Should the NBA hall of fame become more exclusive?

[Loaded_Hollows]

It’s kind of embarrassing how weak the nba hall of fame looks. Should the league kick out the scrubs and keep only the players that were actually really good?

[Masigond]

"NBA hall of fame"? That doesn't exist. It's the "Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame", and every aspect of Basketball can and should be considered.

[Roger Murdock]

Coopers in the HoF because he was the first black player to be drafted not on his accomplishments or talent

He broke the color barrier and that’s why he got inducted

I’m all for making the Hall more exclusive but kicking people out is wild

[Loaded_Hollows]

Coopers in the HoF because he was the first black player to be drafted not on his accomplishments or talent

He broke the color barrier and that’s why he got inducted

I’m all for making the Hall more exclusive but kicking people out is wild

As a black man….I say kick him out. Jackie Robinson was actually really really good at baseball. Get Cooper up out of here.

[Lockdown504090]

The hall of fame is designed to tell the story of the nba at the time the players played. understanding the stories of the indictees tells you the story of the game. looking up the stats of random players youve never heard of and making a snap judgment is weak of you, not the hall of fame.

[Roger Murdock]

Coopers in the HoF because he was the first black player to be drafted not on his accomplishments or talent

He broke the color barrier and that’s why he got inducted

I’m all for making the Hall more exclusive but kicking people out is wild

As a black man….I say kick him out. Jackie Robinson was actually really really good at baseball. Get Cooper up out of here.

I get it. Buts it about telling history of the league and that’s a major part of it.

[Sedale Threatt]

The hall of fame is designed to tell the story of the nba at the time the players played.

Have had this debate before, but I couldn't disagree more with this. That's what history books are for. The HOF should be the ultimate honor for truly elite players, reserved for the best of the best of the best. The milk is spilled now so there's no going back. But if I could snap my fingers like Thanos I'd get rid of at least 40 pct of the inductees, and DEFINITELY separate it from college and foreign basketball. The NBA should have its own separate hall entirely.

[MagicFan12345]

Yeah, they should separate college and the NBA and it would be much harder to get in the Hall of Fame

[Balls Deep]

I would just ask “does this person deserve to be remembered forever?” if yes, they’re in, but if not they’re out. 90% of role players would be barred from getting in also.

[Lockdown504090]

The hall of fame is designed to tell the story of the nba at the time the players played.

Have had this debate before, but I couldn't disagree more with this. That's what history books are for. The HOF should be the ultimate honor for truly elite players, reserved for the best of the best of the best. The milk is spilled now so there's no going back. But if I could snap my fingers like Thanos I'd get rid of at least 40 pct of the inductees, and DEFINITELY separate it from college and foreign basketball. The NBA should have its own separate hall entirely.

i want to know more, so in this new HOF, would there be a limit to inductees? like make it the top 100? and then remove people every year? or should it just have a very high bar? if its the latter, what would that bar be? based on the competition that player faced, or based on the other people who are in the hall of fame? interesting. I like the idea of two seperate halls, one for the history and one as kind of a basketball valhalla the more that i think about it. Those people you guys think are bums are the reason the league is what is now, and I think they should be represented forever. The nba is about way more that points rebounds and titles.

[formula 400]

It’s kind of embarrassing how weak the nba hall of fame looks. Should the league kick out the scrubs and keep only the players that were actually really good?

wtf is chuck cooper? those old ass celtics have to be kicked off the greatest lists, top 50, and top 10. wtf have they done?
only one worth mentioning is bird.

[KrAzY3]

Coopers in the HoF because he was the first black player to be drafted not on his accomplishments or talent

He broke the color barrier and that’s why he got inducted

I’m all for making the Hall more exclusive but kicking people out is wild

As a black man….I say kick him out. Jackie Robinson was actually really really good at baseball. Get Cooper up out of here.

I would want people to be judged on their ability. Jackie Robinson's career was shortened due to things well beyond his control, but the guy got MVP votes 8 of his 11 seasons. He's in the HOF with that career regardless of his race. I think it's problematic to include people for things other than their accomplishments though, and ultimately I'd argue it hurts minorities in the long run. It isn't like the NBA Hall of Fame lacks black representation, include the best, the most deserving and the rest sorts itself out. That was the issue with the color barrier, it kept some of the best out. The idea that some deserving player probably isn't in the HOF because someone got included for dubious reasons does bother me.

Having said all that, I'm not sure I'd be comfortable with removing people currently in the Hall. I'd just hope to see more of a focus on what happened on the court and less focus on what happened off the court moving forward.

[Warriorfan]

Its the basketball hall of fame college and international us part of it

[Sedale Threatt]

The hall of fame is designed to tell the story of the nba at the time the players played.

Have had this debate before, but I couldn't disagree more with this. That's what history books are for. The HOF should be the ultimate honor for truly elite players, reserved for the best of the best of the best. The milk is spilled now so there's no going back. But if I could snap my fingers like Thanos I'd get rid of at least 40 pct of the inductees, and DEFINITELY separate it from college and foreign basketball. The NBA should have its own separate hall entirely.

i want to know more, so in this new HOF, would there be a limit to inductees? like make it the top 100? and then remove people every year? or should it just have a very high bar? if its the latter, what would that bar be? based on the competition that player faced, or based on the other people who are in the hall of fame? interesting. I like the idea of two seperate halls, one for the history and one as kind of a basketball valhalla the more that i think about it.

