McGrady makes Hall of Fame
BROOKLYN — Former Orlando Magic superstar Tracy McGrady will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Hall officials announced Saturday that McGrady is a member of their class of 2017, along with University of Kansas coach
former UConn All-American
former Chicago Bulls executive former ABA and NBA star
and others. McGrady grew up in Polk County and attended Auburndale High School for three years before he transferred to a prep school in North Carolina.
“This is the ultimate,” McGrady said on an ESPN broadcast. “You’re talking about a guy that came from high school to the pros and [is] now in the Hall of Fame from Central Florida. I never imagined in my career that this moment would be happening so quick. I’m only 37 years old.”
McGrady played four seasons with the Magic and won the NBA scoring title as a Magic player during the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons.
He averaged 28.1 points per game during his Magic tenure. He holds the franchise records for points in a game (62), points in a half (37) and points in a season (2,407).
McGrady played 15 NBA seasons and averaged 19.6 points per game.
McGrady was at home when he received a phone call informing him about his election to the Hall of Fame.
“I got the call, and I couldn’t believe it,” McGrady said. “When he told me, I had him repeat it over again. I wanted him to say it slowly. Tears of joy just ran over me.”
Following a 117-116 loss in Boston on Friday, the Magic played the second game of a back-to-back when they faced the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Saturday.
It always figured to be a rough trip. The game against Boston started at 7:40 p.m., and the game against Brooklyn began at 6:10 p.m. The difference in start times mirrored the effect of a back-to-back in which a team travels west to east and loses an hour switching time zones.
But the Boston-to-Brooklyn turnaround was tougher than expected. A storm in Boston and the need to deice the Magic’s chartered jet delayed the departure from Logan International Airport and delayed the arrival into Newark Liberty International Airport.
The Magic arrived at their Manhattan hotel around 3:15 a.m., coach
said. Vogel cancelled the team’s scheduled morning meeting in an effort to keep his players fresh.
“That happens a handful of times every year in the NBA,” Vogel said before tipoff against the Nets. “You can’t use it as an excuse.”
On Friday night, referees did not call a foul when Celtics power forward
contested last-second layup attempt, leading to a miss by Payton.
On Saturday, the NBA league office released its evaluation of all the calls and non-calls from the game’s final two minutes. According to the NBA, the referees were correct not to call a foul on Johnson.
The report read: “Johnson maintains legal guarding position and makes incidental contact with Payton that does not affect his drive to the basket and shot attempt.”
Because of the delay leaving Boston, members of the Magic traveling party got to watch the Final Four game between the UConn and Mississippi State women’s basketball teams. Mississippi State won the game in overtime on a buzzer-beater, ending UConn’s winning streak at 111 consecutive games.
“It was shocking to see them lose, but it’s just remarkable what they’ve been able to accomplish there,” Vogel said. “It’s a very, very rare feat that translates across multiple sports. You don’t see that in any sport: that level of success. Obviously, they’ve done a great job, and that was a heck of a win for Mississippi State.”