on July 2, 2008, allowing the team to move to Oklahoma City immediately in exchange for terminating the final two seasons of the team's lease at KeyArena.[36] The Oklahoma City Thunder began playing in the 2008–09 season.

text: The first outdoor game in the modern era of the league was played at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on October 11, 2008, between the Phoenix Suns and the Denver Nuggets.[37]

text: A referee lockout began on September 1, 2009, when the contract between the NBA and its referees expired. The first preseason games were played on October 1, 2009, and replacement referees from the WNBA and NBA Development League were used, the first time replacement referees had been used since the beginning of the 1995–96 season. The NBA and the regular referees reached a deal on October 23, 2009.[38][39]

text: The first official NBA league games on European ground took place in 2011. In two matchups, the New Jersey Nets faced the Toronto Raptors at the O2 Arena in London in front of over 20,000 fans.

text: The 2011–12 NBA season, scheduled to begin November 1, 2011, with a matchup between the defending champion Dallas Mavericks and the Chicago Bulls, was postponed due to a labor dispute. The lockout officially ended on December 8, 2011, when players and owners ratified a new collective bargaining agreement, and the season began on Christmas Day.

text: After the 2012–13 season, the New Orleans Hornets renamed themselves the Pelicans.[40] During the 2013–14 season, Stern retired as commissioner after 30 years, and deputy commissioner Adam Silver ascended to the position of commissioner. During that season's playoffs, the Bobcats officially reclaimed the Hornets name, and by agreement with the league and the Pelicans, also received sole ownership of all history, records, and statistics from the Pelicans' time in Charlotte. As a result, the Hornets are now officially considered to have been founded in 1988, suspended operations in 2002, and resumed in 2004 as the Bobcats, while the Pelicans are officially treated as a 2002 expansion team.[41] (This is somewhat similar to the relationship between the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens in the NFL.)

text: Donald Sterling, who was then-owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, received a lifetime ban from the NBA on April 29, 2014, after racist remarks he made became public. Sterling was also fined US$2.5 million, the maximum allowed under the NBA Constitution.[42]

text: Becky Hammon was hired by the San Antonio Spurs on August 5, 2014, as an assistant coach, becoming the second female coach in NBA history but the first full-time coach.[43][44] This also makes her the first full-time female coach in any of the four major professional sports in North America.[44]

text: The NBA announced on April 15, 2016, that it would allow all 30 of its member clubs to sell corporate sponsor advertisement patches on official game uniforms, beginning with the 2017–18 season. The sponsorship advertisement patches would appear on the left front of jerseys, opposite Nike's logo, marking the first time a manufacturer's logo would appear on NBA jerseys, and would measure approximately 2.5 by 2.5 inches. The NBA would become the first major North American professional sports league to allow corporate sponsorship logos on official team uniforms, and the last to have a uniform manufacturer logo appear on its team uniforms.[45] The first team to announce a jersey sponsorship was the Philadelphia 76ers, who agreed to a deal with StubHub.[46]

text: On July 6, 2017, the NBA unveiled an updated rendition of its logo; it is largely identical to the previous design, except with revised typography and a "richer" color scheme. The league began to phase in the updated logo across its properties during the 2017 NBA Summer League, but it will not immediately be used on equipment or uniforms due to lead time.[47]

text: The NBA also officially released new Nike uniforms for all 30 teams beginning with the 2017–18 season. The league eliminated "home" and "away" uniform designations. Instead, each team would have four uniforms: the "Association" edition, which is the team's traditional white uniform, the "Icon" edition, which is the team's primary color uniform, and two other uniform editions, to be unveiled at a later date.[48]

text: Teams

text:
Map all coordinates using: OpenStreetMap · Google Maps

Download coordinates as: KML · GPX

text: The NBA originated in 1946 with 11 teams, and through a sequence of team expansions, reductions, and relocations currently consists of 30 teams. The United States is home to 29 teams and one is located in Canada.

text: The current league organization divides thirty teams into two conferences of three divisions with five teams each. The current divisional alignment was introduced in the 2004–05 season. Reflecting the population distribution of the United States and Canada as a whole, most teams are in the eastern half of the country: thirteen teams are in the Eastern Time Zone, nine in the Central, three in the Mountain, and five in the Pacific.

text:
Division
Team
City/State
Arena
Capacity
Coordinates
Founded
Joined
Head coach

Eastern Conference

Atlantic
Boston Celtics
Boston, Massachusetts
TD Garden
18,624
42°21′59″N 71°03′44″W / 42.366303°N 71.062228°W / 42.366303; -71.062228 (Boston Celtics)
1946
Brad Stevens

Brooklyn Nets
New York City, New York
Barclays Center
17,732
40°40′58″N 73°58′29″W / 40.68265°N 73.974689°W / 40.68265; -73.974689 (Brooklyn Nets)
1967*
1976
Kenny Atkinson

New York Knicks
New York City, New York
Madison Square Garden
19,812
40°45′02″N 73°59′37″W / 40.750556°N 73.993611°W / 40.750556; -73.993611 (New York Knicks)
1946
David Fizdale

Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Wells Fargo Center
21,600
39°54′04″N 75°10′19″W / 39.901111°N 75.171944°W / 39.901111; -75.171944 (Philadelphia 76ers)
1946*
1949
Brett Brown

Toronto Raptors
Toronto, Ontario
Air Canada Centre
19,800
43°38′36″N 79°22′45″W / 43.643333°N 79.379167°W / 43.643333; -79.379167 (Toronto Raptors)
1995
Vacant

Central
Chicago Bulls
Chicago, Illinois
United Center
20,917
41°52′50″N 87°40′27″W / 41.880556°N 87.674167°W / 41.880556; -87.674167 (Chicago Bulls)
1966
Fred Hoiberg

Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland, Ohio
Quicken Loans Arena
20,562
41°29′47″N 81°41′17″W / 41.496389°N 81.688056°W / 41.496389; -81.688056 (Cleveland Cavaliers)
1970
Tyronn Lue

