The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame has announced a wider list of candidates for the Class of 2026, and among the names are numerous greats of American and world basketball, both players and coaches.
The preliminary list includes candidates who are in the selection for the first time, as well as those who were previously nominated, both from the NBA league and from the international scene.
Among the most famous new names from the USA are the 1996 USA women’s national team, legendary coach Mike D’Antoni, and former NBA stars Jamal Crawford, Blake Griffin, Joe Johnson and Candace Parker. Penny Hardaway, Doc Rivers and Amar’e Stoudemire are back in the competition.
A special place on the list is occupied by international candidates who marked European and world basketball, among them the famous coaches Dušan Ivković and Ranko Žeravica, and the legendary basketball player from Bosnia and Herzegovina Mirza Delibašić.
In his career, Delibašić was the club champion of Yugoslavia, Spain, Europe and the world, while with the Yugoslav national team he won two European championship titles, one world gold and an Olympic gold. He was declared the athlete of the century of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and as the first selector of BH. national team at the Eurobasket in 1993, he achieved the best place in the men’s selection at major competitions – eighth place.
Ranko Žeravica is the only coach who won the Olympic gold in 1980, the first world gold in 1970, four silver medals and a bronze from the World Championship in 1982. He is already a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame.
During his career, Dušan Ivković managed clubs and national teams throughout Europe, including Partizan, Olympiakos, CSKA Moscow and the national teams of Yugoslavia and Serbia. He won the Euroleague, the Saporte Cup, the Korać Cup, the Eurocup, and numerous national titles and international awards. Ivković is also a member of the FIBA Hall of Fame and winner of numerous international awards.
The full list of international candidates includes the names: David Blatt, Jean-Jacques Conseição, Mirza Delibašić, Jorge Garbajosa, Marc Gasol, Andrew Gaze, Panagiotis Giannakis, Giuseppe Gherardini, JR Holden, Dušan Ivković, Andrei Kirilenko, Vladimir Kondrashin, Marcos Leite, Ettore Messina, Juan Carlos Navarro, Andrés Nocioni, Fabricio Oberto, José Ortiz, Amaury Pasos, Modestas Paulauskas, Togo Soares, Penny Taylor, Amaya Valdemoro and Ranko Embers.
The names of the new members of the Hall of Fame will be announced the day before the NCAA finals, and the list once again confirms the global character of basketball and the significant influence of international greats on the history of this sport.
(Vijesti.ba)
