Laimbeer a first-time HOF nominee

Former Detroit Pistons center Bill Laimbeer is up for consideration as a first-time nominee for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player, according to a list released by the Hall on Thursday.

Laimbeer is nominated along with Cheryl Ford of the Detroit Shock on the women's side. Former Michigan basketball coach John Beilein is also up for consideration for the second straight year, and former Piston (and current Trail Blazers head coach) Chauncey Billups is on the ballot for the seventh consecutive season. MSU alumnus and Pistons TV color commentator Greg Kelser is also on the ballot for the second straight year as a pick by the veteran's committee.

Finalists from the Honors Committee for the class of 2024 will be announced on Feb. 16 in Indianapolis during NBA All-Star Weekend. The entire class of 2024 will be unveiled during the NCAA Final Four in Phoenix on April 6.

Laimbeer spent the final 12 seasons of his career as a Piston after being traded by the Cleveland Cavaliers halfway through the 198182 season. He is best known for serving as the enforcing muscle for the "Bad Boys" Pistons teams, racking up hard fouls and technicals as the starting center and "soul" of the team, according to former Pistons coach Chuck Daly.

On top of his bruising persona, Laimbeer was a four-time All-Star and backbone of the Pistons defense, which led the franchise to its two first NBA championships in 1989 and 1990. For his career, Laimbeer averaged 12.9 points, 9.7 rebounds, and just under a block per game. Laimbeer is a first-time nominee along with

Vince Carter, Mike Gminski, Marques Houtman and over a dozen international nominees such as Andrei Kirilenko.

After his playing career, Laimbeer got back into basketball as the head coach of Detroit's WNBA team, the Shock, from 2002-09. The Shock won three WNBA titles under Laimbeer in 2003, 2006, and 2008. He had a 137-93 record in Detroit before resigning at the beginning of the 2009 season. He has coached both the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces since.

One of the players he coached in Detroit was Ford, who is a first-time nominee to make the Hall. Ford was a three-time WNBA champion, all with the Shock, after being selected by Detroit third overall in the 2003 draft. In her first season, she earned All-Star honors and won Rookie of the Year averaging 10.8 points, 10.4 rebounds, one block and one steal per game to help the Shock win its first title.

— Jared Ramsey

Thursday’s game

Pelicans 123, Cavaliers 104: Trey Murphy III scored 28 points while starting in place of New Orleans star Zion Williamson — out with an illness — and the visiting Pelicans won for the fifth time in six games. Murphy started for the first time this season and helped offset the absence of Williamson by making six 3-pointers as the Pelicans won for the fifth time in six games. CJ McCollum scored 18 points for New Orleans. Dean Wade had 20 points and Isaac Okoro 16 for the Cavs, who played without their top three scorers – Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley.