Lakers' Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar headline Jerry West Hall of Fame presenters
09/12/2024 03:10 PM
The NBA lost a legend this year when Jerry West passed away in June. Although he is known in Los Angeles Lakers history as a 14-time All-Star and Hall of Famer, West meant more to the world of basketball and the NBA as a whole. While they will never confirm it, West is the logo after all.
In October, prior to the start of the 2024-25 NBA season, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame will hold their inductions for the 2024 class, which features stars like Vince Carter and Chauncey Billups. West is once again a part of a Hall of Fame class, as he will be the first person to be inducted into the Hall of Fame as both a player and a contributor.
This enshrinement ceremony will be a time to reflect on everything West has done for the game of basketball, and the continent of legends that will be on hand as presenters is vast. A total of 11 different Hall of Famers will be presenters for West. This group includes: Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Michael Cooper, Jamaal Wilkes, Bob McAdoo, Pat Riley, Vlade Divac, Shaquille O’Neal, Del Harris, and Pau Gasol.
It is expected that other NBA legends and Hall of Famers will be on hand to celebrate West’s remarkable achievement of being named to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame for a third time.
Some of the other notable presenters that will be on hand for the Class of 2024 include Tracy McGrady and Julius Erving for Carter, as well as Larry Bird and Reggie Miller for Indiana Pacers owner Herb Simon.
As a player, West won just one title with the Lakers in 1972. However, his lack of championships never defined his contributions to the game or the league as a whole. No matter what team you look at, West had some type of influence on them from a front office and player perspective. After all, every executive around the league knew West and always sought advice from him since he is heavily regarded as one of the best executives in the history of the NBA.
The basketball savant helped build the great Showtime Lakers dynasty when Magic was playing, and he was the mastermind behind Los Angeles’ next great dynasty with Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, and Shaq. It shouldn’t be shocking as to why so many past Lakers players are wanting to be there for West’s third enshrinement in October.
The Lakers recently announced that they will have a special Jerry West tribute jersey patch on their uniforms for the 2024-25 NBA season.
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