2021 Basketball Hall of Fame: Getting to know more about the class

On Saturday, 16 giants of basketball will become immortal.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame will induct its 2021 class highlighted by NBA stars Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce, Chris Webber and Ben Wallace.

Additionally, WNBA greats Lauren Jackson and Yolanda Griffith are getting their nods, and the legendary Bill Russell will be enshrined once again, this time as a coach.

Earlier this year, the Hall of Fame inducted the 2020 class, comprised of Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett, because the COVID-19 pandemic postponed festivities. The 2021 induction ceremony appears to be a return to normalcy for the Hall of Fame, even if it meant two classes were being honoured in one year.

Here’s a little more about each of the most notable inductees whose basketball legacies will now live on forever.

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Chris Bosh

Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh(Frank Gunn/AP/CP)

Though best known to a wider audience for his time with the Miami Heat, Bosh was a star trending towards Hall-of-Fame credentials before his second act on South Beach.

An 11-time all-star, Bosh made five all-star teams and an All-NBA second team during his seven-season stint with the Toronto Raptors, who drafted him fourth overall in what is now considered the near-fabled 2003 draft class.

Bosh’s move to Miami came with some controversy and angst from Raptors fans – as most star moves are bound to do – but his decision to join Miami proved a vital one not just for the overall exposure of his career, but for the fortunes of the Heat. He helped them win two championships in 2012 and 2013, both of which likely don’t come about with his contributions, despite playing with fellow superstars LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.

Bosh played 13 seasons and was hoping to play longer, but unfortunately blood clots developed in his leg, forcing him to miss time in 2016 and eventually into early retirement. This happened just as the NBA was shifting to a more pace-and-space-oriented style where big men move out to the perimeter more, something that Bosh was already doing as a slighter six-foot-11 big through most of his career.

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Paul Pierce

Boston Celtics’ Paul Pierce (34) has signed with the team so he can retire as a Boston Celtic. (Darron Cummings/AP)

A 10-time all-star and four-time All-NBA selection, while Pierce’s résumé is certainly Hall-of-Fame certifiable, it’s probably better to say that he built up his path to the Hall on the strength of his clutch shot-making over the span of his 19-season career.

Fifteen of those 19 seasons were spent with the Boston Celtics, who took him 10th overall in the 1998 draft, and though he had some ups and downs during his tenure with Boston, one thing was always clear with him: He could score the ball and do so during timely moments.

Pierce’s shot-making ability stayed with him through an NBA championship in 2008 with Boston, and all other stops in his career: Brooklyn, Washington and Los Angeles, where he closed out his career with the Clippers in 2017.

In the time since he’s retired, Pierce has made headlines for himself – perhaps negatively – as a media personality, but regardless of what you may think of his opinions of the game today, there’s little doubting his worthiness as a Hall-of-Famer for his time as a player.

Chris Webber

The Michigan Wolverines, led by the ‘Fab Five’ (from left, Jimmy King, Juwan Howard, Chris Webber, Jalen Rose and Ray Jackson).

After eight years of consideration, Webber finally got the call that he is a Hall of Famer – and rightfully so.

Compared to some other names entering in this class Webber’s NBA credentials don’t look as impressive. He was named an all-star just five times over the span of a 15-season NBA career, and though he was a four-time All-NBA selection, including a first-team nod in 2001, the overall arc of Webber’s NBA career was more of a good NBA player’s but not a truly great one.

That doesn’t matter, though, because before he even arrived to the NBA you can argue that Webber was already a HOFer for his two-year stint at Michigan as part of the famed “Fab Five,” helping usher in the now-common practice of having freshmen stars in a collegiate program.

Webber’s infamous timeout call when the Wolverines didn’t have any left during the 1993 National Championship Game is often the first thing most remember about his college career, but that was one awful moment among a near countless list of truly spectacular ones that saw him lead Michigan to consecutive national championship games in 1992 and 1993.

It’s been a long time coming for the No. 1 overall pick of the 1993 draft to make the Hall of Fame, but at long last, he is where he belongs.

Ben Wallace

Ben Wallace drives to the basket against New Jersey Nets. (Duane Burleson/AP)

Though Wallace only averaged 5.7 points per game on dismal shooting splits of 47.4/13.7/41.4 over the span of a 16-season NBA career, he’s getting the nod for the Hall of Fame because of what he proved he could do on the other end of the floor.

A four-time defensive player of the year, six-time all-defensive team selection (including five first-team selections), a two-time rebounding leader and an NBA blocks leader in 2002 to boot, Wallace was the very definition of what it meant to be a defensive anchor during his heyday.

One of the most unlikely Hall of Fame stories you’ll likely find, Wallace hailed from small-town Hayneville, Alabama, and began his collegiate career at Cuyahoga Community College before transferring to HBCU Virginia Union.

He went undrafted in 1996 after he graduated but found his way onto the then-Washington Bullets, spending three seasons there before being traded to the Orlando Magic in 1999. Then, he was then flipped in 2000 to the Detroit Pistons where his path to the Hall truly began, becoming one of the most feared defensive forces in the history of the game and a devastating lob threat, culminating in helping Detroit win an NBA championship in 2004.