Detroit Pistons
Detroit, Michigan
Little Caesars Arena
20,491
42°41′49″N 83°14′44″W / 42.696944°N 83.245556°W / 42.696944; -83.245556 (Detroit Pistons)
1941*
1948
Vacant

Indiana Pacers
Indianapolis, Indiana
Bankers Life Fieldhouse
17,923
39°45′50″N 86°09′20″W / 39.763889°N 86.155556°W / 39.763889; -86.155556 (Indiana Pacers)
1967
1976
Nate McMillan

Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Bradley Center
18,717
43°02′37″N 87°55′01″W / 43.043611°N 87.916944°W / 43.043611; -87.916944 (Milwaukee Bucks)
1968
Mike Budenholzer

Southeast
Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta, Georgia
Philips Arena
15,711
33°45′26″N 84°23′47″W / 33.757222°N 84.396389°W / 33.757222; -84.396389 (Atlanta Hawks)
1946*
1949
Lloyd Pierce

Charlotte Hornets
Charlotte, North Carolina
Spectrum Center
19,077
35°13′30″N 80°50′21″W / 35.225°N 80.839167°W / 35.225; -80.839167 (Charlotte Hornets)
1988*
James Borrego

Miami Heat
Miami, Florida
American Airlines Arena
19,600
25°46′53″N 80°11′17″W / 25.781389°N 80.188056°W / 25.781389; -80.188056 (Miami Heat)
1988
Erik Spoelstra

Orlando Magic
Orlando, Florida
Amway Center
18,846
28°32′21″N 81°23′01″W / 28.539167°N 81.383611°W / 28.539167; -81.383611 (Orlando Magic)
1989
Vacant

Washington Wizards
Washington, D.C.
Capital One Arena
20,356
38°53′53″N 77°01′15″W / 38.898056°N 77.020833°W / 38.898056; -77.020833 (Washington Wizards)
1961*
Scott Brooks

Western Conference

Northwest
Denver Nuggets
Denver, Colorado
Pepsi Center
19,520
39°44′55″N 105°00′27″W / 39.748611°N 105.0075°W / 39.748611; -105.0075 (Denver Nuggets)
1967
1976
Michael Malone

Minnesota Timberwolves
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Target Center
19,356
44°58′46″N 93°16′34″W / 44.979444°N 93.276111°W / 44.979444; -93.276111 (Minnesota Timberwolves)
1989
Tom Thibodeau

Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Chesapeake Energy Arena
18,203
35°27′48″N 97°30′54″W / 35.463333°N 97.515°W / 35.463333; -97.515 (Oklahoma City Thunder)
1967*
Billy Donovan

Portland Trail Blazers
Portland, Oregon
Moda Center
19,441
45°31′54″N 122°40′00″W / 45.531667°N 122.666667°W / 45.531667; -122.666667 (Portland Trail Blazers)
1970
Terry Stotts

Utah Jazz
Salt Lake City, Utah
Vivint Smart Home Arena
19,911
40°46′06″N 111°54′04″W / 40.768333°N 111.901111°W / 40.768333; -111.901111 (Utah Jazz)
1974*
Quin Snyder

Pacific
Golden State Warriors
Oakland, California
Oracle Arena
19,596
37°45′01″N 122°12′11″W / 37.750278°N 122.203056°W / 37.750278; -122.203056 (Golden State Warriors)
1946*
Steve Kerr

Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles, California
Staples Center
19,060
34°02′35″N 118°16′02″W / 34.043056°N 118.267222°W / 34.043056; -118.267222 (Los Angeles Clippers)
1970*
Doc Rivers

Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles, California
Staples Center
18,997
34°02′35″N 118°16′02″W / 34.043056°N 118.267222°W / 34.043056; -118.267222 (Los Angeles Lakers)
1947*
1948
Luke Walton

Phoenix Suns
Phoenix, Arizona
Talking Stick Resort Arena
18,055
33°26′45″N 112°04′17″W / 33.445833°N 112.071389°W / 33.445833; -112.071389 (Phoenix Suns)
1968
Igor Kokoškov

Sacramento Kings
Sacramento, California
Golden 1 Center
17,500
38°38′57″N 121°31′05″W / 38.649167°N 121.518056°W / 38.649167; -121.518056 (Sacramento Kings)
1923*
1948
Dave Joerger

Southwest
Dallas Mavericks
Dallas, Texas
American Airlines Center
19,200
32°47′26″N 96°48′37″W / 32.790556°N 96.810278°W / 32.790556; -96.810278 (Dallas Mavericks)
1980
Rick Carlisle

Houston Rockets
Houston, Texas
Toyota Center
18,055
29°45′03″N 95°21′44″W / 29.750833°N 95.362222°W / 29.750833; -95.362222 (Houston Rockets)
1967*
Mike D'Antoni

Memphis Grizzlies
Memphis, Tennessee
FedExForum
18,119
35°08′18″N 90°03′02″W / 35.138333°N 90.050556°W / 35.138333; -90.050556 (Memphis Grizzlies)
1995*
J. B. Bickerstaff

New Orleans Pelicans
New Orleans, Louisiana
Smoothie King Center
16,867
29°56′56″N 90°04′55″W / 29.948889°N 90.081944°W / 29.948889; -90.081944 (New Orleans Pelicans)
2002*
Alvin Gentry

San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio, Texas
AT&T Center
18,418
29°25′37″N 98°26′15″W / 29.426944°N 98.4375°W / 29.426944; -98.4375 (San Antonio Spurs)
1967*
1976
Gregg Popovich

text:
An asterisk (*) denotes a franchise move. See the respective team articles for more information.
The Fort Wayne Pistons, Minneapolis Lakers and Rochester Royals all joined the NBA (BAA) in 1948 from the NBL.
The Syracuse Nationals and Tri-Cities Blackhawks joined the NBA in 1949 as part of the BAA-NBL absorption.
The Indiana Pacers, New York Nets, San Antonio Spurs, and Denver Nuggets all joined the NBA in 1976 as part of the NBA-ABA merger.
The Charlotte Hornets are regarded as a continuation of the original Charlotte franchise. Because of this, the New Orleans Pelicans are no longer the same franchise as the original Charlotte Hornets. The Hornets were known as the Bobcats from 2004–2014. The New Orleans Pelicans were established in 2002. The Charlotte Hornets rejoined the league in 2004.

