Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony among Hall of Fame finalists
02/14/2025 06:52 PM
Former NBA stars Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony have been named finalists for the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame, according to Washington Post NBA reporter Ben Golliver. The two standout players from the 2000s are joined by WNBA legends Maya Moore and Sue Bird, NBA legend and executive Jerry West, Miami Heat owner Mickey Arison, and the 2008 Olympic Redeem Team, which featured both Howard and Anthony.
Anthony was part of the legendary 2003 NBA Draft, a class that helped define the modern NBA. Selected third overall by the Denver Nuggets, he quickly became a game-changer for the team. Before his arrival, the Nuggets had a dismal 17–65 record, tied for the worst in the league with the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, with Anthony on board, the team turned things around, finishing the 2003–04 season with a 43–39 record and securing the eighth seed in the playoffs.
The years that followed his rookie season, Anthony cemented himself as one of the best players in the sport, even leading the Nuggets to the 2009 Western Conference Finals opposite the Kobe Bryant-led Los Angeles Lakers who eventually went on to win the 2008-2009 NBA Championship.
Anthony was traded to the New York Knicks in 2011, where he consistently led the team to the playoffs, though they never advanced beyond the second round..Hall-of-Fame enshrinement for Anthony is an amazing addition to the next chapter of his career as he is rumored to be joining NBC’s NBA coverage as a studio analyst.
Dwight Howard, the first overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft, became one of the most dominant centers in the NBA during the 2000s. Known for his incredible defensive ability and athleticism, Howard consistently impressed with his shot-blocking skills and jaw-dropping dunks. Over his career, he earned numerous accolades, including three consecutive NBA Defensive Player of the Year awards from 2009 to 2011 and selections to the NBA All-Defensive First Team four times (2009–2012) as well as the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 2008.
Howard famously led the Orlando Magic to the NBA Finals in 2009, disrupting the much-anticipated showdown between LeBron James’s Cleveland Cavaliers and Kobe Bryant’s Los Angeles Lakers that had been the talk of the season. In the series-clinching Game 6, Howard delivered a playoff career-high 40 points and 14 rebounds, leading Orlando to their first NBA Finals appearance in 14 years. Although his Orlando Magic lost to the Lakers in five games, Howard ultimately won an NBA Championship with the Lakers alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis in 2020.
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