Wallace retired after the 2011-12 season, having spent some time with the Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers before finishing his career back with the Pistons.

Toni Kukoc

Chicago Bulls Toni Kukoc celebrates Randy Brown’s game winning basket following overtime against the Toronto Raptors. (Kevin Frayer/CP)

Though probably best known these days because of his appearance on “The Last Dance,” while that documentary did do a good job of explaining his importance to the Michael Jordan Bulls’ second three-peat, the main reason why Kukoc should be honoured in the Basketball Hall of Fame is because of his accomplishments before arriving in the NBA. Kukoc is one of the absolute greatest European basketball players of all time.

Kukoc is a three-time EuroLeague champion who was named the FIBA World Championship MVP in 1990. In 2008, he was named as one of the 50 greatest EuroLeague Contributors.

If it wasn’t for Kukoc and others like him, such as Vlade Divac and Drazen Petrovic, we might not have a Giannis Antetokounmpo or Luka Doncic in today’s game.

A true trailblazer, even willing to take some hazing from the likes of Jordan and Scottie Pippen, Kukoc was among the first European players to make a firm foothold in the NBA and open the gates to what has now become a true explosion of talent from all corners of the world within the league.

That Kukoc was also an excellent player, named Sixth Man of the Year in 1996, was just icing on the cake for why he deserves this Hall of Fame enshrinement.

Lauren Jackson

Seattle Storm’s Lauren Jackson, right, is closely guarded by Atlanta Dream’s Coco Miller, left, and Angel McCoughtry in the final seconds Game 2 of the WNBA basketball finals in Seattle. (Elaine Thompson/AP)

Undoubtedly one of the greatest players of all time, Jackson was the Seattle Storm’s No. 1 overall pick in 1997 and had a fabulous career in the WNBA. She won two championships, three MVPs, three scoring titles, eight All-WNBA selections, seven All-Star nods, five all-defensive teams and a Defensive Player of the Year award.

But what she did in the WNBA she equalled and more in her native domestic WNBL in Australia, where she won five titles and four MVPs.

Given the era that she played in, it’s not an exaggeration to say Jackson was among one of the most important figures during the nascent days of the WNBA.

Coming into the league as the No. 1 overall pick during just the league’s second-ever season, she was exactly the kind of dominant star the league needed to help sell tickets and garner interest. The fact that an Australian woman, who had a strong domestic league to play in professionally back home, was willing to come over and play in the WNBA was a good sign of things to come for the league. She helped to establish it as the best league in the world.

Yolanda Griffith

Class of 2021 inductee Yolanda Griffith speaks at a news conference for the Basketball Hall of Fame, Friday, Sept. 10, 2021, at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

One of the most dominant players in WNBA history, Griffith was an eight-time WNBA all-star and both MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in 1999.

This is a big Hall-of-Fame year for Sacramento hoops with Webber and Rick Adelman heading into the Hall, but there’s a good argument to be made that Griffith was actually the most impactful Sacramento pro sports athlete heading in. She helped truly establish the Sacramento Monarchs after being drafted in 1999, and then proceeded to pay nine seasons and win a championship in 2005, something that neither Webber nor Adelman were able to do.

Bill Russell

Former NBA star Bill Russell (Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Already among the Mt. Rushmore of basketball greats, Russell is once again joining an elite list of individuals as a man entering the Hall of Fame as not only a player but, now, a coach as well.

Russell takes his place with the likes of John Wooden, Lenny Wilkens, Bill Sharman and Tommy Heinsohn as the only five men to enter the Hall as both players and coaches.

As a coach, Russell amassed a 631-341 record and won two NBA championships in 1968 and 1969 when he was acting as a player-coach at the tail-end of his legendary run with the Celtics during the 1960s.

Jay Wright

Villanova coach Jay Wright (CP/Charlie Niebergall)

One of the greatest college coaches of all time, Wright’s career began with mid-major program Hofstra in 1994, a tenure that lasted until 2001. After leading the Flying Dutchmen to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, he was hired by Villanova where he’s been ever since, turning the Wildcats into one of the perennial powerhouses of college hoops.

During his time at Villanova, Wright has amassed a 489-190 record, captured eight Big East regular season titles, four Big East Tournament championships, three Final Four appearances and two national championships.

Rick Adelman

Minnesota Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman. (Tony Dejak/AP)

Though he never won a championship, Adelman is among the most respected head coaches in league history, tallying 1,791 wins over the 23 seasons he coached.

Best known for coaching the Clyde Drexler-led Portland Trail Blazers and Webber-Divac Sacramento Kings, Adelman’s innovative offensive style of coaching perhaps just wasn’t right for the era of which he was active as a head coach. Had he been active along the sidelines today, he might have had even more success than he already found.

Other inductees

Val Ackerman (inducted as a contributor), Bob Dandridge (inducted as a player), Cotton Fitzsimmons (inducted as a contributor), Howard Garfinkel (inducted as a contributor), Clarence “Fat” Jenkins (inducted as a player), Pearl Moore (inducted as a player).