Sacramento Kings fans, rejoice!
With a 120-80 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento clinched a spot in the NBA playoffs.
It has been a while since Sacramento qualified for the postseason — 2006, to be exact. According to ESPN Stats & Information, the Kings’ playoff berth snaps a 16-season postseason drought, the longest streak in NBA history. Before Monday, it was the longest active playoff dry spell in the four major American sports leagues (NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL).
Plenty has changed in sports and society during the Kings’ playoff absence. The iPhone hadn’t yet taken the world by storm, former Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade was on the verge of an NBA Finals performance for the ages, and two prominent social media platforms didn’t exist.
Here’s a look at some notable happenings in sports and society since the Kings last made the playoffs.
The birth of the iPhone
The last time the Kings made the playoffs, the world didn’t know that the iPhone would become one of the most sought-after phones ever. Former Apple CEO and the late Steve Jobs introduced the smartphone in January 2007, calling the device a “revolutionary and magical product that is literally five years ahead of any other mobile phone,” according to company’s website.
Dwyane Wade leads incredible NBA Finals comeback
Sacramento’s last playoff appearance was short-lived, as the San Antonio Spurs eliminated them in the first round. Fast forward to the NBA Finals that year: Wade and the Heat were down 0-2 to the Dallas Mavericks. Nearing the brink of elimination, Wade carried his squad to its first NBA title.
Wade averaged 39.2 points per game over the next four contests, all wins. In a game-clinching Game 6, “Flash” dropped 36 points along with 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks in a 95-92 win to secure his first championship. His sensational series earned him Finals MVP honors. He became the fourth player to score 35-plus points in four straight Finals games. Michael Jordan (1993), Rick Barry (1967) and Elgin Baylor (1962) are the others.
“Wade is the best player ever,” Shaquille O’Neal said of Wade after the game, according to NBA.com.
No Twitter, no Instagram
Twitter and Instagram have become huge platforms in the social media space, but they didn’t exist back when the Kings last made the postseason. Twitter didn’t launch until July…
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