The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame released a star-studded list of first-time eligible candidates for the Class of 2023 on Wednesday.
Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Gregg Popovich, Dwyane Wade and the 1976 U.S. Olympic Women’s Basketball Team make up the group of nominees.
Popovich, the NBA’s all-time winningest coach, was somewhat of a surprise, the biggest surprise. The longtime coach has not previously been willing to have the Hall to list him as a candidate.
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Dirk Nowitzki, #41 of Team Giannis, and Dwyane Wade, #3 of Team LeBron, receive commemorative All-Star jerseys after the NBA All-Star game as part of the 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend at the Spectrum Center on February 17, 2019, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Team LeBron won, 178-164.
(Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Popovich has won five NBA championships as a coach and has been named Coach of the Year three times. For several years, he led the USA men’s basketball team in the Olympics, earning a gold medal in Tokyo.
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He is widely viewed as on the best coaches in history. Since 1996, he has served as the San Antonio Spurs’ head coach.
San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich signals to his players during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Monday, March 7, 2022, in San Antonio.
(AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Dirk Nowitzki rose to stardom during his 21-year run with the Dallas Mavericks. He Is also a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team. Nowitzki was named to 12 NBA All-Star teams and earned an NBA championship. He was a Finals MVP and a regular-season league MVP.
“It will be an unbelievable moment, really,” Nowitzki said of entering the Hall of Fame. (Technically, he still has to be voted in.) “I mean, to top everything that has happened here the last couple years and words and accolades that have come my way, that will be the ultimate … to be enshrined, hopefully, with the greatest in our game ever.”
Dwyane Wade is a virtual lock for the Hall of Fame and is widely viewed as one of the best shooting guards in NBA history. He spent the majority of his prolific career with the Miami Heat, where he won three championships. Wade earned NBA Finals MVP honors in 2006, is a 13-time NBA All-Star, and brought home a gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He was named to the NBA’s All-Defensive team three times.
Pau Gasol had an outstanding basketball career in the NBA, and internationally. Gasol won two NBA championships and is a six-time All-Star. The power forward ended his NBA career with over 11,000 rebounds.
Pau Gasol, #16 of the Los Angeles Lakers, stands in observance of the national anthem before a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Staples Center on March 9, 2014, in Los Angeles, California.
(Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
Internationally, Gasol helped lift Spain to a FIBA World Championship and has two Olympic silver medals. He is the all-time leading scorer in the EuroBasket.
Tony Parker spent the majority of his NBA career being coached by fellow nominee Gregg Popovich. Parker was the 2007 NBA Finals MVP and was named to six All-Star teams. Parker was a key piece of the Spurs dynasty.
He represented France in international basketball and won the 2013 EuroBasket title. He is second all-time in EuroBasket scoring, trailing only Gasol.
WNBA player Beck Hammon is also a first-time nominee. She is a six-time All-Star. The 1976 U.S. Olympic women’s team and the 1982 Cheyney University women’s basketball team, who became the first from a historically Black college to reach the NCAA championship game, were also nominated.
Portland Trail Blazers head coach and longtime player Chauncey Billups is also on the ballot. During his playing days, Billups averaged 15.2 points and 5.4 assists.
Amar’e Stoudemire, Detlef Schremp and Shawn Kemp failed to make the ballot for 2023.
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Finalists will be announced in February. Hall of Famers will be announced in April, and the enshrinement is scheduled for August.
