Vlade Divac, one of the first players who came to the NBA from Europe, led the Hall of Fame inductees of this year’s Class. Divac won two Olympic silver medals, one with Yugoslavia, and one with Serbia after the civil war that broke Yugoslavia apart.
Vlade Divac is being inducted into the Hall of Fame tonight, but first he stopped by #TheJump to talk his brilliant career, being traded off the Lakers for incoming rookie Kobe Bryant…and the shirtless photo the NBA will never forget 😂 pic.twitter.com/0u1JXBovkj
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) September 6, 2019
He spent eight years with the Los Angeles Lakers, six with the Sacramento Kings, and two seasons with the Charlotte Hornets. He is one of seven players in NBA history to record 13,000 points, 9,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists, and 1,500 blocked shots, along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Hakeem Olajuwon, Shaquille O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, and Pau Gasol.
“The people of the Balkans are like a dysfunctional family. We may fight and argue, but in the end we are family,” said Divac. “To me basketball was always about love.”
Jack Sikma, Sidney Moncrief, Paul Westphal, Bobby Jones, Al Attles, and Teresa Weatherspoon joined Divac in the Class of 2019. Bill Fitch was unable to attend for health reasons while Carl Braun and Chuck Cooper were inducted posthumously.
Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes, and Tina Thompson represented Teresa Weatherspoon. They played for the Houston Comets and against Weatherspoon when she hit a famous half-court buzzer-beater to give the New York Liberty a victory in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals.
“I know you guys are still salty about that shot, but you got to see it again tonight,” said Weatherspoon. “The game has meant so many things to me. It’s been my sanctuary; it’s been my safe haven. The game has allowed me to see things I never thought I’d see, meet people I never thought I’d meet.”
Chuck Cooper, who died in 1984, was the Boston Celtics forward and also the first African-American player drafted by the NBA. He debuted in 1950, in the same year as Earl Lloyd and Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton. “The NBA’s color barrier was broken, and the game of basketball was forever changed,” his son, Chuck Cooper III said.
H/T: ESPN
