Recapped: This Year’s Basketball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

This weekend we saw the 2020 Hall of Fame ceremony take place and we may have seen one of the best classes to date with some of the most notorious names in basketball being inducted. Nine basketball legends received their hall of fame jackets.

Patrick Baumann

Before his tragic death in 2018, Patrick Baumann was one of the most important figures in the world of international basketball and FIBA. He was the secretary general of FIFA from 2003-2018, was a player, a coach, and an official before his role in the governing body of FIBA.

Barbara Stevens

As a coach in the NCAA, Stevens was very successful in her coaching years. She is considered one of the best college coaches of all time. She coached Clark, Massachusetts, and Bentley and her overall record in 43 years of coaching was a staggering 1058-291. She coached the 2014 NCAA division two championship team at Bentley who finished a perfect 35-0 season, she won the WBCA Division II coach of the year five times in 1992, 1999, 2001, 2013, and 2014.

Kim Mulkey

As a legendary coach for Baylor’s women’s team for 20 seasons, Mulkey had an all time record of 604-101 with the bears. She is a three time NCAA Division I champion coach in 2005, 2012, and 2019, a two time national champion as a player with Louisiana Tech in 1981 and 1982, a two time national coach of the year in 2012 and 2019, Mulkey has a lot of impressive accomplishments that make her the hall of fame basketball icon that she is.

Eddie Sutton

Sutton coached Crieghton, Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma State, and San Francisco in his 37 years of coaching college basketball. He has a combined record of 806-326 with the five universities and he has won two national coach of the year awards in 1978 and 1986, and has taken Arkansas in 1978 and Oklahoma State in 1995 and 2004 to the final four of the NCAA tournament.

Rudy Tomjanovich

Tomjanovich is one of the most accomplished player/coaches in NBA history winning. He coached the Los Angeles Lakers, and won two NBA championships with the Houston Rockets as a coach in 1994 and 1995, as well as a gold medal in the 2000 Olympic Games. As a player, he was the second pick in the 1970 NBA draft, was named a five time all-star as a player, and leads Michigan State in all time rebounds.

Tamika Catchings

One of the most well known WNBA players of all time, Tamika Catchings was inducted into the hall of fame for her several accomplishments in women’s basketball. Catchings averaged 16.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.4 steals a game in her 15 seasons in the WNBA. She won one WNBA championship as well as a finals MVP in 2012 with the Indiana Fever, she was the 2011 WNBA MVP, was a ten time all-star, a five time defensive player of the year, and a four time olympic gold medalist with United States national team in 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016.

Kevin Garnett

One of the most well known basketball players of all time, Kevin Garnett was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame this weekend. Garnett was known for his fierce competitiveness on the court and of course for letting everyone know that anything is possible. In his 21 years in the NBA, ‘The Big Ticket’ played for The Minnesota Timberwolves, The Boston Celtics and The Brooklyn Nets. He is the only player in NBA history to record 25,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, 5,000 assists, 1,500 blocks and 1,500 steals, he is a 2008 NBA champion with The Celtics, a fifteen time all star, the 2008 NBA MVP, the 2008 defensive player of the year, a gold medalist in 2000, and averaged a double double on his career with 17.8 points and 10 rebounds.

Tim Duncan

Tim Duncan revolutionized the late 90’s and mid 2000’s with the way he used the fundamentals of basketball to his advantage. He is considered one of the greatest forwards in NBA history, and has so many accomplishments to his name. In 19 seasons with the San Antonio Spurs, Duncan averaged 19 points, 10.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks a game. He is a five time NBA champion in 1999, 2003, 2005, and 2007, a fifteen time all star, the 1998 NBA rookie of the year, a two time NBA MVP in 2002 and 2003, and is one of only 3 players to have more than 1000 regular season wins in the NBA.

Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant tragically passed away early last year but the legacy that he left basketball fans will never fade away. He was one of the best basketball players to ever walk the earth and his hall of fame induction was overdue, yet well deserved. Bryant played 20 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers and is one of the biggest names in basketball. Bryant left several memorable moments imprinted in the brains of fans, for example his 81 point game against the Toronto Raptors in 2006. Kobe averaged 25 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists on his career and won five NBA championships in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, and 2010. Kobe was a 18 time all star, the 2008 NBA MVP, and is fourth all time in points scored in the NBA. His wife, Vanessa Bryant and his eldest daughter, Natalia, honored Kobe at the ceremony, and were presented with his hall of fame jacket during the induction of the Black Mamba.