The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame officially announced the 13 finalists from the North American and Womens committees to be considered for enshrinement into the 2019 class. Of the 13, four were first time finalists including NBA Defensive Player of the Year Ben Wallace as well as Paul Westphal.
Along with those two, National Collegiate Player of the Year Marques Johnson and seven-time NBA All Star Jack Sikma also were named finalists for the first time.
Also up for enshrinement are the all-time winningest high school coach Leta Andrews, referee Hugh Evans, Coach Bill Fitch, eight-time NBA defensive first team Bobby Jones, All-Star Sidney Moncrief, Barbara Stevens, Eddie Sutton, WNBA All-Star Teresa Weatherspoon and All-Star Chris Webber.
The official 2019 class will be announced in Minneapolis, Minn., during the NCAA Final Four. A finalist needs 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee in order to be elected into the Hall of Fame.
Enshrinees from the Direct Elect Committees are also recognized at the NCAA Men’s Final Four and include Early African-American Pioneers, International, Contributors, Veterans and the new Women Veterans.
Much like the 2018 class, this is another star-studded class, with some tough decisions ahead for the committee. Webber, Westphal, Moncrief and Wallace were all considered top-10 players in the NBA at the time of their careers, and all have the accolades, awards and statistics to back the claim.
This is also a great ballot for coaches, including some of the greatest high school and college coaches to ever assume the position like Andrews, Stevens and Sutton. In addition, this ballot includes one of the greatest players in WNBA history in Weatherspoon.
Once the class in announced at the Final Four, they will officially be enshrined in the Hall of Fame at the birthplace of basketball, Springfield, Mass., in September.
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