Is Spike Lee more powerful than we all thought?
Because aside that I’m at a loss to explain the news from Jonathon Abrams of the New York Times that Reggie Miller is not one of the finalists on the Hall of Fame ballot. Those finalists will be formally announced later on Friday.
We’d tell you who to be mad at, but the Naismith Hall of Fame election procedures make the election of a new Pope look like a public process. The NYT explains.
Basketball’s Hall of Fame, unlike baseball’s, seldom turns to milestones, like 3,000 hits or 300 victories, as guides to induction. It attempts to evaluate the most important contributors to the sport throughout the world, not just in the N.B.A., so it is somewhat difficult to weigh the merits of Uljana Semjonova, a women’s player from Latvia, against Dan Issel, a former All-Star and A.B.A. co-rookie of the year, although both were selected in 1993….
To become a finalist from the North American group, nominees must receive approval on at least seven of nine ballots. The other committees require approval from at least five of the seven. To be selected for the Hall, a finalist needs at least 18 of 24 votes from what is known as the Honors Committee, a group consisting of Hall of Famers, basketball executives, members of the news media and other contributors to the game. Committee members are not aware of one another’s identities.
Just so we’re clear, a number of people we don’t know — maybe as few as three people we don’t know — are not convinced one of the best pure shooters in NBA history and, until a week ago, it’s greatest three point shooter, is worthy of the Hall of Fame. These are three people inside basketball in some form. Amazing.
Who might be more worthy than Miller? Other North American guys eligible to be finalists are the NBA’s all-time winningest coach Don Nelson, Chris Mullin (college star, two time gold medalist, heart of the Warriors for a decade), Mark Jackson (third all time in assists), Bernard King, Dennis Rodman, Maurice Lucas, Jamaal Wilkes, Rudy Tomjanovich, Cotton Fitzsimmons, Tex Winter, Spencer Haywood, Maurice Cheeks, Ralph Sampson, Bill Fitch, referee Dick Bavetta, Rick Pitino, and more. Chet Walker was nominated by the Veteran’s committee. Arvydas Sabonis and Sarunas Marciulionis are on the ballot from the International committee, while the women’s committee nominated Tara VanDerveer and Teresa Edwards.
I do not wish to disparage the names of the fine people on that expanded list. They all are deserving of our respect, and some of them should be in the Hall.
But seriously, it is time for the separate NBA Hall of Fame. Because every year we realize just how screwed up the process for the current one is.
