Cases for Hall deserve a look

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame released its list of candidates for the Class of 2024 and it’s an interesting and debatable group with no slam-dunk entry. (Sorry for the pun.)

Let’s take a look at some of the North American nominees, their credentials, and whether they are worthy for induction:

■ Chauncey Billups — In The Trail Blazers coach is an annual candidate and this may be his best chance. Billups was a five-time All-Star, three-time All-NBA, two-time All-Defense, and an NBA champion in 2004, when he was also named Finals MVP for leading the Pistons to a stunning five-game win over the Lakers.

What may be holding Billups back is the slow start to his career: He played with four teams, including the Celtics, before finally finding a home in Detroit. Rick Pitino traded Billups, who was the No. 3 overall pick in 1997, after 51 games in Boston, a move he later told the Globe he regretted. When he found his footing in Detroit, Billups became an indispensable player and franchise leader. Yet, his lack of eye-popping stats — 15.2 points and 5.4 assists per game — has likely been the primary reason he has not already been inducted.

But if there’s a year for Billups, it’s this year. It’s not a banner class and Billups is the best of the group.

■ Vince Carter — In He’s right next to Billups as the best candidate of this group; the only thing lacking on his résumé is an NBA championship. Carter entered the NBA in 1998 as an athletic marvel, turning into one of the greatest in-game dunkers of all time. And who could forget the 2000 dunk contest in Oakland when he wowed the crowd? Carter also turned himself into a productive player and savvy veteran as he aged. As many of his contemporaries played themselves out of the league because of their refusal to accept a lesser role, Carter played until he was 43 and would still show flashes of his athletic prowess.

Carter was an eight-time All-Star, two-time All-NBA, the 1998-99 Rookie of the Year, and an Olympic gold medalist in 2000 for Team USA. He is also 20th in scoring and is top 50 in steals, ninth in 3-pointers, 27 th in field goals, and third in games. Add to that a storied career at the University of North Carolina and Carter is in.

■ Walter Davis — Out There is a sad tone to his candidacy because Davis died in November at age 69. He is a prime example of a great player who was overlooked in the 1980s because his name wasn’t Jordan, Bird, or Johnson, and he never played on a great team. Davis was a prolific scorer who averaged 20 or more points in six of his 15 seasons.

Davis averaged 51.1 percent shooting from the field for the Suns, Nuggets, and Trail Blazers. He was a six-time AllStar, two-time All-NBA, and the 197778 Rookie of the Year. At 36, playing mostly as a reserve for the Nuggets, Davis averaged nearly 19 points per game. He was a smooth shooter, solid defender, and a menace from midrange. A quiet personality who never brought attention to himself, he was overlooked by many because he never played in an NBA Finals.

Add his four strong seasons at the University of North Carolina in the mid-1970s and Davis has a strong case. Davis will eventually be inducted, but perhaps not this year.

■ Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway — Out One of the NBA’s greatest what-ifs. He was a modern-age Magic Johnson ,a 6-foot-7-inch natural point guard with the ability to shoot from midrange and get to the rim with ease. He starred for two years at Memphis State before being selected by the Warriors No. 3 overall in 1993 and traded to the Magic on draft night. Hardaway reached the AllStar Game in four of his first five seasons before knee issues hindered the remainder of his career.

In his six seasons with the Magic, he averaged 19 points, 6.3 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.9 steals. He was a certain Hall of Famer, but he was never able to escape injuries and he finished his career as a reserve only capable of flashes of his past brilliance. Hardaway is not likely to get elected because of his overall numbers. There will eventually be a strong argument for Hardaway if you compare him with Grant Hill, one of his contemporaries who reached the Hall despite an injury-riddled career. Hill’s case was stronger because he won two national championships at Duke. Hardaway is likely going to have to wait.

■ Marques Johnson — In The 1977 Wooden Award winner at UCLA, Johnson was a five-time All-Star and one of the league’s original point forwards. He played only nine full seasons because of a neck injury that cost him two. Johnson was a three-time All-NBA player and averaged 20 or more points six times, and following his career, Johnson became a character actor, including his wildly popular role in “White Men Can’t Jump.”

