https://sports.yahoo.com/le-bron-ja...r-critical-to-me-and-my-future-225237071.html
critical to his future??
critical to his future??
New Album & The Beginning of Basketball Season
- Thread starter Ron Party
- Start date
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Or how about this one. Hasn’t he learned to stop meddling.
And Magic will buy into it as well as finding him a new coach
https://www.nba.com/article/2019/04/04/lebron-james-active-los-angeles-lakers-offseason
And Magic will buy into it as well as finding him a new coach
https://www.nba.com/article/2019/04/04/lebron-james-active-los-angeles-lakers-offseason
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
More fallout from the Anthony Davis fiasco
Report: Pelicans begin interviews for GM post
BRETT MARTEL | The Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS -- The New Orleans Pelicans began interviewing candidates to become the club's new general manager on Thursday, a person familiar with the process said.
The list of candidates includes current Pelicans interim general manager Danny Ferry, as well as former Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin, Golden State assistant GM Larry Harris, Brooklyn Nets assistant GM Trajan Langon, Houston Rockets assistant GM Gersson Rosas and interim Washington president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard, the person told The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the club has not announced any candidates to fill the job that opened when ninth-year GM Dell Demps was fired amid the fallout from All-Star Anthony Davis' trade request.
New Orleans' next GM is expected to oversee a Davis trade -- which could take place as early as this offseason -- that has the potential to set the course of the franchise for years to come. That person also could decide the fate of coach Alvin Gentry.
The Pelicans' record is 32-47, and they will miss the playoffs for the third time in four years.
Ferry, who was serving as a Pelicans front office consultant the past three seasons, was tapped to fill in for Demps for at least the rest of this season. The 52-year-old has been a general manager twice before with Cleveland and Atlanta. He also worked in San Antonio's front office. He built a playoff team in Atlanta, but was bought out in 2015 amid controversy when a recording of him speaking derisively about a player's African ancestry was made public. Ferry, a former Duke and NBA player, has maintained he was reading from someone else's scouting report when the recording was made.
Griffin, 45, was the Cavaliers GM from 2014 to 2017, during which LeBron James returned from Miami to Cleveland and the Cavs won an NBA title. But his contract was not renewed after the 2016-17 season and James joined the Los Angele Lakers in free agency a year later.
Harris, 56, spent nearly two decades with Milwaukee's front office, starting in scouting and working his way up to general manager from 2003 to 2007. He has been with the Warriors since 2008.
Langdon is a former Duke and NBA player who also played professionally in Europe. The 42-year-old has served as Nets assistant GM since 2016 and has helped rebuild Brooklyn into a squad that entered Thursday's games on the cusp of qualifying for the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Rosas, a native of Colombia, has more than a decade of NBA front office experience, primarily with the Houston Rockets and also has worked with USA Basketball as an international player scout.
Sheppard stepped into his current interim post this week after the Wizards' fired Ernie Grunfeld, and it is unclear how the 50-year-old's potential for advancement with his current team could affect his interest in joining the Pelicans.
It seems to me anything LeBron gets his hands onto turns amuck for anyone associated with it.
Report: Pelicans begin interviews for GM post
BRETT MARTEL | The Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS -- The New Orleans Pelicans began interviewing candidates to become the club's new general manager on Thursday, a person familiar with the process said.
The list of candidates includes current Pelicans interim general manager Danny Ferry, as well as former Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin, Golden State assistant GM Larry Harris, Brooklyn Nets assistant GM Trajan Langon, Houston Rockets assistant GM Gersson Rosas and interim Washington president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard, the person told The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the club has not announced any candidates to fill the job that opened when ninth-year GM Dell Demps was fired amid the fallout from All-Star Anthony Davis' trade request.
New Orleans' next GM is expected to oversee a Davis trade -- which could take place as early as this offseason -- that has the potential to set the course of the franchise for years to come. That person also could decide the fate of coach Alvin Gentry.
The Pelicans' record is 32-47, and they will miss the playoffs for the third time in four years.
Ferry, who was serving as a Pelicans front office consultant the past three seasons, was tapped to fill in for Demps for at least the rest of this season. The 52-year-old has been a general manager twice before with Cleveland and Atlanta. He also worked in San Antonio's front office. He built a playoff team in Atlanta, but was bought out in 2015 amid controversy when a recording of him speaking derisively about a player's African ancestry was made public. Ferry, a former Duke and NBA player, has maintained he was reading from someone else's scouting report when the recording was made.
