Call to the hall - The Fans Speak Out - Letter to the Editor

Basketball Digest, Dec, 2002 by Dann Phelps

I follow with interest every year's Basketball Hall of Fame election and seem to always have an eyebrow raised over the results, one way of another. Having picked up BASKETBALL DIGEST a couple years ago for the first time and reading every issue since then, I know you often weigh in on the job the Hall does in honoring the best players ever. Overall, how good a job is the Hall of Fame doing, and who are some players you'd like to see enshrined from the past few decades who are outside looking in?

Dann Phelps
Boston

Admittedly we have not always been kind to the Hall of Fame and its selections (or, rather, its omissions). To be fair, it's a challenging task to honor players not only from the NBA, but the college ranks, international play, women's basketball, and even contributors and referees.

One problem with any Hall of Fame is that the Hall is only as strong as its weakest resume. When a Calvin Murphy is admitted, with strong career credentials augmented by his 5'7" height, howls from a dozen better qualified players go up. When Bob Lanier's plaque is cast, centers from coast-to-coast suddenly get their tuxes dry cleaned for their inevitable induction the next year.

There are clearly some weak links in the Hall of Fame. Generally, the absence of players with ABA roots--bravo Larry Brown, Class of '02--smacks of some sort of bias.

But before a rant begins, here are our top six candidates eligible but as yet enshrined who should absolutely be in the Hall of Fame: Artis Gilmore, Roger Brown, Adrian Dantley (in fact, "The Game I'll Never Forget" on page 74 addresses this very subject), Bernard King, James Worthy, and coach Tex Winter.