A Toronto Raptors legend could soon be enshrined in basketball immortality.
Marc Gasol was among 12 players, coaches and builders named as eligible candidates for a 2025 induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame on Thursday.
Nominated alongside Gasol were fellow NBA players Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard; WNBA stars Sue Bird, Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles and Chamique Holdsclaw; coaches Doc Rivers, Billy Donovan, Mark Few and Lisa Bluder; and builder Mickey Arison.
Gasol, the Spaniard, joined the Raptors at the 2019 trade deadline and went on to anchor the team to its first-ever NBA championship.
In 70 regular-season games with the Raptors, Gasol averaged 8.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists.
But Gasol may be better known for his long career with the Memphis Grizzlies, which spanned parts of 11 seasons after he was traded by the Los Angeles Lakers for brother Pau Gasol.
In Memphis, Gasol was named 2013 Defensive Player of the Year and made three All-Star teams.
Anthony, selected third by the Denver Nuggets in the vaunted 2003 draft, was a 10-time All-Star, led the league in scoring once and was named to the NBA's 75th anniversary team.
The Nuggets traded him to the New York Knicks midway through his eighth season with the team, and he went on to spend six full campaigns in the Big Apple.
Howard, the hulking centre, played on eight All-Stars teams, won three Defensive Player of the Year Awards and led the Orlando Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals. He won his lone title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.
Bird is the WNBA's all-time career leader in games played with 580, never once coming off the bench in her 19-year career with the Seattle Storm. She is also a five-time Olympic gold medallist.
Moore won four WNBA titles with the Minnesota Lynx and her No. 23 was recently retired by the team.
Finalists for induction to the Hall of Fame will be announced on Feb. 14 as part of the NBA's All-Star weekend, while the full class will be revealed April 5 at the NCAA's Final Four.
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