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SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Lefty Driesell made the crowd laugh. Dino Radja resisted the tears. Blue Devils and Tar Heels brought their rivalry to the Hall of Fame basketball, and Ray Allen made an offer of peace to his teammates rejected by Celtics.
Despite a week in which her difficult relationship with her 2008 winning team, Celtics, was unveiled, Ray Allen passed the fray Friday night at the Hall of Fame, praising his teammates and coaches.
Ray Allen, Grant Hill, Jason Kidd and Steve Nash are the stars of a group of 13 people whose star was dedicated to Springfield Friday night.
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And they did it with the help of three of the biggest rush guards in the history of the NBA.
The Springfield Shrine on Friday night inducted a 13-member class, recognizing players, coaches and contributors who have broken records and obstacles to the same extent.
Rick Welts, the first openly gay cadre of the NBA, accompanied Charlie Scott, the first African American to receive a track and field scholarship in North Carolina. Ora Mae Washington was honored for a career before the Second World War during which she won 11 consecutive women's color basketball championships. Tina Thompson was the first draft pick in the WNBA.
New York Freedom coach Katie Smith, the best scorer in the history of women's basketball, was also inducted. long-time NBA leader Rod Thorn; and Grant Hill, Duke's first player in the Hall.
"It's a real honor for all of you," said Steve Nash, who has been inducted alongside Jason Kidd and Maurice Cheeks.
"I was not even supposed to be here," said Nash, who was born in South Africa and grew up in Canada. He then won two NBA MVP awards. "Play along the game. You do not have to be elected. If you are patient, the trays will become stepping stones."
Allen gave a shout to Celtics teammates, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, calling the 2008 NBA championship teammates "the future Hall of Famers"; both have posted messages of congratulations on social media, a thaw in relations that have been chilled since Allen left Boston for Miami to pursue another title in 2012.
But Allen Allen spent most of his speech describing a life "repeating these old boring habits," which made him the most prolific three-point shooter in league history.
"What's amazing is that I loved it," he said. "I would not have preferred to be elsewhere in the world."
Kidd climbed the stairs in Springfield Symphony Hall with a stroller. Nash carried his son in his arm. Dikembe Mutombo stopped to take a selfie with Julius Erving and Kyrie Irving. Mark Cuban and Dirk Nowitzki have climbed the red carpet. Larry Bird was a late arrival.
Wayne Gretzky appeared in the video introducing Nash, attributing to him the love of basketball across Canada in love with hockey.
"From Vancouver to Newfoundland," said the Hockey Hall of Fame, "he gave them the openness and belief that they could play in the NBA."
Welts was a different pioneer.
The president and chief operating officer of the Golden State Warriors, who debuted in the NBA as Seattle SuperSonics ballboy, read a letter he wrote to himself saying he was going to have his dream job But risk It will be the most important you have ever done.
Radja, a champion in three different European leagues and a two-time Olympic silver medalist, said he cried for 10 days when he learned he would be inducted into the hall and smothered at the beginning of his speech.
"Playing basketball was easier," he said.
The cheeks also struggled to hold back their tears at some point until his presenter, Dr. J., came forward to comfort him.
"Charles [Barkley] I said not to cry, but I'm about to talk about my mother here, "said Cheeks, calling it" my very first coach, Mama Cheeks. "
Driesell's sinuous speech was so nice that every time he stopped to ask if his time was up, the crowd was shouting, "No!"
Scott followed Driesell and Hill and said that if Duke's guys went over their time limit, the Carolina guy could do it too.
"Duke and a little speech is an oxymoron," said Scott, who broke through the color barrier at Chapel Hill and brought the Tar Heels to two quarter-finals before winning the 1976 title in Boston. "I am very proud to be here as a black man who took a path not easy, but it was the right way to go."
Thorn played eight years in the league, coached both in the NBA and ABA and played basketball for half a century. But he knows it was the selection of Michael Jordan, while Thorn was general manager of the Chicago Bulls in 1984, has consolidated his place in the basketball tradition.
"Thanks, Michael, for your friendship," said Thorn. "I know I will not have a Wikipedia page without you."
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