tag: ol

text: Regular season

text: Following the summer break, teams begin training camps in late September. Training camps allow the coaching staff to evaluate players (especially rookies), scout the team's strengths and weaknesses, prepare the players for the rigorous regular season, and determine the 12-man active roster (and a 3-man inactive list) with which they will begin the regular season. Teams have the ability to assign players with less than two years of experience to the NBA G League. After training camp, a series of preseason exhibition games are held. Preseason matches are sometimes held in non-NBA cities, both in the United States and overseas. The NBA regular season begins in the last week of October.

text: During the regular season, each team plays 82 games, 41 each home and away. A team faces opponents in its own division four times a year (16 games). Each team plays six of the teams from the other two divisions in its conference four times (24 games), and the remaining four teams three times (12 games). Finally, each team plays all the teams in the other conference twice apiece (30 games). This asymmetrical structure means the strength of schedule will vary between teams (but not as significantly as the NFL or MLB). Over five seasons, each team will have played 80 games against their division (20 games against each opponent, 10 at home, 10 on the road), 180 games against the rest of their conference (18 games against each opponent, 9 at home, 9 on the road), and 150 games against the other conference (10 games against each team, 5 at home, 5 on the road).

text: The NBA is one of only two of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada in which teams play every other team during the regular season (the other being the National Hockey League). Each team hosts and visits every other team at least once every season. From 2005 to 2008, the NBA had the distinction of being the only one of the four major leagues in which all teams play every other team.

text: The NBA is also the only league that regularly schedules games on Christmas Day.[49] The league has been playing games regularly on the holiday since 1947,[50] though the first Christmas Day games were not televised until 1983–84.[51] Games played on this day have featured some of the best teams and players.[49][50][51] Christmas is also notable for NBA on television, as the holiday is when the first NBA games air on network television each season.[50][51] Games played on this day have been some of the highest-rated games during a particular season.

text: In February, the regular season pauses to celebrate the annual NBA All-Star Game. Fans vote throughout the United States, Canada, and on the Internet, and the top vote-getters at each position in each conference are given a starting spot on their conference's All-Star team. Coaches vote to choose the remaining 14 All-Stars. Then, Eastern conference players face the Western conference players in the All-Star game. The player with the best performance during the game is rewarded with a Game MVP award. Other attractions of the All-Star break include the Rising Stars Challenge (originally Rookie Challenge), where the top rookies and second-year players in the NBA play in a 5-on-5 basketball game, with the current format pitting U.S. players against those from the rest of the world; the Skills Challenge, where players compete to finish an obstacle course consisting of shooting, passing, and dribbling in the fastest time; the Three Point Contest, where players compete to score the highest number of three-point field goals in a given time; and the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, where players compete to dunk the ball in the most entertaining way according to the judges. These other attractions have varying names which include the names of the various sponsors who have paid for naming rights.

text: Shortly after the All-Star break is the trade deadline, which is set to fall on the 16th Thursday of the season (usually in February) at 3pm Eastern Time.[52] After this date, teams are not allowed to exchange players with each other for the remainder of the season, although they may still sign and release players. Major trades are often completed right before the trading deadline, making that day a hectic time for general managers.

text: Around the middle of April, the regular season ends. It is during this time that voting begins for individual awards, as well as the selection of the honorary, league-wide, post-season teams. The Sixth Man of the Year Award is given to the best player coming off the bench (must have more games coming off the bench than actual games started). The Rookie of the Year Award is awarded to the most outstanding first-year player. The Most Improved Player Award is awarded to the player who is deemed to have shown the most improvement from the previous season. The Defensive Player of the Year Award is awarded to the league's best defender. The Coach of the Year Award is awarded to the coach that has made the most positive difference to a team. The Most Valuable Player Award is given to the player deemed the most valuable for (his team) that season. Additionally, Sporting News awards an unofficial (but widely recognized) Executive of the Year Award to the general manager who is adjudged to have performed the best job for the benefit of his franchise.

text: The post-season teams are the All-NBA Team, the All-Defensive Team, and the All-Rookie Team; each consists of five players. There are three All-NBA teams, consisting of the top players at each position, with first-team status being the most desirable. There are two All-Defensive teams, consisting of the top defenders at each position. There are also two All-Rookie teams, consisting of the top first-year players regardless of position.

text: Playoffs

text: The NBA Playoffs begin in late April, with the top eight teams in each conference, regardless of divisional alignment, competing for the Championship. Seeds are awarded in strict order of regular-season record (with a tiebreaker system used as needed).

text: Having a higher seed offers several advantages. Since the first seed begins the playoffs playing against the eighth seed, the second seed plays the seventh seed, the third seed plays the sixth seed, and the fourth seed plays the fifth seed, having a higher seed means a team faces a weaker team in the first round. The team in each series with the better record has home court advantage, including the First Round. Before the league changed its playoff determination format for the 2006–07 season, this meant that, for example, if the team that received the 6 seed had a better record than the team with the 3 seed (by virtue of a divisional championship), the 6 seed would have home court advantage, even though the other team had a higher seed. Therefore, the team with the best regular season record in the league is guaranteed home court advantage in every series it plays. For example, in 2006, the Denver Nuggets won 44 games and captured the Northwest Division and the #3 seed. Their opponent was the #6 seed Los Angeles Clippers, who won 47 games and finished second in the Pacific Division. Although Denver won its much weaker division, the Clippers had home-court advantage and won the series in 5.