Griffin, 45, was the Cavaliers GM from 2014 to 2017, during which LeBron James returned from Miami to Cleveland and the Cavs won an NBA title. But his contract was not renewed after the 2016-17 season and James joined the Los Angele Lakers in free agency a year later.
Harris, 56, spent nearly two decades with Milwaukee's front office, starting in scouting and working his way up to general manager from 2003 to 2007. He has been with the Warriors since 2008.
Langdon is a former Duke and NBA player who also played professionally in Europe. The 42-year-old has served as Nets assistant GM since 2016 and has helped rebuild Brooklyn into a squad that entered Thursday's games on the cusp of qualifying for the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Rosas, a native of Colombia, has more than a decade of NBA front office experience, primarily with the Houston Rockets and also has worked with USA Basketball as an international player scout.
Sheppard stepped into his current interim post this week after the Wizards' fired Ernie Grunfeld, and it is unclear how the 50-year-old's potential for advancement with his current team could affect his interest in joining the Pelicans.
It seems to me anything LeBron gets his hands onto turns amuck for anyone associated with it.
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I watched the Bucks-Sixers game yesterday and I wondered if the Sixers would prevail as notably are they a good team but they lead throughout the entire game. The Bucks seemed to always be in the game but it wasn't until the final 1 1/2 minutes in the game when the Bucks like a fine race horse, took over and sprinted to the finish line for the win. The Sixers didn't even know what hit them as the Bucks struck so quickly
The Bucks are a very good team. I love watching Giannis play
The Bucks are a very good team. I love watching Giannis play
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
and speaking of Giannis last night........
About Last Night: Giannis' closing statement?
Matt Petersen, NBA.com
Votes for the Kia Most Valuable Player award are not cast until after Game No. 82. That's a good thing, as voters and NBA observers in general still seem divided between Giannis Antetokounmpo and James Harden with less than a week remaining in the regular season.
The Greek Freak punctuated his own campaign in Milwaukee's nationally televised 128-122 win over Philadelphia. To the big-picture purists, Antetokounmpo's 45 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and five blocks were symbolic of the Bucks clinching the No. 1 overall seed in the 2019 playoffs. He is officially the best player on the league's best team, a definition many feel goes hand-in-hand with the Maurice Podoloff Trophy.
Zoom in, and Antetokounmpo's case can be captured in one sequence against his rival unicorn. On one end, the Bucks superstar bullies Joel Embiid in the paint:
The very next possession, Antetokounmpo meets and mutilates an Embiid dunk attempt:
This is apex superstar stuff: a collision of 25-and-under superstars (hopefully) destined to clash in power struggles for years to come. Antetokounmpo owned Embiid all night while rallying his suddenly shorthanded team in the final minutes. Giannis all but clinched the outcome by blocking Embiid again, this time with a merciless swat of Embiid's normally unstoppable spin move.
Thursday's image of Antetokounmpo is one voters will have a hard time forgetting -- unless Harden produces yet another historic performance of his own over Houston's final three games.
And therein lies the danger to Antetokounmpo's MVP run. The Rockets, who lead fourth-place Portland by just half a game, need the final week of the regular season. The Bucks, who have first place all sewn up, do not. Houston could very well require Harden's Herculean efforts to finish the season on their teams. Milwaukee will be sorely tempted to rest their own superstar in preparation for the playoffs.
If that's the case, will the image of Antetokounmpo willing Milwaukee over the contending Sixers be enough? His supporters can only hope so. As for Giannis, whatever doubts he may have had concerning himself were banished when Kobe Bryant challenged him on Twitter nearly two years ago.
"He made me believe it even more," Antetokounmpo admitted after the game. "A guy like Kobe saying 'go get the MVP' made me change my mentality and believe it even more that I can do it.
About Last Night: Giannis' closing statement?
Matt Petersen, NBA.com
Votes for the Kia Most Valuable Player award are not cast until after Game No. 82. That's a good thing, as voters and NBA observers in general still seem divided between Giannis Antetokounmpo and James Harden with less than a week remaining in the regular season.
The Greek Freak punctuated his own campaign in Milwaukee's nationally televised 128-122 win over Philadelphia. To the big-picture purists, Antetokounmpo's 45 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and five blocks were symbolic of the Bucks clinching the No. 1 overall seed in the 2019 playoffs. He is officially the best player on the league's best team, a definition many feel goes hand-in-hand with the Maurice Podoloff Trophy.
