Samaki Ijuma Walker (born February 25, 1976) is an American professional basketball power forward and center. Walker played college basketball at the University of Louisville and was drafted in 1996 by the Dallas Mavericks, where he played until 1999. Walker continued to play for the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers (2001–2003), Miami Heat (2003–2004), Washington Wizards (2004–2005), and Indiana Pacers (2005–2006). Since 2006, Walker has played for various international and minor leagues.

Walker was born in Columbus, Ohio, the youngest of seven children. He attended Eastmoor High School and Whitehall-Yearling High School.

The 6' 9" power forward was selected ninth overall by the Dallas Mavericks in the 1996 NBA Draft out of Louisville. Walker became the youngest-ever Maverick to appear in a regular season game.

Walker went on to play for the Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Washington Wizards and the Indiana Pacers from 1996–2006, having had very limited playing time in his final three years in the league. He averaged 5.3 points and 4.7 rebounds during his 10-year tenure, including 6.7 points per game and 7.0 rebounds in 2001-02, as the Lakers eventually won the NBA Finals. On February 19, 2002, Walker entered the injured list because of a hyperextended elbow. In Game 4 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals on May 26, 2002, Walker made a 3-pointer at the end of halftime, and by then the Sacramento Kings led over the Lakers 65-51. Although the shot counted, television replays showed Walker had released the ball after the buzzer went off. The Lakers won the game 100-99 on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Robert Horry that tied the series at 2. The Lakers won the series in 7 to advance to the Finals. This shot influenced the NBA's decision to institute instant replay for review the following season.

Dwight David Howard (born December 8, 1985) is an American basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Howard, who usually plays center but can also play power forward, had an outstanding high school career at Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy. He chose to forgo college and entered the 2004 NBA Draft, and was selected first overall by the Magic. A six-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA team selection, five-time All-Defensive member, and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Howard has been ranked consistently as one of the best in the league in rebounds, blocks, field goal percentage and free throw attempts, and has set numerous franchise and league records. He has led the Magic to three division titles and one conference title, and he was the winner of the 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. In the 2008 Olympics, he was the starting center for Team USA, which went on to win the gold medal.

Before he was drafted in 2004, Howard said that he wanted to use his NBA career and Christian faith to "raise the name of God within the league and throughout the world". In November 2009, he was named one of the 10 finalists for the Jefferson Awards for Public Service, which awards athletes for their charitable work.

Dirk Werner Nowitzki (German pronunciation: [ˈdɪʁk ˈvɛʁnɐ noˈvɪtski]) (born June 19, 1978) is a German professional basketball player who plays for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). An alumnus of Röntgen Gymnasium and DJK Würzburg basketball club, Nowitzki was drafted ninth overall by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 1998 NBA Draft, and was immediately traded to the Mavericks, where he has played ever since. Standing 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m), Nowitzki plays the power forward position but also has the athleticism and shooting ability to play the other frontcourt positions, center and small forward.

Nowitzki has led the Mavericks to 12 consecutive NBA Playoffs (2000–01–2011–12), including an NBA Finals appearance in 2006 and the franchise's first championship in 2011, making him one of only 5 players in NBA history to win a championship while being the only NBA All-Star on the team. He is an 11-time All-Star and 12-time member of the All-NBA Teams, and the first European-born player in NBA history to receive the NBA Most Valuable Player Award. He is the first Maverick ever to be voted into an All-NBA Team and also holds several all-time Mavericks franchise records. Only Nowitzki and three other players have ever averaged more than 25 points and 10 rebounds in the NBA playoffs, and only Nowitzki and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar have managed 4 consecutive 30-point, 15-rebound games in the playoffs. Additionally, Nowitzki is the only player in NBA history to get 100 blocks and 150 3-pointers in a single season.

Stromile Swift (born November 21, 1979) is a former American professional basketball player. At 6'10" and 220 lbs, he played the power forward and center positions.

Swift spent his college career at Louisiana State University, where he led the Tigers to the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament his sophomore year, during the time when the LSU men's basketball program was under probation and had limited scholarships available. Swift was selected second overall in the 2000 NBA Draft by the Vancouver Grizzlies.

He competed in the 2001 Slam Dunk Competition against Baron Davis, DeShawn Stevenson, Corey Maggette, Desmond Mason, and Jonathan Bender. Swift placed 4th and Desmond Mason of the Seattle Supersonics won the competition.

After the 2004–05 season, he left the Grizzlies as a free agent and signed a four-year, $22 million contract with the Houston Rockets. Before his departure to Houston for the 2005–06 season, Swift was the last remaining player on the Grizzlies roster to have moved with the team from Vancouver.

Japeth Paul C. Aguilar (born January 25, 1987), better known as Japeth Aguilar born in Pampanga, Philippines, is a Filipino basketball player. He recently played for Smart Gilas, and plays for the Talk N Text Tropang Texters in the Philippine Basketball Association. He first played collegiately for the Ateneo Blue Eagles in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, but after two seasons, he moved to the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers in the Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the United States.

Aguilar's father, Peter Aguilar, was a former professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association.

Aguilar suited up as a college freshman for the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines in 2004. However, his first season stint was cut short due to appendicitis, but still managed to score 13 points, grab 11 rebounds and block 10 shots in 55 minutes of action in 10 games.

On his sophomore year, he bounced back from a disappointing first season as he averaged 15.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.2 blocked shots per contest to help lead the Blue Eagles to an 11-5 finish in 2005. He scored in double digits on three occasions, while he just missed a double-double twice after posting nine points and a career-best 10 boards in Ateneo’s season opener as well as 10 points and eight rebounds later in the year in a win over Far Eastern University. Aguilar shot a high 55.4 percent from the field for the season, and he was credited with multiple blocks in 12 of the Blue Eagles’ 16 games — that included a career high of seven as well as two other contest with five or more. He led the University Athletic Association of the Philippines in rejections during his sophomore season, with a total of 48 blocks in 16 games.