In 1993, the Chicago Bulls played the Philadelphia 76ers in an NBA exhibition game at Mellon Arena before a sellout crowd that expected to see Bulls superstar Michael Jordan.
But Jordan announced his retirement from the NBA just prior to the meeting to pursue a short-lived baseball career. He later returned to the NBA.
Since then, the NBA has staged three exhibition games at Mellon Arena — all involving the Cleveland Cavaliers — and attendance figures were significantly less than capacity.
On Tuesday night, the NBA returns to Pittsburgh for an exhibition game between the Cavaliers and defending champion Boston Celtics at Petersen Events Center.
Here is a look at the past three games at Mellon Arena, with estimated attendance:
Date — Result — Attendance
Oct. 28, 2004 — Cavaliers 99, Hawks 94 — 10,000
Oct. 11, 2005 — Cavaliers 96, Celtics 86 — 8,000
Oct. 25, 2006 — Mavericks 83, Cavaliers 81 — 9,000
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