Zoom in, and Antetokounmpo's case can be captured in one sequence against his rival unicorn. On one end, the Bucks superstar bullies Joel Embiid in the paint:
The very next possession, Antetokounmpo meets and mutilates an Embiid dunk attempt:
This is apex superstar stuff: a collision of 25-and-under superstars (hopefully) destined to clash in power struggles for years to come. Antetokounmpo owned Embiid all night while rallying his suddenly shorthanded team in the final minutes. Giannis all but clinched the outcome by blocking Embiid again, this time with a merciless swat of Embiid's normally unstoppable spin move.
Thursday's image of Antetokounmpo is one voters will have a hard time forgetting -- unless Harden produces yet another historic performance of his own over Houston's final three games.
And therein lies the danger to Antetokounmpo's MVP run. The Rockets, who lead fourth-place Portland by just half a game, need the final week of the regular season. The Bucks, who have first place all sewn up, do not. Houston could very well require Harden's Herculean efforts to finish the season on their teams. Milwaukee will be sorely tempted to rest their own superstar in preparation for the playoffs.
If that's the case, will the image of Antetokounmpo willing Milwaukee over the contending Sixers be enough? His supporters can only hope so. As for Giannis, whatever doubts he may have had concerning himself were banished when Kobe Bryant challenged him on Twitter nearly two years ago.
"He made me believe it even more," Antetokounmpo admitted after the game. "A guy like Kobe saying 'go get the MVP' made me change my mentality and believe it even more that I can do it.
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
so who is going to be MVP of the league this year?
Harden or Giannis
Harden is a workhorse who like LeBron attacks the basket like a locomotive. He is indeed a superstar. Giannis on the other hand is also a skilled superstar who seems to have finesse that Harden lacks. Giannis has made his entire team superb whereas IMO Harden is the team. Give him the ball and get out of the way.
Earlier in the year Harden was my hands on favorite to win but Giannis lately has shown me how great of a super star he is. He makes his entire team great and this is proved by virtue of the fact that his team has the best record in the NBA whereas Harden might have a 50 point game and the Rockets lose.
IMO Giannis exemplifies what an MVP is
Giannis is the obvious passing of the torch in the NBA
Harden or Giannis
Harden is a workhorse who like LeBron attacks the basket like a locomotive. He is indeed a superstar. Giannis on the other hand is also a skilled superstar who seems to have finesse that Harden lacks. Giannis has made his entire team superb whereas IMO Harden is the team. Give him the ball and get out of the way.
Earlier in the year Harden was my hands on favorite to win but Giannis lately has shown me how great of a super star he is. He makes his entire team great and this is proved by virtue of the fact that his team has the best record in the NBA whereas Harden might have a 50 point game and the Rockets lose.
IMO Giannis exemplifies what an MVP is
Giannis is the obvious passing of the torch in the NBA
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I don't get the rumors that KD is going to the Knicks? Why would he do that?
He apparently doesn't like answering questions from the press - so why go to New York City where he will be more closely scrutinized than any other NBA market?
Does he has a plan with another super star to join the Knicks? Kyrie perhaps?
Is there a worse owner in the NBA than James Dolan? I did see rumors that Jeff Bezos may want to buy the Knicks. He has the money even post-divorce.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...jeff-bezos-has-interest-in-buying-the-knicks/
Stranger things have happened but......
He apparently doesn't like answering questions from the press - so why go to New York City where he will be more closely scrutinized than any other NBA market?
Does he has a plan with another super star to join the Knicks? Kyrie perhaps?
Is there a worse owner in the NBA than James Dolan? I did see rumors that Jeff Bezos may want to buy the Knicks. He has the money even post-divorce.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...jeff-bezos-has-interest-in-buying-the-knicks/
Stranger things have happened but......
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Can you imagine the Thunder now if ownership had kept Harden and not let Durant get away.Those 2 with Westbrooke would be wearing a lot of rings IMOReally?
I hope not...
NYN has the worst record in the NBA, so more ping pong balls to land Zion of Duke. Could that be the reason for KD? Otherwise, I really can't think of a logical reason.
Otherwise, I really can't think of a logical reason.
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
NYN has the worst record in the NBA, so more ping pong balls to land Zion of Duke. Could that be the reason for KD?
Zion Williamson??
