Kobe Bryant Headlines 2020 Basketball Hall of Fame Class

In a small way, it was Garnett who paved the way for Bryant’s entry into the league in 1996. The year before Bryant’s rookie season, Garnett became the first N.B.A. player drafted out of high school in two decades in a move that was heavily questioned at the time. But Garnett, a lanky and ferocious 19-year-old, made an immediate impact and would go on to become one of the most gifted big men in N.B.A. history.

Bryant and Garnett were the two greatest players in the league to have been drafted straight from high school before LeBron James came along in 2003. After 12 years of limited postseason success with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Garnett was traded to the Boston Celtics, where he helped the franchise revitalize and win its first championship in more than two decades.

Then there was Duncan, who was never as flashy as Bryant and Garnett but no doubt had just as much impact. He embodied the San Antonio Spurs’ organizational ethos of stability with his stoic demeanor and consistency year in and year out, resulting in five championships, the same number as Bryant.

During an era when big men who lived in the paint still reigned supreme, Duncan and Garnett were relentlessly compared to each other, in particular because they were both exceptional defensive players competing in the Western Conference. Duncan won two Most Valuable Player Awards, while Garnett and Bryant each won one.

At the same time in women’s basketball, Catchings was becoming a champion at every level. She won an N.C.A.A. championship with the Tennessee Volunteers and a W.N.B.A. championship with the Fever in 2012. Perhaps most impressively, Catchings also won four Olympic gold medals with the U.S. women’s basketball team.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/04/sports/basketball/kobe-bryant-basketball-hall-of-fame.html