2017 Basketball Hall of Fame finalists

[OrangeDW]

List includes Chris Webber, Tracy McGrady, Tim Hardaway, Sidney Moncrief, Bill Self, Bo Ryan, Rudy Tomjanovich, and Rollie Massimino.

I'm all aboard on Webber, McGrady, and Hardaway. And as great as they were, all of them were wrecked by major injuries. They would've been even better.

Pre-ACL tear Hardaway was just unguardable. Nobody could stay in front of him. He bounced back to still have a great career. But early Tim was just something else.

McGrady was neck and neck with Kobe as the best overall perimeter player in the game in the early 2000's. There was nothing he couldn't do.

Webber...career averages of 20, 10, and 4. Can't really argue with that.

 

[tbonezone]

where's george mcginnis ? better than all of the above.

 

[OrangeDW]

where's george mcginnis ? better than all of the above.

The only eligible ABA or NBA MVP that's not in? Yeah, good point. They need to fix that.

 

[Knicks411]

I think I'm out on Hardaway. Webber I'm a strong yes on.

 

[Briancuse]

I think I'm out on Hardaway. Webber I'm a strong yes on.

Hardaway is a hof, he had some great years.

 

[OrangeDW]

Hardaway is a hof, he had some great years.

If Mitch Richmond is in, I say Hardaway should be in. Hardaway was better when they were both in GS. Richmond in Sac. was better than Hardaway in Miami but overall they were similar level players. Early Hardaway had another gear though.

 

[Knicks411]

If Mitch Richmond is in, I say Hardaway should be in. Hardaway was better when they were both in GS. Richmond in Sac. was better than Hardaway in Miami but overall they were similar level players. Early Hardaway had another gear though.

Yeah I guess I don't see Richmond as a HOF, but Hardaway likely has a better case than Mitch.

 

[Cowtown]

If Chris Webber is HOF-worthy, then that's just one more reason not to watch the NBA. I always thought he was a me-first hammerhead who dragged the rest of the team down. I mean, what did he ever win? Although to be fair, I detested all that "Fab 5" media hype and never looked at him positively after that monumentally stupid time-out gaffe in the NCAA finals - right after they gave him a no-call on an obvious travel. I hate UNC so much I was even cheering for Michigan that year, and he made two of the three stupidest plays in the game on one play. :noidea:

 

[OrangeDW]

If Chris Webber is HOF-worthy, then that's just one more reason not to watch the NBA. I always thought he was a me-first hammerhead who dragged the rest of the team down. I mean, what did he ever win?

Fair to say his Kings got robbed in 2002 against the Lakers. They most likely would've beaten the Nets in the finals.

I don't think he was me first, Webber was an excellent passer, and those Kings teams played great ball. I think Webber took a few years to grow up(was still a good player), and the tail end of his prime was cut short once his knee was shot. But in between that, he had a great run in Sacramento.

 

[Trueblue25]

Tracy McGrady may have been the greatest of all time when all was said and done had he not gotten injured. I've still never seen someone score with such ease.

...Maybe not better than Jordan and Lebron but certainly up there if not better than Kobe etc.

 

[Cowtown]

Fair to say his Kings got robbed in 2002 against the Lakers. They most likely would've beaten the Nets in the finals.

I don't think he was me first, Webber was an excellent passer, and those Kings teams played great ball. I think Webber took a few years to grow up(was still a good player), and the tail end of his prime was cut short once his knee was shot. But in between that, he had a great run in Sacramento.

I get that, I even tried cheering for them when they had Bibby, Vlade and Peja, but he always seemed to me he was only willing to do the things that gathered stats. Of course, the entire team seemed that way, so it's not fair, I guess, to dump on only him for that.

 

[Cowtown]

Tracy McGrady may have been the greatest of all time when all was said and done had he not gotten injured. I've still never seen someone score with such ease.

...Maybe not better than Jordan and Lebron but certainly up there if not better than Kobe etc.

Never liked McGrady. Just another great athlete who didn't have a team-first approach. Maybe I'm wrong, because I didn't see much of him after he left Toronto.

And I really don't like Kobe either, but I'm here to say, with grudging admiration, that there was nobody bigger at big moments in big games. Not even MJ was bigger. Bryant was the most efficient cold-blooded assassin I've ever seen.

 

[OrangeDW]

McGrady and McGinnis get in. Also Bill Self.

Webber and Hardaway do not get in.

I really disagree with Webber not getting in. Maybe next year though. Good to see McGinnis get in.

 

[OrangeDW]

Tracy McGrady may have been the greatest of all time when all was said and done had he not gotten injured. I've still never seen someone score with such ease.

...Maybe not better than Jordan and Lebron but certainly up there if not better than Kobe etc.

In terms of pure talent...yeah I agree. McGrady had it all. And those years when he was healthy and hitting his prime, he was amazing. Unguardable, with a versatile all around game. He was taller and more athletic than Kobe and just as skilled. Fair to say that he didn't have Kobe's psychotic competitiveness and drive. Few have.

McGrady gets knocked for never going anywhere in the playoffs but he was bringing some otherwise terrible Orlando Magic teams to the playoffs at his peak. Those teams were terrible. If Grant Hill wasn't hurt for McGrady's entire time in Orlando, those two would've been able to make some noise in the East even with the rest of the roster being what it was.