I wondered myself what the reason was for letting Harden and then even worse KD go?
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Alex Caruso without doubt will be signed to a long contract by the Lakers
He is their new and great perimeter shooter
I like him and he has been getting a lot of good press recently
I watched the game and was startled to see them win.It just goes to show that on any given night any team can beat any other team
BUT, the playoffs are 7 game series
He is their new and great perimeter shooter
I like him and he has been getting a lot of good press recently
I watched the game and was startled to see them win.It just goes to show that on any given night any team can beat any other team
BUT, the playoffs are 7 game series
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I saw Nick Young finally received his ring for last year's GSW championship ring
What shocked me is that he is presently out of the league as he was waived by the Nuggets after playing only 4 games
His career is over
I always liked the way he could sucker defenders to foul him on his 3 point shots. He was the king of the 4 point plays
What shocked me is that he is presently out of the league as he was waived by the Nuggets after playing only 4 games
His career is over
I always liked the way he could sucker defenders to foul him on his 3 point shots. He was the king of the 4 point plays
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Divac, Sikma, Moncrief headline Hall of Fame Class of 2019
Dave Campbell | The Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- NBA stars Vlade Divac, Sidney Moncrief and Jack Sikma are the headliners of the 2019 class for the Basketball Hall of Fame.
The honorees were announced Saturday in Minneapolis before the Final Four.
Also selected this year were WNBA great Teresa Weatherspoon, NBA players Al Attles, Carl Braun, Chuck Cooper, Bobby Jones and Paul Westphal, NBA coach Bill Fitch, the Tennessee A&I men’s teams from 1957-59 (the first collegiate team to win back-to-back-to-back championships) and the Wayland Baptist University women’s team (which won 131 consecutive games from 1953-58 and 10 Amateur Athletic Union national championships overall).
The class will be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, on Sept. 6.
THE NAISMITH MEMORIAL BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2019 (Official Release):
North American Committee:
BILL FITCH [Coach] -- Fitch, a native of Davenport, Iowa, coached in the NBA for 25 seasons, being named Coach of the Year twice (1976, 1980). In 1996, he was named to the NBA’s Ten Best Coaches of All Time. He led the Boston Celtics to a Championship (1981) and still holds the highest winning percentage in Celtics history (.738). He is the second coach in NBA history to lead a team to three straight 60-win seasons. Prior to coaching in the NBA, Fitch coached collegiately for twelve years leading North Dakota University to consecutive NCAA Division II Final Fours (1965, 1966). He was the recipient of the NBA’s Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award during the 2012-13 NBA season.
BOBBY JONES [Player] -- Jones is an eight-time NBA All-Defensive First Team member (1977-84) and NBA Champion with the Philadelphia 76ers (1983). He is also a four-time NBA All-Star (1977, 1978, 1981, 1982) and the recipient of the 1983 NBA Sixth Man Award. Prior to the Nuggets joining the NBA, Jones was named to the ABA All-Rookie Team (1975), ABA All-Defensive Team twice (1975, 1976) and ABA All-Star Team (1976). As a collegiate athlete, Jones led North Carolina to an NCAA Final Four (1972) and was named a consensus second team All-American (1974). In 1972, Jones represented the USA in Munich, Germany, bringing home an Olympic silver medal.
SIDNEY MONCRIEF [Player] -- Moncrief is a five-time NBA All-Star (1982-1986) and two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1983,1984). He earned NBA All-Defensive Team honors four times (1983-1986) and All-NBA First Team in 1983. In 11 NBA seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks, he averaged 15.6 points and 4.7 rebounds. He played for the University of Arkansas from 1975-79, averaging 16.9 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Moncrief led the NCAA in field goal percentage during the 1975-76 season at .665 and earned Consensus First Team All-America in 1979.
JACK SIKMA [Player] -- Sikma is a seven-time NBA All-Star (1979-85) and NBA Champion with the Seattle SuperSonics (1979). He was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1978 and is the only center in NBA history to lead the league in single-season free throw percentage at .922 (1987-88). In his 14 NBA seasons, Sikma averaged 15.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. Collegiately, Sikma averaged 21.2 points and 13.1 rebounds per game at Illinois Wesleyan, leading the team to three College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin championships. Sikma was twice named a First-Team NAIA All-American and Academic All-American (1976, 1977).
