By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Manu Ginobili, Tim Hardaway, Swin Cash, Bob Huggins, Del Harris, Lindsay Whalen, Marianne Stanley, Theresa Shank Grentz, and George Karl are officially the new members of the Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday night in Springfield, Massachusetts.
An international icon, an Olympic gold medalist with Argentina, a EuroLeague champion with Virtus Bologna, and also an NBA champion with the Spurs Ginobili was presented by Tim Duncan, already a Hall of Famer himself, and next year the third member of San Antonio’s legendary Big 3 of players, French Tony Parker will be eligible for selection.
“The Spurs were one big, strong, supportive family for me,” Ginobili said who of course, also gave credit to his coach, Gregg Popovich.
“Pop, what can I say? You’ve been so, so important for me and my family, on and off the court, that’ll I never be able to thank you enough,” Ginobili added.
Serb Radivoj Korac was the choice of the international committee and is already a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame. Korac died tragically on the 2nd of June 1969. He scored 99 points in the European Champions Cup – the predecessor of the EuroLeague – and he is considered widely one of the top scorers ever in the sport.
He led the Yugoslavian national team in the silver medal of the 1968 Olympics.
There was one more moment centered around Europe with coach Karl talking about his years in Real Madrid and how they helped him grow as a coach.
El recuerdo de George Karl al Real Madrid y, en especial, a Fernando Martín #22HOF pic.twitter.com/quvo38YoVB
— EurohoopsES (@EurohoopsES) September 11, 2022
Also honored was one of NBA’s first Black referees in Hugh Evans; six-time All-Star Lou Hudson; former coach Larry Costello; international great Radivoj Korac; and a trio of former Harlem Globetrotters in Wyatt “Sonny” Boswell, Inman Jackson, and Albert “Runt” Pullins. Like Korac all of them are deceased.
A special tribute was paid to two-time Hall of Fame inductee Bill Russell, who made it in as a player, then as a coach. Russell died earlier this year, and the ceremony Saturday began with Hall of Famers Jerry West and Alonzo Mourning paying respect to the 11-time champion.