text: The playoffs follow a tournament format. Each team plays an opponent in a best-of-seven series, with the first team to win four games advancing into the next round, while the other team is eliminated from the playoffs. In the next round, the successful team plays against another advancing team of the same conference. All but one team in each conference are eliminated from the playoffs. Since the NBA does not re-seed teams, the playoff bracket in each conference uses a traditional design, with the winner of the series matching the 1st and 8th seeded teams playing the winner of the series matching the 4th and 5th seeded teams, and the winner of the series matching the 2nd and 7th seeded teams playing the winner of the series matching the 3rd and 6th seeded teams. In every round, the best-of-7 series follows a 2–2–1–1–1 home-court pattern, meaning that one team will have home court in games 1, 2, 5, and 7, while the other plays at home in games 3, 4, and 6. From 1985 to 2013, the NBA Finals followed a 2–3–2 pattern, meaning that one team had home court in games 1, 2, 6, and 7, while the other played at home in games 3, 4, and 5.[53]

text: The final playoff round, a best-of-seven series between the victors of both conferences, is known as the NBA Finals, and is held annually in June. The victor in the NBA Finals wins the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy. Each player and major contributor—including coaches and the general manager—on the winning team receive a championship ring. In addition, the league awards the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award to the best performing player of the series.

text: The league began using its current format, with the top eight teams in each conference advancing regardless of divisional alignment, in the 2015–16 season. Previously, the top three seeds went to the division winners.[54]

text: League championships

text: The Boston Celtics have won the most championships with 17 NBA Finals wins. The second most successful franchise is the Los Angeles Lakers, who have 16 overall championships (11 in Los Angeles, 5 in Minneapolis). Following the Lakers, are the Chicago Bulls with six championships, all won over an 8-year span during the 1990s. The San Antonio Spurs have five championships, all since 1999, and the Golden State Warriors also have five championships overall (2 in Philadelphia, 3 in Oakland).

text:
Teams
Win
Loss
Total
Year(s) won
Year(s) lost

Boston Celtics
17
4
21
1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1984, 1986, 2008
1958, 1985, 1987, 2010

Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers
16
15
31
1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1972, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2010
1959, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1973, 1983, 1984, 1989, 1991, 2004, 2008

Chicago Bulls
6
0
6
1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998
—

Philadelphia/San Francisco/Golden State Warriors
5
4
9
1947, 1956, 1975, 2015, 2017
1948, 1964, 1967, 2016

San Antonio Spurs
5
1
6
1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2014
2013

Syracuse Nationals/Philadelphia 76ers
3
6
9
1955, 1967, 1983
1950, 1954, 1977, 1980, 1982, 2001

Fort Wayne/Detroit Pistons
3
4
7
1989, 1990, 2004
1955, 1956, 1988, 2005

Miami Heat
3
2
5
2006, 2012, 2013
2011, 2014

New York Knicks
2
6
8
1970, 1973
1951, 1952, 1953, 1972, 1994, 1999

Houston Rockets
2
2
4
1994, 1995
1981, 1986

St. Louis/Atlanta Hawks
1
3
4
1958
1957, 1960, 1961

Baltimore/Washington Bullets (now Washington Wizards)
1
3
4
1978
1971, 1975, 1979

Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder
1
3
4
1979
1978, 1996, 2012

Cleveland Cavaliers
1
3
4
2016
2007, 2015, 2017

Portland Trail Blazers
1
2
3
1977
1990, 1992

Milwaukee Bucks
1
1
2
1971
1974

Dallas Mavericks
1
1
2
2011
2006

Baltimore Bullets (original) (folded in 1954)
1
0
1
1948
—

Rochester Royals (now Sacramento Kings)
1
0
1
1951
—

Phoenix Suns
0
2
2
—
1976, 1993

Utah Jazz (formerly New Orleans Jazz)
0
2
2
—
1997, 1998

New Jersey Nets (now Brooklyn Nets)
0
2
2
—
2002, 2003

Orlando Magic
0
2
2
—
1995, 2009

Chicago Stags (folded in 1950)
0
1
1
—
1947

Washington Capitols (folded in 1951)
0
1
1
—
1949

Indiana Pacers
0
1
1
—
2000

text: Current teams that have no NBA Finals appearances:

text:
Charlotte Hornets (formerly Charlotte Bobcats)
Denver Nuggets
Los Angeles Clippers (formerly Buffalo Braves, San Diego Clippers)
Memphis Grizzlies (formerly Vancouver Grizzlies)
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans (formerly New Orleans Hornets, New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets)
Toronto Raptors

text: Media coverage

text: As one of the major sports leagues in North America, the National Basketball Association has a long history of partnership with television networks in the United States. The League signed a contract with DuMont in its 8th season (1953–54), marking the first year the NBA had a national television broadcaster. Similar to NFL, the lack of television stations leads to NBC taking over the rights beginning the very next season until April 7, 1962 - NBC's first tenure with the NBA. Currently in the U.S., the NBA has a contract with ESPN and TNT through the 2024–25 season. Games that are not broadcast nationally are usually aired over regional sports network specific to the area where the teams are located.

text: International competitions

text: The National Basketball Association has sporadically participated in international club competitions. From 1987 to 1999 the NBA champions played against the continental champions of the Fédération Internationale de Basketball (FIBA) in the McDonald's Championship. This tournament was won by the NBA invitee every year it was held.[55]

text: Ticket prices and viewership demographics

text: In 2012, a ticket cost from $10 to $3,000 apiece, depending on the location of the seat and the success of the teams that were playing.[56]

text: Viewership demographics

text: According to Nielsen's survey, the NBA has the youngest audience, with 45 percent of its viewers under 35, but the least likely, along with Major League Baseball, to be watched by women, who make up only 30% of the viewership. It also has the highest share of black viewers with 45 percent of its viewers being black and only about 40 percent of viewers being white, making it the only top North American sport that doesn't have a white majority audience.[57]

text: Notable people

text: Presidents and commissioners

text:
Maurice Podoloff, President from 1946 to 1963
Walter Kennedy, President from 1963 to 1967 and Commissioner from 1967 to 1975
Larry O'Brien, Commissioner from 1975 to 1984
David Stern, Commissioner from 1984 to 2014
Adam Silver, Commissioner from 2014 to present

text: Players

text:
50 Greatest Players in NBA History
Lists of National Basketball Association players