PAUL WESTPHAL [Player] -- Westphal is a five-time NBA All-Star (1977-81), three-time All-NBA First Team member (1977, 1979, 1980) and NBA Champion with the Boston Celtics (1974). In his 12 NBA seasons, he averaged 15.6 points and 4.4 assists per game, including over 20 points per game for five consecutive seasons. A native of southern California, Westphal was a collegiate standout at USC, earning AP Second Team All-America (1971) and averaging over 20 points and 5 assists per game his senior year (1972). Westphal has been inducted in the USC Hall of Fame (1997), Pac-12 Hall of Honor (2008) and the Phoenix Suns Ring of Honor (1998).
TENNESSEE A&I TEAMS OF 1957-59 [Team] -- With Hall of Fame coach John McLendon at the helm, the Tennessee A&I teams of 1957, 1958 and 1959 were the first to win back-to-back-to-back championships in any college division. Known for their fast-breaking and extreme discipline, they dominated their opponents with high scoring and smothering defense. Led on the court by John “Rabbit” Barnhill and Dick Barnett, the team also broke social barriers as they traveled to national tournaments and challenged segregation. Tennessee A&I has since been renamed Tennessee State.
Women’s Committee:
TERESA WEATHERSPOON [Player] -- Weatherspoon is a five-time WNBA All-Star (1999-2003) and two-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year (1997, 1998). Recognized as an iconic player with the New York Liberty, she was the first player to tally 1,000 points and 1,000 assists in the WNBA. Internationally, Weatherspoon is a six-time Italian League All-Star (1989-1994), two-time Russian League champion (1995,1996), and an Olympic gold medalist (1988). A native of Jasper, Texas, Weatherspoon played for Louisiana Tech University (1984-1988) where she was named to the Kodak All-America Team twice (1987, 1988). In 1988, she led her team to an NCAA Championship and was named the recipient of the Wade Trophy. Weatherspoon was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.
THE NAISMITH MEMORIAL BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME DIRECT ELECT MEMBERS:
Contributor Direct Election Committee:
AL ATTLES [Contributor] -- A native of New Jersey, Attles followed his collegiate career at North Carolina A&T by joining the Philadelphia Warriors -- now Golden State from 1960-71 as a player. Since then, he has held numerous roles in the franchise including coach (1970-83), team executive and ambassador to the community. He led the organization to an NBA Championship in 1975 and is one of five Warriors to have his number retired. Attles has been with the Warriors' in one capacity or another for nearly 60 years. In 2014, Attles received the Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award from the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Early African American Pioneers Committee:
CHARLES “CHUCK” COOPER [Player] -- Recognized posthumously, Cooper was born in 1926 in Pittsburgh and played collegiately at West Virginia State University before being drafted in the Navy. He returned to school at Duquesne University (1946-50) where he was an All-American (1950) and the first African American to play in a college basketball game south of the Mason-Dixon line. Cooper briefly joined the Harlem Globetrotters upon graduation, and soon after was the first African-American to be drafted by an NBA team, Red Auerbach’s Boston Celtics. The NBA color barrier was broken in 1950 season by Cooper, Earl Lloyd and Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton.
International Committee:
VLADE DIVAC [Player] -- A native of Yugoslavia, Divac joined the Los Angeles Lakers in 1989 and played in the NBA until 2004. He recorded over 13,000 points, 9,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists, and 1,500 blocked shots. Divac was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team (1990) and NBA All-Star Team (2001). With Yugoslavia he earned two Olympic silver medals (1988, 1996), two European Championships gold medals (1989, 1991) and two FIBA World Championships gold medals (1990, 2002). Divac was named one of European Club Basketball’s 50 Greatest Contributors (2008) and is a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame (2010). His number was retired by the Sacramento Kings, where he currently serves as the General Manager.
Veterans Committee:
CARL BRAUN [Player] -- Recognized posthumously, Braun was a premier guard of the 1950s during his 13-year professional career in the NBA. A native of Brooklyn, he played collegiately at Colgate University from 1945-47. Braun joined the New York Knicks in 1947 and led the team in scoring for seven straight seasons. He was named an NBA All-Star five times (1953-57) and won an NBA Championship with the Boston Celtics in 1962.
