In 1993, Don Calhoun Hit a 75-Foot Shot at a Bulls Game for $1 Million But What Happened After Sparked Outrage
In April of 1993, during a Chicago Bulls halftime show, a 23-year-old office supplies salesman named Don Calhoun stepped onto the court with a chance to do something nearly impossible. The challenge was simple in design but brutal in execution: sink a 75-foot basket from the opposite free-throw line. If he made it, the prize was life-changing $1 million.
Calhoun took the ball and hurled it quarterback-style, launching it down the length of the court. To the amazement of the packed Chicago Stadium crowd, and even Michael Jordan himself, the ball sailed cleanly through the hoop. The building erupted. Don Calhoun, an ordinary fan, had just pulled off the extraordinary. For a brief, euphoric moment, he was a millionaire.
But the celebration didn’t last long. The prize money, which was insured by American Hole ‘N One Inc., was abruptly denied. The reason? Calhoun had played a handful of games for a community college basketball team years earlier, making him technically ineligible under the contest’s fine print. The ruling sparked immediate outrage. Fans and media blasted the decision as unfair, arguing that Calhoun’s brief stint at a small college hardly made him a professional player.
That’s when some big names stepped in. The Chicago Bulls, Coca-Cola, and the restaurant group Lettuce Entertain You pledged to cover the prize themselves if needed. Ultimately, Calhoun was promised the $1 million payout, but not in one lump sum. Instead, he would receive $50,000 a year for 20 years. After taxes, that came to about $38,000 annually a steady stream of income that finally concluded in 2013, two decades after his miracle shot.
The story became legendary, not just for the improbability of the basket itself but for the fight that followed. Calhoun’s “million-dollar shot” became a symbol of both triumph and persistence. It highlighted the fine print that so often undermines promotions, while also showing how public pressure and outrage can force powerful organizations to do the right thing.
Looking back, the event remains one of the most famous halftime moments in NBA history. It wasn’t just about the spectacle of an impossible shot it was about the journey afterward. Calhoun’s story serves as a reminder that sometimes, even after you achieve the unthinkable, you still have to fight for your reward.
In the end, Don Calhoun’s million-dollar shot wasn’t just a highlight it was a hard-earned lesson in resilience, fairness, and the importance of never backing down once you’ve won what you deserve.