- McDonald's Championship
-
For the LPGA Tour golf tournament, see McDonald's Championship (golf).
McDonald's Championship Sport Basketball Founded 1987 No. of teams 8 Country(ies) Worldwide Ceased 1999 Last champion(s) 
San Antonio SpursThe McDonald's Championship (sometimes called the McDonald's Open) was an international men's basketball cup competition played between the champions of the continental club competitions and an NBA invitee. The McDonald's Championship succeeded the Intercontinental Cup.
In each of the nine years the McDonald's Championship was held the title was won by a team from the NBA, but twice by a close margin. The first time was in the semifinals in 1990, when the New York Knicks trailed Italian club Scavolini Pesaro by three points (107-104) with only 30 seconds on the clock. After successfully defending, the Knicks won possession and Gerald Wilkins netted a three-pointer with eight seconds remaining to send the game into overtime. The other close game came the following year in 1991, when the Los Angeles Lakers defeated Spanish champions Joventut Badalona by just two points (116-114).
The McDonald's Championship was discontinued after 1999, but the FIBA World Club Championship was set to open in 2010 and will be similarly contested by all the continental champions. Although no team from the NBA will be invited in 2010, FIBA intends to invite the NBA winner in subsequent years.[1]
Contents
Format
After the first tournament (3 teams championship format), the competition was disputed in a single elimination format, with the winners of the matches advancing to the next round.
Rules
The competition combined rules of both the NBA and the European leagues. [2]
List of champions
Year Host Champion Runner-up Third Fourth 1987 Milwaukee Milwaukee Bucks
Soviet Union
Tracer MilanoOnly 3 teams 1988 
Madrid Boston Celtics Real Madrid
Yugoslavia Scavolini Pesaro1989 Rome Denver Nuggets Jugoplastika Split Philips Milano FC Barcelona1990 Barcelona New York Knicks Pop 84 Split FC Barcelona Scavolini Pesaro1991 
Paris Los Angeles Lakers Joventut Badalona CSP Limoges
Slobodna Dalmacija Split1993 
Munich Phoenix Suns Buckler Bologna Real Madrid CSP Limoges1995 
London Houston Rockets Buckler Bologna
Perth Wildcats Real Madrid1997 Paris Chicago Bulls
Olympiacos Piraeus
Atenas de Córdoba Paris Basket Racing1999 Milan San Antonio Spurs
Vasco da Gama
Žalgiris Kaunas Varese RoostersMVPs
Year Player Team 1987 Terry Cummings Milwaukee Bucks1988 Larry Bird Boston Celtics1989 Walter Davis Denver Nuggets1990 Patrick Ewing New York Knicks1991 Magic Johnson Los Angeles Lakers1993 Charles Barkley Phoenix Suns1995 Clyde Drexler Houston Rockets1997 Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls1999 Tim Duncan San Antonio SpursTitles by team
Club Titles Boston Celtics1 Chicago Bulls1 Denver Nuggets1 Houston Rockets1 Los Angeles Lakers1 Milwaukee Bucks1 New York Knicks1 Phoenix Suns1 San Antonio Spurs1 Titles by country
Country Titles United States9 References
- ^ New club basketball championship to debut in 2010 - Associated Press (December 9, 2008) (retrieved on May 7, 2007)
- ^ SPORTS PEOPLE: PRO BASKETBALL; Nuggets in Rome Meet - The New York Times (July 5, 1989) (retrieved on September 6, 2006)
See also
External links
NBA vs FIBA Euroleague American Tour · McDonald's Championship · NBA Europe Live Tour · List of NBA vs FIBA games · FIBA World Club Championship · Naismith CupMcDonald's Championship Categories:- McDonald's Championship
- Recurring sporting events established in 1987
- Recurring events disestablished in 1999
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
