This weekend will see 12 new members inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame: 6 players (including one international star, Oscar Schmidt, and one woman, Dawn Staley), 2 contributors and 4 coaches (including one female coach, Sylvia Hatchell) will be enshrined in the Springfield, Massachusetts Hall. Here are a few links surrounding three of the 2013 inductees.
- Tim Bontemps of the New York Post details the posthumous election of former NYC playground legend Roger Brown. Brown was a go-to scorer for three Indiana Pacers ABA championship teams, a four-time ABA All-Star and three-time All-ABA selection as well as a member of the All-Time ABA Team.
- Pacers.com's Mark Montieth also wrote a two-part tribute to Brown's legacy as a Pacers great [Part 1; Part 2]
- Despite never playing professionally in the NBA or ABA, Brazil's 6'9" scoring forward, Oscar Schmidt, appeared in five Olympics for Brazil and was elected to the Hall by the International committee.
- Scott Howard-Cooper talked with Schmidt for the NBA.com's Hang Time Blog and Schmidt tells him he would have been one of the 10 best players in NBA history if he'd gotten a chance to play in the NBA.
- After leading the NBA in scoring during the 1984-85 season, forward Bernard King suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament, torn knee cartilage and a broken leg towards the end of his most dominating season as a pro. Doctors said he'd never play again, but King made the All-Star team for the fourth time in his career during his last full season with the Bullets in 1990/91.
- Andrew MacDougall details at Newsday how – of all his accomplishments – King is most proud of his grueling comeback from that knee injury.
- Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News also contributed a piece about King's induction this weekend.
Juan Antonio San Epifanio or Epi should be next in the basketball HoF.