Former NBA stars Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard and former women’s star Sue Bird are among the 17 finalists for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025.
Coaches Billy Donovan and Mark Few and the 2008 U.S. Olympic men’s team also are among the 17 finalists named Friday. The new class will be announced on April 5 during the NCAA Final Four at San Antonio.
Also named finalists are former NBA players Marques Johnson and Buck Williams, referee Danny Crawford, coach Jerry Welsh and women’s players Jennifer Azzi, Sylvia Fowles and Maya Moore.
Chosen from the women’s veterans committee was former player Molly Bolin, the international committee pushed forth former coach Dusan Ivkovic and the contributors committee nominated Micky Arison (owner) and Tal Brody (ambassador).
“Selection as a Finalist for the Class of 2025 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is a remarkable achievement, signifying a career of excellence and lasting influence on the game,” Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame chairman Jerry Colangelo said in a news release. “This recognition goes beyond statistics and accolades — it honors those who have defined eras, inspired generations, and elevated basketball through their talent, leadership, and dedication.
“Whether as players, coaches, teams, or contributors, each Finalist has left an indelible mark on the sport, and we are proud to celebrate their extraordinary impact.”
The induction ceremonies will be held Sept. 6 at Springfield, Mass.
Anthony ranks 10th in NBA history with 28,289 career points and was a 10-time All-Star. He won three Olympic gold medals (2008, 2012, 2016), led Syracuse to the 2003 NCAA title and was named to the NBA’s 75th anniversary team in 2021.
Howard was a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year (2009-11) and eight-time All-Star. He ranks 10th in NBA history with 14,627 career rebounds and 13th with 2,228 blocked shots.
Bird won five Olympic gold medals (2004, 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020), four WNBA titles and two college crowns at UConn. She was a 13-time WNBA All-Star and holds the league’s career assists record of 3,234.
Donovan coaches the Chicago Bulls after previously leading the Oklahoma City Thunder and has 421 regular-season victories. He also led Florida to back-to-back NCAA titles (2006, 2007) while accumulating 502 college wins.
Few guided Gonzaga to the NCAA title game on two occasions (2017, 2021) and was the second fastest coach in Division I history to reach 700 wins. He has won 20 games with the Bulldogs in 25 consecutive seasons.
The 2008 U.S. Olympic team went 8-0 while winning the gold medal and prevailed by an average of 27.9 points. The co-captains were Kobe Bryant, Jason Kidd and Dwyane Wade and other members included LeBron James, Chris Paul, Anthony and Howard.
Johnson helped UCLA win the NCAA title in 1975 under legendary coach John Wooden and was a five-time NBA All-Star, while Williams was a stellar rebounder and defender while starring for the New Jersey Nets and Portland Trail Blazers with the latter club reaching the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992.
Crawford was an NBA referee from 1985-2017 and officiated in over 2,000 regular-season games and 300 playoff games, including being chosen to work the NBA Finals in 23 consecutive seasons. Welsh led SUNY Potsdam to the 1981 Division III title and two other Final Four appearances and later coached at Division I Iona.
Azzi led Stanford to the 1990 NCAA title and won a gold medal in the 1996 Olympics. Fowles won four Olympic gold medals, retired as the WNBA’s leading rebounder (4,006) before being passed and was an eight-time WNBA All-Star and two-time WNBA champion. Moore led the Minnesota Lynx to four WNBA titles (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017) and won two NCAA titles at UConn and picked up two Olympic gold medals.
Bolin was known as “Machine Gun” Molly for her scoring exploits and set a Women’s Professional Basketball League single-game record with 55 points on March 2, 1980. Ivkovic is a Serbian coach who won EuroLeague championships in 1997 and 2012 and was elected to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2017.
Arison has owned the Miami Heat since 1995 and has oversaw three titles (2006, 2012, 2013). Brody won 10 Israeli League titles as a player for Maccabi Tel Aviv after being an All-American for Illinois.
–Field Level Media