Johnson’s case is strong because of his college accolades. He was the player of the year as a senior, when he averaged 21.4 points and 11.1 rebounds. Injuries derailed his professional career, as did a controversial trade to the Clippers, which in the mid-’80s was the worst franchise in professional sports. After a difficult first season with the Clippers in 1984-85, Johnson bounced back to make his final All-Star Game the next season and was voted Comeback Player of the Year.

Johnson is another player that had Hall of Fame talent but didn’t produce the numbers because of his adversities.

■ Michael Cooper — Out Before defense was a major priority in the NBA, Cooper was the league’s best defender. Celtics fans can remember him being a menace to Larry Bird during those epic NBA Finals battles. Cooper also helped popularize the alleyoop — “Alley-oop to Coop,” from legendary announcer Chick Hearn.

Cooper’s résumé is interesting because he averaged just 8.9 points per game, but he was one of the best defenders in the 1980s, along with Alvin Robertson. Cooper won five NBA championships, was eight-time All-Defense, and the 1986-87 Defensive Player of the Year. His candidacy has been boosted in recent years because of the films made about the Lakers-Celtics rivalry, as well as the induction of Dennis Rodman into the Hall, which was strictly because of his defensive prowess.

Cooper spent his career underappreciated because he was not a prolific scorer, but he was the league’s first 3-and-D player as he developed into a solid 3-point shooter.

While the momentum continues to increase for Cooper’s induction, he likely falls short again this time.

■ Bill Laimbeer — Out Luckily for Laimbeer, the Hall is not voted on by Lakers or Celtics fans. Regardless of how you feel about Laimbeer’s style, attitude, or physical play, he was essential to the Pistons’ late-1980s dynasty and he helped revolutionize the game with his ability to stretch the floor as an outside shooter. Laimbeer was a four-time All-Star, led the league in rebounding in 1985-86, and was a strong interior defender. He was a central figure, along with Isiah Thomas, on those Bad Boys Pistons.

Perhaps marring Laimbeer’s candidacy was his reputation as a dirty player who punished those who dared enter the paint. But that was the culture of the 1980s and ‘90s. There were plenty of players in those days who would have been considered unsavory in today’s game. The question voters will have to ask is whether Laimbeer was one of the top five centers in the league during his prime. That’s debatable.

With Rodman, Thomas, and Joe Dumars already in the Hall, it may be difficult for Laimbeer to be the fourth. His career will spark an interesting debate, but he likely falls short of induction.

Layups

Don’t sleep on the Grizzlies’ playoff chances after the return of Ja Morant

(25-game suspension) and Marcus Smart (injury). The Grizzlies won their first four games with Morant back and went into the weekend only five games out of the play-in spot. That’s because besides the Timberwolves, Nuggets, and Thunder, the West is a bunch of average teams bunched in the middle. Just six games separated the fourthseeded Clippers and the 12th-seeded Jazz . . . Speaking of the Clippers, they may have to trade veteran forward P.J. Tucker, who has been unhappy with his playing time since being acquired from the 76ers in the James Harden deal. Tucker’s contract may make him difficult to move. He is owed $11 million this season with a player option for $11 million next season. So whatever team acquires Tucker is likely agreeing to a two-year commitment. Clippers coach Tyronn Lue has tightened his rotations and replaced Tucker with rookie Kobe Brown. Lue has also taken guard Bones Hyland out of the rotation as the Clippers have split the point guard minutes between Harden and Russell Westbrook . . . No NBA coach has been fired yet, but keep an eye on Wesley Unseld,

whose Wizards were 5-25 and losing games by an average of 10.2 points. The Wizards have new management and are in the process of a major rebuild. Washington’s long-term goal is to rebuild through the draft and eventually free agency. The Wizards did re-sign Kyle Kuzma and acquired Jordan Poole

to be competitive and entertaining, but it hasn’t worked. Former first-round pick Johnny Davis has not developed as expected; the Wizards have not had a first-round pick make an All-Star team since Bradley Beal was taken 11 years ago.