So I think that’s why he’s working to try to come back. But it’s with the Philadelphia 76ers that he established himself as an icon.
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O’Neal, 44, headlines this year’s Hall of Fame class, which also includes former National Basketball Association guard Allen Iverson, former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming and current Michigan State men’s coach Tom Izzo, former WNBA star Sheryl Swoopes, Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf, longtime National Basketball Association referee Darell Garretson, former coach John McLendon and former players Zelmo Beaty and Cumberland Posey.
Asked about Friday’s bigger stage, O’Neal said he wouldn’t feel any pressure to put on a show or keep things light at Friday’s induction ceremony. He thanked former Lakers teammate Kobe Bryant for helping him win three National Basketball Association titles, “but also for getting me pushed off the team and traded to Miami”.
“In much the same way he always clashed with convention, the orange Hall of Fame blazer Allen Iverson belatedly slipped on Thursday afternoon clashed with his more familiar hip-hop outfit “ jeans, black shirt, a Yankees cap and chain.
Presented by Thompson, Brown and fellow Sixers legend Julius Erving, Iverson was elected to the Hall in his first year of eligibility.
Yao played for the Shanghai Sharks from 1997-2002 before joining the NBA’s Houston Rockets, who now boast the tallest and smallest Hall of Famers in Yao and 5-foot-9 Calvin Murphy.
He is now seventh on the NBA’s all-time scoring list (28,596), and also ranks 14th in rebounds (13,099), eighth in blocks (2,732) and fourth in field goal percentage (58.2). I had to overcome all that to be wearing this (Hall of Fame) jacket right now. O’Neal, twice an NBA scoring champion, was voted the NBA Finals MVP in all 3 title runs with the Lakers.
Williams and Gary Moore, Iverson’s longtime manager, will be among the Peninsula contingent in Springfield this weekend. Iverson was amusing, poignant, heart-felt and thoughtful. “So to go from that to this – WOW!”
Going in with O’Neal, Iverson, Ming and Swoops are former National Basketball Association referee Darell Garretson, current Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo, and John McClendon, the first African-American to coach in a professional league.
“That’s pretty special”, Brown said. “So if I make any more new friends, I know the signs”, he said.
Iverson played with unique flair. I’m sitting there saying to myself, ‘Man, that’s Mike!’ I can’t stop looking at him.
Iverson’s absence at the start of Thursday’s festivities made O’Neal the center of attention. “I spent time with Allen in Houston”. I walked out on the court and I looked at him.
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The “Celebrate” iterations of Iverson’s Question Mid and O’Neal’s Shaq Attaq are available now via reebok.com, and both retail for $275.