Women’s Veterans Committee:
WAYLAND BAPTIST UNIVERSITY TEAMS OF 1948-82 [Team] -- Before the days of NCAA Women’s basketball, the Wayland Baptist University women’s basketball team won 131 consecutive games from 1953-58 and 10 AAU National Championships overall (1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1961, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1975). Rosters included exceptional players such as a three-time AAU All-American Patsy Neal, two-time FIBA World Championships gold medalist Katherine Washington, co-captain of the 1980 United States Olympic team Jill Rankin, and a total of 130 All-Americans. Coach Harley Redin and team sponsor Claude Hucherson, as well as five players have been enshrined in the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame with the team as a whole was recognized as trailblazers of the game in 2013.
Dave Campbell | The Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- NBA stars Vlade Divac, Sidney Moncrief and Jack Sikma are the headliners of the 2019 class for the Basketball Hall of Fame.
The honorees were announced Saturday in Minneapolis before the Final Four.
Also selected this year were WNBA great Teresa Weatherspoon, NBA players Al Attles, Carl Braun, Chuck Cooper, Bobby Jones and Paul Westphal, NBA coach Bill Fitch, the Tennessee A&I men’s teams from 1957-59 (the first collegiate team to win back-to-back-to-back championships) and the Wayland Baptist University women’s team (which won 131 consecutive games from 1953-58 and 10 Amateur Athletic Union national championships overall).
The class will be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, on Sept. 6.
THE NAISMITH MEMORIAL BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2019 (Official Release):
North American Committee:
BILL FITCH [Coach] -- Fitch, a native of Davenport, Iowa, coached in the NBA for 25 seasons, being named Coach of the Year twice (1976, 1980). In 1996, he was named to the NBA’s Ten Best Coaches of All Time. He led the Boston Celtics to a Championship (1981) and still holds the highest winning percentage in Celtics history (.738). He is the second coach in NBA history to lead a team to three straight 60-win seasons. Prior to coaching in the NBA, Fitch coached collegiately for twelve years leading North Dakota University to consecutive NCAA Division II Final Fours (1965, 1966). He was the recipient of the NBA’s Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award during the 2012-13 NBA season.
BOBBY JONES [Player] -- Jones is an eight-time NBA All-Defensive First Team member (1977-84) and NBA Champion with the Philadelphia 76ers (1983). He is also a four-time NBA All-Star (1977, 1978, 1981, 1982) and the recipient of the 1983 NBA Sixth Man Award. Prior to the Nuggets joining the NBA, Jones was named to the ABA All-Rookie Team (1975), ABA All-Defensive Team twice (1975, 1976) and ABA All-Star Team (1976). As a collegiate athlete, Jones led North Carolina to an NCAA Final Four (1972) and was named a consensus second team All-American (1974). In 1972, Jones represented the USA in Munich, Germany, bringing home an Olympic silver medal.
SIDNEY MONCRIEF [Player] -- Moncrief is a five-time NBA All-Star (1982-1986) and two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1983,1984). He earned NBA All-Defensive Team honors four times (1983-1986) and All-NBA First Team in 1983. In 11 NBA seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks, he averaged 15.6 points and 4.7 rebounds. He played for the University of Arkansas from 1975-79, averaging 16.9 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Moncrief led the NCAA in field goal percentage during the 1975-76 season at .665 and earned Consensus First Team All-America in 1979.
JACK SIKMA [Player] -- Sikma is a seven-time NBA All-Star (1979-85) and NBA Champion with the Seattle SuperSonics (1979). He was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1978 and is the only center in NBA history to lead the league in single-season free throw percentage at .922 (1987-88). In his 14 NBA seasons, Sikma averaged 15.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. Collegiately, Sikma averaged 21.2 points and 13.1 rebounds per game at Illinois Wesleyan, leading the team to three College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin championships. Sikma was twice named a First-Team NAIA All-American and Academic All-American (1976, 1977).
PAUL WESTPHAL [Player] -- Westphal is a five-time NBA All-Star (1977-81), three-time All-NBA First Team member (1977, 1979, 1980) and NBA Champion with the Boston Celtics (1974). In his 12 NBA seasons, he averaged 15.6 points and 4.4 assists per game, including over 20 points per game for five consecutive seasons. A native of southern California, Westphal was a collegiate standout at USC, earning AP Second Team All-America (1971) and averaging over 20 points and 5 assists per game his senior year (1972). Westphal has been inducted in the USC Hall of Fame (1997), Pac-12 Hall of Honor (2008) and the Phoenix Suns Ring of Honor (1998).
