Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson and Yao Ming Headline 2016 Hall of Fame Class

To no one’s surprise, Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson and Yao Ming will be the headliners at this year’s Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame enshrinement, it was announced Monday.

Joining Shaq, The Answer and Yao in the HOF are 27-year NBA referee Darell Garretson, Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo, the first African-American coach in a professional league John McLendon and four-time WNBA Champion Sheryl Swoopes.

The party will take place September 8-10 in Springfield, Massachusetts.

From the press release:

Distinguished committees focused on preserving all areas from the game also selected four directly elected members. They include Zelmo Beaty from the Veterans Committee, Yao Ming from the International Committee, Cumberland Posey from the Early African American Pioneers Committee and Jerry Reinsdorf from the Contributor Committee.

 

To be elected, North American and Women’s Committee finalists must receive 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Direct elect committees are incorporated into the election process to maintain a strong focus on keeping history on the forefront of the voting procedures and to preserve a balance between two eras of basketball.

 

“The Class of 2016 is big in stature, personality and impact,” said Jerry Colangelo, Chairman of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Board. “These ten inductees have each contributed to the game in their own meaningful way and we are very pleased to honor them in Springfield.”

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