Bird, Moore, Anthony, Donovan Top ’25 Naismith Hall of Fame Class

Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard go to the temple of basketball renowned later this year, not once but twice. And LeBron James and Chris Paul are part of the group who also heads towards the room, even before their playing careers ended up.

Anthony and Howard were announced on Saturday as members of the 2025 class, as was the 2008 American Olympic Basketball team of 2008 on which they played – nicknamed “the buyout team” – which captured gold at the Beijing games and began a series of five consecutive Olympic titles and counting for the male program of American basketball.

Also selected for the enclosure: WNBA SUE GREATS, Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles, the coach of the Chicago Bulls and double champion of the NCAA Billy Donovan, the general partner Manager Miami Heat Micky Arison and the longtime referee of the NBA Danny Crawford.

“I arrived at the real basketball paradise,” said Howard. “It’s crazy.”

The training weekend is from September 5 to 6 in Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, and at the renowned temple of Springfield, Massachusetts.

“When the call arrives and, in my case, I saw Springfield on the phone,” said Anthony during the television announcement, “you know what time it is (when) Springfield is on the phone. You know who it is. You receive the phone call and you hear:” You are there. “And I think for me, it was a burden of my shoulders.”

The UCONN female program already had coach Geno Auriemma, Swin Cash (devoted as a player) and Rebecca Lobo (devoted as a contributor) to the Hall of Fame, and Bird and Moore who will add to what is always a huge weekend in New England.

“These are the temple of fame for me, they are the temple of fame for their family, they are the temple of fame for everyone. They are even the temple of renown for the enemies of Uconn,” said Auriemma. “This is something on which they can all get along.”

Donovan won consecutive titles as a university coach in Florida. Arison supervised Miami’s path to the NBA titles in 2006, 2012 and 2013. Crawford worked in the NBA matches for 32 seasons and was chosen to work the NBA final in 23 of these years.

“For some, it’s an individual honor,” said Arison. “But for me, it talks about what our whole family of heat – players, coaches, employees and fans – has built together.”

The selection of the buyout team means that Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Jason Kidd and Kobe Bryant – already consecrated as a reputation of fame – are mainly entering the second time. James and Paul, who are both locks to enter the room after their retirement, also played for this Olympic team, just like Michael Redd, Carlos Boozer, Deron Williams and Tayshaun Prince.

The buyout team had this nickname because it was responsible for restoring the place of USA basketball at the top of the world scene, after the 2004 Olympic team only managed only a bronze medal at the Athens Games. The buyout team went 8-0 to Beijing, winning an average of 27.9 points.

“USA Basketball is delighted to see the 2008 US Olympic Male Olympic team elected to the Naismith basketball renowned temple,” said the United States basketball CEO Jim Tooley. “The famous race for the buyout team in Beijing marks a pivotal moment in the history of Olympic Basketball in the United States and has propelled us to five consecutive gold medals.”