List of foreign NBA players, a list that is exclusively for players who are not from the United States

text: Foreign players

text: International influence

text: Following pioneers like Vlade Divac (Serbia) and Dražen Petrović (Croatia) who joined the NBA in the late 1980s, an increasing number of international players have moved directly from playing elsewhere in the world to starring in the NBA. Below is a short list of foreign players who have won NBA awards or have been otherwise recognized for their contributions to basketball, either currently or formerly active in the league:

text:
Dražen Petrović, Croatia – 2002 inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, 1986, 1989, 1992, 1993 Euroscar Player of the Year, 1986 and 1993 Mr. Europa Player of the Year, MVP of the 1986 FIBA World Championship and EuroBasket 1989, 2-time Olympic silver medalist, World Champion, European Champion, 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
Šarūnas Marčiulionis, Lithuania – 2014 inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. First Soviet Union and one of the very first Europeans to sign contract with NBA club and to play solidly in the league, helping to lead the way for the internationalization of the league in the late 1990s.
Toni Kukoč, Croatia – 3-time NBA Champion with Chicago Bulls (1996, 1997, 1998), named in 2008 as one of the 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
Vlade Divac, Serbia – 2-time Olympic silver medalist, 2001 NBA All-Star, 2-time World Champion, 3-time European Champion, 1989 Mr. Europa, 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
Arvydas Sabonis, Lithuania – 2011 inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1995, 1999 Euroscar Player of the Year, 1985, 1997 Mr. Europa Player of the Year, Olympic gold medalist in 1988 with the Soviet Union and bronze medalist in 1992 and 1996 with Lithuania, 1996 NBA All-Rookie First Team, 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
Peja Stojaković, Serbia – NBA Champion with Dallas Mavericks (2011), MVP of the EuroBasket 2001, member of the all-tournament team in the 2002 FIBA World Championship, 2001 Euroscar winner, 2001 and 2002 Mr. Europa, 2002 and 2003 NBA Three-Point Shootout champion, 3-time NBA All-Star (drafted in 1996, entered the NBA in 1998)
Dirk Nowitzki, Germany – NBA Champion with Dallas Mavericks (2011), MVP of the 2002 FIBA World Championship and EuroBasket 2005, member of the all-tournament team in the 2002 FIBA World Championship, 2002–2006 and 2011 Euroscar winner, 2005 Mr. Europa, 2005 and 2011 FIBA Europe Player of the Year, 2007 NBA MVP, 2011 Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award, 2006 NBA Three-Point Shootout champion and 13-time NBA All-Star (entered the NBA in 1998)
Hedo Türkoğlu, Turkey – 2008 Most Improved Player Award winner, member of the all-tournament team in the 2010 FIBA World Championship (entered the NBA in 2000)
Pau Gasol, Spain – 2-time NBA Champion with Los Angeles Lakers (2009 & 2010), Six time NBA All-Star, 2002 NBA Rookie of the Year, 2004 and 2009 Mr. Europa, 2006 FIBA World Championship MVP, 2008 and 2009 Euroscar and FIBA Europe Player of the Year, EuroBasket 2009 MVP, winner of the NBA Citizenship Award in 2012 (entered the NBA in 2001)
Andrei Kirilenko, Russia – 2004 NBA All-Star, EuroBasket 2007 MVP, 2007 FIBA Europe Player of the Year (drafted in 1999, played in the NBA from 2001 to 2011 before returning to Russia due to the lockout, returned in 2012 as a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves.)
Tony Parker, France – 4-time NBA Champion with the Spurs, 2007 NBA Finals MVP, 6-time All-Star and 2007 Euroscar winner (entered the NBA in 2001)
Manu Ginóbili, Argentina – 4-time NBA Champion with San Antonio Spurs, 2008 Sixth Man Award winner, 2-time All-Star, 50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors, gold medal in the 2004 Summer Olympics with Argentina (drafted in 1999, entered the NBA in 2002)
Yao Ming, China – 2016 inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, first pick in the 2002 NBA draft and 8-time NBA All-Star (played in the NBA from 2002 to 2011)
Leandro Barbosa, Brazil – NBA Champion with Golden State Warriors (2015),[58] 2007 Sixth Man Award winner (entered the NBA in 2003)
Andrea Bargnani, Italy – First pick in the 2006 NBA draft by the Toronto Raptors (entered the NBA in 2006)

text: On some occasions, young players, most but not all from the English-speaking world, have attended U.S. colleges before playing in the NBA. Notable examples are:

text:
Nigerian Hakeem Olajuwon (top draft pick in 1984, 2-time champion, 12-time All-Star, 1994 MVP, 1994 and 1995 Finals MVP, 1994 and 1995 Defensive Player of the Year, only player to receive the MVP Award, Defensive Player of the Year Award, and Finals MVP award in the same season, and Hall of Famer)
Congolese Dikembe Mutombo (Four time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, selected fourth overall by the Denver Nuggets in the 1991 NBA Draft and 8-time NBA All-Star)
Dutchman Rik Smits (1988 second overall pick, 1998 NBA All-Star, played 12 years for the Indiana Pacers)
German Detlef Schrempf (Sixth Man Award winner in 1991 and 1992, 3-time All-Star)
Canadian Steve Nash (2005 and 2006 MVP, 8-time All-Star)
Australians Luc Longley (3-time champion with the Bulls in the 1990s) and Andrew Bogut, (top draft pick in 2005).
Sudanese-born Englishman Luol Deng (2007 winner of the NBA Sportsmanship Award, 2-time All-Star)

text: Since 2006, the NBA has faced EuroLeague teams in exhibition matches in the NBA Europe Live Tour, and since 2009 in the EuroLeague American Tour.

