The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2023 finalists are officially in. ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski has confirmed that Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Gasol, Tony Parker, coach Gregg Popovich and Becky Hammon are amongst the finalists elected to the HOF.
It was first announced last December that NBA legends Nowitzki and Wade led the Class of 2023 HOF nominees. A formal announcement regarding the full Class of 2023 will arrive this Saturday at the NCAA men’s basketball Final Four in Houston.
The finalists for this year’s HOF have racked up numerous accolades. Wade himself is a three-time NBA Champion with the Miami Heat, as well as a 13-time All-Star and Olympic gold medalist for the USA Basketball team in 2008. Nowitzki is currently No. 6 on the league’s all-time scoring list with 31,550 points and won a championship with the Dallas Mavericks in 2011. Gasol won two championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and was a six-time All-Star and two-time Olympic silver medalist for Spain.
As for the coaches, Popovich is the NBA’s all-time leader in coaching wins and also led the San Antonio Spurs to five championships. Becky Hammon was a six-time All-Star in her WNBA career and has also coached the Las Vegas Aces to a championship in her first season with the team.
The official HOF enshrinement for this year is scheduled for August 12.
ESPN Sources: Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol, Tony Parker, Becky Hammon and Gregg Popovich are among the finalists who’ve been elected into Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2023. Formal announcement will come at Final Four in Houston this weekend.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 29, 2023
In other sports news, WWE announces Stacy Keibler as Hall of Fame 2023 inductee.