TENNESSEE A&I TEAMS OF 1957-59 [Team] -- With Hall of Fame coach John McLendon at the helm, the Tennessee A&I teams of 1957, 1958 and 1959 were the first to win back-to-back-to-back championships in any college division. Known for their fast-breaking and extreme discipline, they dominated their opponents with high scoring and smothering defense. Led on the court by John “Rabbit” Barnhill and Dick Barnett, the team also broke social barriers as they traveled to national tournaments and challenged segregation. Tennessee A&I has since been renamed Tennessee State.
Women’s Committee:
TERESA WEATHERSPOON [Player] -- Weatherspoon is a five-time WNBA All-Star (1999-2003) and two-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year (1997, 1998). Recognized as an iconic player with the New York Liberty, she was the first player to tally 1,000 points and 1,000 assists in the WNBA. Internationally, Weatherspoon is a six-time Italian League All-Star (1989-1994), two-time Russian League champion (1995,1996), and an Olympic gold medalist (1988). A native of Jasper, Texas, Weatherspoon played for Louisiana Tech University (1984-1988) where she was named to the Kodak All-America Team twice (1987, 1988). In 1988, she led her team to an NCAA Championship and was named the recipient of the Wade Trophy. Weatherspoon was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.
THE NAISMITH MEMORIAL BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME DIRECT ELECT MEMBERS:
Contributor Direct Election Committee:
AL ATTLES [Contributor] -- A native of New Jersey, Attles followed his collegiate career at North Carolina A&T by joining the Philadelphia Warriors -- now Golden State from 1960-71 as a player. Since then, he has held numerous roles in the franchise including coach (1970-83), team executive and ambassador to the community. He led the organization to an NBA Championship in 1975 and is one of five Warriors to have his number retired. Attles has been with the Warriors' in one capacity or another for nearly 60 years. In 2014, Attles received the Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award from the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Early African American Pioneers Committee:
CHARLES “CHUCK” COOPER [Player] -- Recognized posthumously, Cooper was born in 1926 in Pittsburgh and played collegiately at West Virginia State University before being drafted in the Navy. He returned to school at Duquesne University (1946-50) where he was an All-American (1950) and the first African American to play in a college basketball game south of the Mason-Dixon line. Cooper briefly joined the Harlem Globetrotters upon graduation, and soon after was the first African-American to be drafted by an NBA team, Red Auerbach’s Boston Celtics. The NBA color barrier was broken in 1950 season by Cooper, Earl Lloyd and Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton.
International Committee:
VLADE DIVAC [Player] -- A native of Yugoslavia, Divac joined the Los Angeles Lakers in 1989 and played in the NBA until 2004. He recorded over 13,000 points, 9,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists, and 1,500 blocked shots. Divac was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team (1990) and NBA All-Star Team (2001). With Yugoslavia he earned two Olympic silver medals (1988, 1996), two European Championships gold medals (1989, 1991) and two FIBA World Championships gold medals (1990, 2002). Divac was named one of European Club Basketball’s 50 Greatest Contributors (2008) and is a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame (2010). His number was retired by the Sacramento Kings, where he currently serves as the General Manager.
Veterans Committee:
CARL BRAUN [Player] -- Recognized posthumously, Braun was a premier guard of the 1950s during his 13-year professional career in the NBA. A native of Brooklyn, he played collegiately at Colgate University from 1945-47. Braun joined the New York Knicks in 1947 and led the team in scoring for seven straight seasons. He was named an NBA All-Star five times (1953-57) and won an NBA Championship with the Boston Celtics in 1962.
Women’s Veterans Committee:
WAYLAND BAPTIST UNIVERSITY TEAMS OF 1948-82 [Team] -- Before the days of NCAA Women’s basketball, the Wayland Baptist University women’s basketball team won 131 consecutive games from 1953-58 and 10 AAU National Championships overall (1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1961, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1975). Rosters included exceptional players such as a three-time AAU All-American Patsy Neal, two-time FIBA World Championships gold medalist Katherine Washington, co-captain of the 1980 United States Olympic team Jill Rankin, and a total of 130 All-Americans. Coach Harley Redin and team sponsor Claude Hucherson, as well as five players have been enshrined in the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame with the team as a whole was recognized as trailblazers of the game in 2013.
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
This is for you Philip Good for your Celts hitting their stride at the right time
https://www.nba.com/video/2019/04/06/20190405-gametime-surging-celtics
https://www.nba.com/video/2019/04/06/20190405-gametime-surging-celtics
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