Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol and Gregg Popovich headline the list of finalists for the 2023 class of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
"I love the class," Jerry Colangelo, chairman for the Hall of Fame, said in a news conference. "I think this is a loaded class. ... I think this is unique in that we have a lot of first time people and it's unusual when somebody makes it on the first ballot. But this is going to be that unique of class. Because there could be four or five first timers. So, I'm very excited about it."
Other player finalists included former Spurs point guard and 2007 Finals MVP Tony Parker; Becky Hammon, a six-time All-Star in her WNBA career; and Jennifer Azzi, a collegiate national champion at Stanford, an Olympic gold medalist for USA Basketball in 1996 and a five-year WNBA veteran.
Induction is determined through voting conducted by an honors committee comprised of 24 members. A finalist must receive a minimum of 18 votes from the committee to earn entrance to the Hall.