text: The 2013–14 season opened with a record 92 international players on the opening night rosters, representing 39 countries and comprising over 20% of the league[24] The NBA defines "international" players as those born outside the 50 United States and Washington, D.C. This means that:

text:
Players born in U.S. possessions such as Puerto Rico and the U.S., Virgin Islands, most notably USVI native Tim Duncan, are counted as "international" even though they are U.S. citizens by birth, and may even have represented the U.S. in international competition (like Duncan).
U.S.-born players are not counted as "international" even if they were born with citizenship in another country and represent that country internationally, such as Joakim Noah, and Kosta Koufos.

text: Coaches

text:
List of current National Basketball Association head coaches
List of National Basketball Association head coaches
List of National Basketball Association player-coaches
List of NBA championship head coaches
List of foreign NBA coaches
Top 10 Coaches in NBA History


document_title: 40-yard dash

question_text: who ran the fastest 40 time in nfl history

text: 40-yard dash

text: Timing method and track comparisons[edit]

text: In terms of judging a person's speed, the best method of timing is through lasers which start and stop the times when passed through. A laser start (from a stationary position) is more accurate for measuring pure speed as it does not register a runner's reaction time. However, the method of timing a 40-yard dash can affect the accuracy by as much 0.5 seconds (with the manual stopwatch method). The National Football League (NFL) did not begin using partial electronic timing (started by hand, stopped electronically) at the NFL Scouting Combine until 1999.[2] [3] For purposes of measurement at the Combine, the run is made along the lower sideline from the 40 yard-line to the end zone, which has built-in rundown space.

text: In track and field races, the runner must react to the starting gun, which takes approximately 0.24 seconds, based on FAT timing. A runner with a reaction time less than .100 is subject to disqualification as that is deemed too fast of a reaction time. For electronically timed 40-yard dashes, the runner is allowed to start when he wishes, and a timer hand-starts the clock. This aspect means that comparisons with track times are impossible given that a reaction time is not factored in. Furthermore, the use of hand-timing in the 40-yard dash can considerably alter a runner's time; the methods are not comparable to the rigorous electronic timing used in track and field.

text: Jacoby Ford, who ran a 4.28 s in the 2010 NFL Combine, had a collegiate best of 6.51 s in the 60-meter dash (outside the top-40 of the all-time lists).[4] This highlights the difficulties in comparing track running times to football 40-yard times due to the different timing methods.[5]

text: Records[edit]

text: Auburn's Bo Jackson claims to have run a 40-yard dash with a time of 4.12 s.[6][7] A time of 4.18 run by Jackson within the same week added some support to the legitimacy of the times.[8][9] Texas Tech's Jakeem Grant was hand-timed by a New Orleans Saints scout as running a 4.10 in 2016, potentially beating Jackson's record.[10] Deion Sanders ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash in 1989.[11]

text: In 2013, Carlin Isles recorded a time of 4.22 at a Detroit Lions facility during a workout.[12]

text: In 2017 Olympic sprinter Christian Coleman ran a time of 4.12 seconds on turf in response to claims that NFL players are as fast as Usain Bolt.[13]

text: Records at the NFL Scouting Combine[edit]

text: This is a list of the official 40-yard dash results of 4.30 seconds or better recorded at the NFL Scouting combine since 1999, the first year electronic timing was implemented at the NFL Scouting Combine.[14][15]

text:
Time
Name
Height
Weight
Position
College
Year
Draft

4.22[16]
John Ross
5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
190 lb (86 kg)
Wide receiver
Washington
2017
No. 9 overall by Cincinnati Bengals

4.24
Rondel Menendez
5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
192 lb (87 kg)
Wide receiver
Eastern Kentucky
1999
No. 247 overall by Atlanta Falcons

4.24
Chris Johnson
5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
192 lb (87 kg)
Running back
East Carolina
2008
No. 24 overall by Tennessee Titans

4.26
Jerome Mathis
5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
184 lb (83 kg)
Wide receiver
Hampton
2005
No. 114 overall by Houston Texans

4.26
Dri Archer
5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
173 lb (78 kg)
Running back
Kent State
2014
No. 97 overall by Pittsburgh Steelers

4.27
Stanford Routt
6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
193 lb (88 kg)
Cornerback
Houston
2005
No. 38 overall by Oakland Raiders

4.27
Marquise Goodwin
5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
181 lb (82 kg)
Wide receiver
Texas
2013
No. 78 overall by Buffalo Bills

4.28
Champ Bailey
6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
192 lb (87 kg)
Cornerback
Georgia
1999
No. 7 overall by Washington Redskins

4.28
Jacoby Ford
5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
190 lb (86 kg)
Wide receiver
Clemson
2010
No. 108 overall by Oakland Raiders

4.28[17]
Jalen Myrick
5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
200 lb (91 kg)
Cornerback
Minnesota
2017
No. 222 overall by Jacksonville Jaguars

4.28[18]
J. J. Nelson
5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
156 lb (71 kg)
Wide receiver
UAB
2015
No. 159 overall by Arizona Cardinals

4.28
DeMarcus Van Dyke
6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
187 lb (85 kg)
Cornerback
Miami
2011
No. 81 overall by Oakland Raiders

4.29
Fabian Washington
5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
188 lb (85 kg)
Cornerback
Nebraska
2005
No. 23 overall by Oakland Raiders

4.29
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
184 lb (83 kg)
Cornerback
Tennessee State
2008
No. 16 overall by the Arizona Cardinals

4.29
Josh Robinson
5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
199 lb (90 kg)
Cornerback
UCF
2012
No. 66 overall by Minnesota Vikings

4.30
Darrent Williams
5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
176 lb (80 kg)
Cornerback
Oklahoma State
2005
No. 56 overall by Denver Broncos

4.30
Tye Hill
5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
185 lb (84 kg)
Cornerback
Clemson
2006
No. 15 overall by St. Louis Rams

4.30
Yamon Figurs
5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
174 lb (79 kg)
Wide receiver
Kansas State
2007
No. 74 overall by Baltimore Ravens

