Point guards go to head of Hoops Hall class
Former Suns Nash, Kidd, Hill all inducted
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Lefty Driesell had the crowd laughing. Dino Radja fought back tears. Blue Devils and Tar Heels brought their rivalry to the Basketball Hall of Fame, and Ray Allen made a peace offering to his spurned Celtics teammates.
And they did it with an assist from three of the greatest point guards in NBA history.
The Springfield shrine inducted its 13-member Class of 2018 on Friday night, recognizing the players, coaches and contributors who broke records and barriers in equal measure.
Rick Welts, the NBA’s first openly gay executive, went in along with Charlie Scott, the first AfricanAmerican to receive an athletic scholarship at North Carolina. Ora Mae Washington was honored for a pre-World War II career in which she won 11 consecutive Women’s Colored Basketball Championships. Tina Thompson was the first-ever draft pick in the WNBA.
Also inducted were New York Liberty coach Katie Smith, the leading scorer in women’s professional basketball history; longtime NBA executive Rod Thorn; and Grant Hill, the first Duke player in the Hall.
“It’s a real honor to go in with all of you guys,” said Steve Nash, who was inducted along with fellow point guards Jason Kidd and Maurice Cheeks.
“I was never even supposed to be here,” said Nash, who was born in South Africa and grew up in Canada and went on to win back-to-back NBA MVP awards. “Play the long game. You don’t have to be the chosen one. If you’re patient, the plateaus will become springboards.”
Allen gave a shoutout to Celtics teammates Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, calling the 2008 NBA championship teammates “future Hall of Famers”; both posted congratulatory messages on social media, a thaw in the relationships that have been icy since he left Boston for Miami to chase another title in 2012.
But Allen spent most of his speech describing a life “repeating those boring old habits” that made him the most prolific 3-point shooter in league history.
“What’s so incredible about it is that I loved it,” he said. “I wouldn’t have rather been anywhere else in the world.”
Kidd trudged up the steps into Springfield’s Symphony Hall carrying a baby stroller. Nash carried his son in his arm. Dikembe Mutombo stopped to take a selfie with Julius Erving and Kyrie Irving. Mark Cuban and Dirk Nowitzki made their way up the red carpet. Larry Bird was a late arrival.
Wayne Gretzky showed up in the video introducing Nash, crediting him with spreading the love of basketball across the hockeyloving country.
“From Vancouver to Newfoundland,” the hockey Hall of Famer said, “he gave them the opening and belief that they could play in the NBA.”