The James Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is one step closer to joining the roster of countless basketball legends.
Three-time WNBA champion Candace Parker, Team USA’s 1996 Women’s National Team member Elena Delle Donne and Chamique Holdsclaw were announced Wednesday as finalists for the Hall of Basketball, which will soon welcome many of the most recognizable players in women’s basketball history. Former NBA All-Stars Blake Griffin and Amar’e Stoudemire are also finalists, and Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers is one step closer to the Hall of Fame.
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Two-time WNBA MVP Parker will forever be an influential figure in women’s basketball. In 2008, after a respected career at the University of Tennessee, she immediately had a career breakthrough, becoming the first (and only) player in league history to win MVP and Rookie of the Year honors. Hall of Famers Wilt Chamberlain and Wes Unseld are the only NBA players to do that. Parker’s 16-year career ends in 2023. He ranks 10th in WNBA history in total points, 3rd in rebounds, 11th in assists, 5th in blocks, and 18th in steals. In 2016, she led the Los Angeles Sparks to their fourth championship in franchise history and was named the WNBA Finals MVP. In 2021, she led her hometown Chicago Sky to the team’s only WNBA championship.
Nicknamed the “Women’s Dream Team,” the 1996 U.S. Women’s National Team remains one of the most dominant teams in the history of the sport. The organization is led by several notable individuals who have been inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame: Dawn Staley, Lisa Leslie, Rebecca Lobo, Cheryl Swoopes, Teresa Edwards and Katrina McClain. The list also includes Jennifer Aziz, Ruth Bolton, Venus Lacey, Nikki McCrea, Cara McGee and Katie Stedding. The team helped birth the WNBA, beating opponents by an average of 28.6 points per game and winning the gold medal.
Delle Donne, whose 10-year career ends in 2023, is the only player in WNBA history to win MVP honors with multiple teams (2019 with the Washington Mystics, 2015 with the Chicago Sky). With her unique combination of shooting touch and basketball IQ, she moved one step closer to the Hall, becoming the first player in WNBA history to join the prestigious 50-40-90 club (shooting at least 50% from the field, 40% from three-point range, and 90% from the free throw line for an entire season). Her career scoring average of 19.5 points per game ranks fifth in WNBA history.
Holdsclaw averaged 16.9 points and 7.9 rebounds in his first career season and won the 1999 WNBA Rookie of the Year Award. In her 11 WNBA seasons, she finished in the top 10 in MVP voting six times, during which she averaged 16.9 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. She reached her peak in 2003, averaging 20.5 points and 10.9 rebounds per game for the Washington Mystics. She finished her career as a three-time WNBA All-Pro and six-time All-Star, winning the league’s scoring title in 2002 while twice leading the league in rebounding. But those accomplishments come as no surprise considering her elite college career at Tennessee, where she earned two Naismith Player of the Year honors (1998-99) and led the Lady Volunteers to three championships.
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In this year’s men’s basketball finals, Rivers is one of seven coaches in NBA history to win Coach of the Year honors in his first season, an honor he won with the Orlando Magic in 1999-00. His 1,183 regular season wins rank sixth in NBA history. In 2008, he led the Boston Celtics to break their more than 20-year championship drought and create the greatest single-season reversal in NBA history. In 2022, the NBA named Rivers one of the 15 greatest coaches in league history.
Griffin, who retires after the 2022-23 season, has been one of the NBA’s most talented and athletic players for years. He averaged 21.4 points and 9.0 rebounds in 765 career games, including a special performance as the face of Lob City during arguably the most successful era in Los Angeles Clippers history. In the 2013-14 season, he averaged 24.3 points (the second-highest scoring average of his career), 9.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game, finishing third in MVP voting. His seven triple-doubles are tied for second-most in Clippers history.
Like Griffin, Stoudemire’s athleticism and unparalleled offensive skills make for a unique combination in a special career. The Phoenix Suns played a key role in their resurgence under two-time MVP Steve Nash and then-coach Mike D’Antoni, who was a Hall of Fame finalist along with Stoudemire. Stoudemire was selected to the All-Star team six times and to the All-NBA team five times during his 14-year NBA career. In his prime, the 2002-03 Rookie of the Year averaged over 25 points per game and was one of the league’s most powerful dunkers. He averaged 18.9 points and 7.8 rebounds in 846 career games.
D’Antoni’s 253 regular-season wins in Phoenix rank third in franchise history. As coach of the Suns in Seven Seconds or Less, he reached the Western Conference Finals twice. During D’Antoni’s four full seasons as coach (2004-05 to 2007-08), the Suns ranked third in the NBA in winning percentage (.707) and total wins (232).
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This year there are 21 finalists. Others include Max Johnson, Mark Fife, Jerry Welsh, Dick Motta, Gary McKnight, Kelvin Sampson, Molly Bolling-Katzmer, Tal Brodie, Joey Crawford and Kevin Johnson. Selectees will be announced in April. Inauguration weekend is scheduled for later this year at the Mohegan Sun Arena, beginning with an unveiling celebration and awards night on Aug. 14. The graduation ceremony will be held the next day at Symphony Hall in Springfield, Massachusetts.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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