4.30
Darrius Heyward-Bey[19]
6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
210 lb (95 kg)
Wide receiver
Maryland
2009
No. 7 overall by Oakland Raiders

text: Average time by position[edit]

text: According to a five-year NFL combine report, wide receivers and cornerbacks had the fastest average times at 4.55, followed by running backs at 4.59. The following average times were measured between 2008 and 2012 at the NFL combine.[20]

text:
Position
Time

Wide receiver
4.55

Cornerback
4.55

Running back
4.59

Safety
4.62

Outside linebacker
4.74

Tight end
4.77

Fullback
4.80

Inside linebacker
4.80

Quarterback
4.87

Defensive end
4.88

Defensive tackle
5.13

Center
5.30

Offensive tackle
5.32

Offensive guard
5.36


document_title: Artificial kidney

question_text: name the procedure used in the working of an artificial kidney

text: Artificial kidney

text: Medical uses[edit]

text: Kidney failure[edit]

text: Kidneys are paired vital organs located behind the abdominal cavity at the bottom of the ribcage corresponding to the levels T12-L3 of the spine vertebrae. They perform about a dozen physiologic functions and are fairly easily damaged. Some of these functions include filtration and excretion of metabolic waste products, regulation of necessary electrolytes and fluids and stimulation of red blood cell-production.[1] These organs routinely filter about 100 to 140 liters of blood a day to produce 1 to 2 liters of urine, composed of wastes and excess fluid.[2]

text: Kidney failure results in the slow accumulation of nitrogenous wastes, salts, water, and disruption of the body's normal pH balance. This failure occurs over a long period of time, and when the patient's renal function declines enough over the course of the disease, is commonly known as end stage renal disease (ESRD; which is also known as Level 5 or 6 kidney disease, depending on whether dialysis or renal replacement therapy is used). Detecting kidney disease before the kidneys start to shut down is uncommon, with high blood pressure and decreased appetite being symptoms that indicate a problem.[3] Diabetes and high blood pressure are seen as the 2 most common causes of kidney failure.[4] Experts predict that the demand for dialysis will increase as the prevalence of diabetes increases.[5] Until the Second World War, kidney failure generally meant death for the patient. Several insights into kidney function and acute kidney failure were made during the war.[6]

text: 1 in 3 American adults are at a risk for developing kidney disease.[7] Over 26 million American adults have kidney disease and most are not aware of it.[7] More than 661,000 of them have kidney failure and 468,000 are on dialysis.[7] The large population of individuals with kidney failure drives continuing advancements in the technology of artificial kidneys so that more people can have access to treatments.

text: Home hemodialysis has become rare because of its disadvantages. It is expensive, time consuming and space inefficient. In 1980, 9.7% of the dialysis population was on home hemodialysis but by 1987 the proportion had dropped to 3.6%.[8]

text: According to a 2011 report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the United States of America has the second-highest rate of dialysis among advanced countries after Japan.[5] The United States has the highest mortality rate among patients with ESRD. On average 20% of American ESRD patients die annually, which is more than twice that of Japan.[5] The growth of dialysis facilities in the United States is the result of more Americans developing end-stage renal disease. From 2001 to 2011 the number increased by about 49.7% from 411,000 citizens to 615,000 citizens.[5] In 2001 there were only 296,000 Americans on some form of dialysis.[5] Ten years later that number increased to more than 430,000 as a result of chronic conditions developing such as diabetes and hypertension.[5]

text: Need for a bioartificial kidney[edit]

text: Over 300,000 Americans are dependent on hemodialysis as treatment for kidney failure, but according to data from the 2005 USRDS 452,000 Americans have end-stage kidney disease (ESKD).[9] Intriguing investigations from groups in London, Ontario and Toronto, Ontario have suggested that dialysis treatments lasting two to three times as long as, and delivered more frequently than, conventional thrice weekly treatments may be associated with improved clinical outcomes.[10] Implementing six-times weekly, all-night dialysis would overwhelm existing resources in most countries. This, as well as scarcity of donor organs for kidney transplantation has prompted research in developing alternative therapies, including the development of a wearable or implantable device.[11]

text: Proposed Solutions[edit]

text: Artificial Kidney[edit]

text: Hemodialysis is a method for removing waste products such as creatinine and urea, as well as free water from the blood when the kidneys are in kidney failure. The mechanical device used to clean the patients blood is called a dialyser, also known as an artificial kidney. The other name for artificial kidney is also called a dialysis machine. Modern dialysers typically consist of a cylindrical rigid casing enclosing hollow fibers cast or extruded from a polymer or copolymer, which is usually a proprietary formulation. The combined area of the hollow fibers is typically between 1-2 square meters. Intensive research has been conducted by many groups to optimize blood and dialysate flows within the dialyser, in order to achieve efficient transfer of wastes from blood to dialysate.

text: Implantable Artificial Kidney[edit]

text: The implantable artificial kidney is a second project that is being co-developed by a nephrologist named William H. Fissell IV, MD, from the Vanderbilt University Medical Center with Professor Shuvo Roy from the University of California, San Francisco. Fissell and his colleges have been working on the implantable artificial kidney for over a decade but recently received a 6-million-dollar grant in November 2015 to further continue the research and development of the project. The goal of this project is to create a bio-hybrid device that can imitate the functions of a healthy kidney by removing enough waste products to keep a patient from needing dialysis treatment. The key to the success of this device is the use of silicon nanotechnology and the microchip which is precious and can act as a natural filter. Fissell and his team have designed each pore (of the filter) to perform a specific function or task. The microchips will also act as a platform for which living kidney cells will reside and grow on and around the filters with the goal of imitating the natural functions of the kidney. The bio-hybrid device will not be in reach of the body’s immune response which allows it to be protected against being rejected by the patient's body. The device will be designed to be small enough to fit inside a patient’s body that will successfully operate with the patient’s natural blood flow. Fissel and his research team continue to make progress and they expected the implantable artificial kidney would enter human trials by 2017. [12][13]