No limits, just a much high bar of exclusivity. There's never going to be any way to do that objectively. Every sport that votes on these selections has tough debates about who should and shouldn't get in. I've just always felt that basketball's threshold has been embarrassingly low, by far the lowest between baseball -- which is largely statistically driven -- and football. Especially with college, women's and FIBA lumped in there. They should have their own halls. And if you want to have a separate contributors wing or whatever, or set up displays at the actual brick-and-mortar site to honor important moments/people in time, go for it.

But I've always viewed the HOF as an award/honor rather than a means to explore the history of a given sport, which I know many people disagree with. But to me it just doesn't mean as much as it should. The baseball hall started more than 20 years before basketball's, with decades more players to choose from, and it still has fewer inductees. Which is why being named a baseball Hall of Famer has real weight to it. It's a truly exclusive club.

Whereas with basketball, it's not uncommon at all to have 10 or 15 people/teams inducted in the same class and only have a few related to the NBA. Case in point: the Class of 2017 had 11 people, and a grand total of two of them were NBA/ABA players. That's ridiculous, IMO. EDIT: One of them was a HIGH SCHOOL coach. I mean...

And that's before you even get into players like KC Jones, Calvin Murphy, or even Paul Westphal, etc etc etc getting in. It's just a sht show, IMO. Like how people can honestly argue that Robert Horry -- and I'm a Lakers fan -- or Andre Iguodala should get in honestly baffles me. Where are the standards?

[Lockdown504090]

Coopers in the HoF because he was the first black player to be drafted not on his accomplishments or talent

He broke the color barrier and that’s why he got inducted

I’m all for making the Hall more exclusive but kicking people out is wild

As a black man….I say kick him out. Jackie Robinson was actually really really good at baseball. Get Cooper up out of here.

I would want people to be judged on their ability. Jackie Robinson's career was shortened due to things well beyond his control, but the guy got MVP votes 8 of his 11 seasons. He's in the HOF with that career regardless of his race. I think it's problematic to include people for things other than their accomplishments though, and ultimately I'd argue it hurts minorities in the long run. It isn't like the NBA Hall of Fame lacks black representation, include the best, the most deserving and the rest sorts itself out. That was the issue with the color barrier, it kept some of the best out. The idea that some deserving player probably isn't in the HOF because someone got included for dubious reasons does bother me.

Having said all that, I'm not sure I'd be comfortable with removing people currently in the Hall. I'd just hope to see more of a focus on what happened on the court and less focus on what happened off the court moving forward.

being one of the first black players is a huge on court accomplishment. comparing jackie robinson is a little clunky. the negro leagues were just as talented as MLB. its not like there was really somewhere for these guys to hone their skill like that. applying modern racial rhetoric to the 1950s is also quite clunky in itself. what guys like cooper and earl lloyd did was extremely difficult. if we arent taking in circumstance into the equation when we look at a players worth, then bill russell is the GOAT and wilt is right after him, but we dont do that because we factor in era. indiana was the first big school to really have black student athletes.... so where they training to go league?

[GOAT_Marbury]

I think they need to make a higher category, and only add 1 player into it every 5 or 10 years.

Rugby league in australia has been going since 1908 and they only have 13 "Immortals".

Something similar would be good that officially separates the absolute legends from the hall of fame classes/top 75.

Can be done retrospectively as well

[Apz]

Wait, the is an nba hall of fame? Only knew about basketball hall of fame

[Sedale Threatt]

I think they need to make a higher category, and only add 1 player into it every 5 or 10 years.

Rugby league in australia has been going since 1908 and they only have 13 "Immortals".

Something similar would be good that officially separates the absolute legends from the hall of fame classes/top 75.

Can be done retrospectively as well

Man, that's extreme even for me and I'm probably the most zealous person I know on this topic. There's absolutely a happy medium in there somewhere. But if you gave me the choice, I'd much rather have too few players honored than than too many. My very informal rule of thumb has always been, if you have to think or argue about it, then they're not a Hall of Famer. And that's much closer to what they did here than what we have now.

[andyhop]

I think they need to make a higher category, and only add 1 player into it every 5 or 10 years.

Rugby league in australia has been going since 1908 and they only have 13 "Immortals".

Something similar would be good that officially separates the absolute legends from the hall of fame classes/top 75.

Can be done retrospectively as well

Man, that's extreme even for me and I'm probably the most zealous person I know on this topic. There's absolutely a happy medium in there somewhere. But if you gave me the choice, I'd much rather have too few players honored than than too many. My very informal rule of thumb has always been, if you have to think or argue about it, then they're not a Hall of Famer. And that's much closer to what they did here than what we have now.

Or you go the route of the other major code in Australia the AFL and have a legends category that can only ever be a maximum of 10% of those inducted into the Hall of Fame.

[GunnerWRX]

Before you try to ditch the HOF, at least be correct that it’s the basketball hall of fame, not the NBA hall of fame.