text: Wearable artificial kidney[edit]

text: A wearable artificial kidney is a wearable dialysis machine that a person with end-stage kidney disease could use daily or even continuously. A wearable artificial kidney (WAK) is not available, but research teams are in the process of developing such a device. The goal is to develop a portable device that will be able to imitate the functions of the regular kidney. This device would allow for a patient to be treated twenty-four hours a day. With the development of miniature pumps, the hope of an effective wearable hemodialysis device has become realizable. Some patients already receive continuous peritoneal dialysis treatment which allows them to remain ambulatory. However, only a small portion of dialysis patients use peritoneal dialysis treatment because it requires large amounts of dialysate to be stored and disposed. A healthy individual's kidneys filter blood 24 hours/day, 168 hours/week compared to an individual with end-stage renal disease whose dialysis treatment plan is approximately 12 hours a week. The treatment results in a lower quality of life as well as a higher mortality rate for patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD). Therefore, there is a need for an around-the-clock device that will allow ESRD patients to receive dialysis continuously while maintaining a normal life.[14][15][16] The FDA approved the first human clinical trial in the United States for a wearable artificial kidney designed by Blood Purification Technologies Inc. The prototype of the WAK is a 10-pound device, powered by nine-volt batteries, which connects to a patient via a catheter, and should use less than 500mL of dialysate.[14] It is designed to run continuously on batteries, allowing patients to remain ambulatory when wearing the device, leading to a greater quality of life.The device is designed to improve other physiological aspects of the patient’s health such as improved volume control, decreased hypertension and sodium retention, as well as a decreased rate of cardiovascular disease and stroke.[14][15][16]

text: Experiments of the Wearable Artificial Kidney[edit]

text: The wearable artificial kidney (WAK) has constantly been modified throughout the years for the better of people who have kidney failure. To try and make the WAK usable, several experiments have been conducted. While conducting these experiments for the WAK, similar goals are trying to be achieved. For example, a main goal that these experiments are trying to achieve is to make sure that the WAK can function like a regular kidney.

text: One experiment that took place included eight people who wore the WAK for four to eight hours.[14] As the participants wore the WAK, several outcomes occurred. For example, one outcome during the experiment was that the fluid removal for the WAK was controlled correctly by an ultrafiltration pump.[14] Another outcome that took place during this experiment was that a needle connected to the WAK ended up disconnecting itself.[14] When this happened, the WAK was able to recognize this, and the blood stopped pumping.[14] When the blood stopped pumping, the needle could be reinserted without the body losing a large amount of blood.[14] As other research has been conducted, it has been argued that using an ultrafiltration pump may not be the best pump for the WAK. For example, research has found that by using a peristaltic pump instead, would allow a person to know their blood flow rate without having a sensor, which is needed in an ultrafiltration pump used in the experiment mentioned above.[17] A change in the type of pump used for the WAK may be crucial because it could help make the device cheaper and more reliable for the public by not having a sensor.[17]

text: After doing a lot of research on the WAK, several research questions have been answered. For example, researchers have found out that the WAK can work without an outlet because it has been able to function on a nine-volt battery.[14] Although, it has been argued by researchers that using nine-volt batteries are not effective enough for the WAK because it does not power the device long enough and indirectly it makes the WAK less affordable when having to constantly change the batteries.[18] Due to this, other energy sources are being explored, for example, researchers are seeing if fuel cells, wireless transmission of energy from an active source, or harvesting energy from the environment would be better ways to power the WAK for longer periods of time.[18] Several questions have been answered about the WAK, but many research questions are still left unanswered. Researchers are still trying to figure out if the WAK can be energy efficient, affordable, and if it can reuse small amounts of dialysate.[14]

text: Implantable Renal Assist Device (IRAD)[edit]

text: Currently, no viable bioengineered kidneys exist. Although a great deal of research is underway, numerous barriers exist to their creation.[19][20][21]

text: However, manufacturing a membrane that mimics the kidney's ability to filter blood and subsequently excrete toxins while reabsorbing water and salt would allow for a wearable and/or implantable artificial kidney. Developing a membrane using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology is a limiting step in creating an implantable, bioartificial kidney.

text: The BioMEMS and Renal Nanotechnology Laboratories at the Cleveland Clinic's Lerner Research Institute have focused on advancing membrane technology to develop an implantable or wearable therapy for end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). Current dialysis cartridges are too large and require superphysiologic pressures for blood circulation, and pores in current polymer membranes have too broad of a size distribution and irregular features. Manufacturing a silicon, nanoporous membrane with narrow pore size distributions improves the membrane's ability to discriminate between filtered and retained molecules. It also increases hydraulic permeability by allowing the mean pore size to approach the desired cutoff of the membrane. Using a batch-fabrication process allows for strict control over pore size distribution and geometry.[22]

text: Studies show human kidney cells were harvested from donated organs unsuitable for transplantation, and grown on these membranes. The cultured cells covered the membranes and appear to retain features of adult kidney cells. The differentiated growth of renal epithelial cells on MEMS materials suggests that a miniaturized device suitable for implantation may be feasible.

text: A UCSF-led effort to create an implantable artificial kidney for dialysis patients has been selected as one of the first projects to undergo more timely and collaborative review at the Food and Drug Administration.

text: The FDA announced on April 9, 2012, that it had chosen three renal device projects to pilot a regulatory approval program called Innovation Pathway 2.0, intended to bring breakthrough medical device technologies to patients faster and more efficiently.

text: The artificial kidney project, which is targeted for clinical trials in 2017, was selected for its transformative potential in treating end stage kidney disease and for its potential to benefit from early interactions with the FDA in the approval process.

text: The FDA effort will involve close contact between the federal agency and device developers early in the development process to identify and address potential scientific and regulatory hurdles and create a roadmap for project approval. The goal is to improve the projects’ overall chance of success, while reducing the time and cost of FDA review and maintaining safety. Lessons, the agency said, will inform approvals in other areas.