The Nye Smith Hall of Fame has always been the highest honor in basketball, and being inducted into the Hall of Fame is something every professional player has dreamed of in their careers, but its strict selection criteria have also deterred many players, including some once-popular star players. However, there are exceptions to everything, and there are also some "alternative" players who do not have much NBA honor, such as Divac, who attracted a lot of fan discussion when he was selected.
First of all, we must know that the Nye Smith Basketball Hall of Fame is awarded to all people in the world who have made outstanding contributions to the cause of basketball, not just athletes, a certain league, and not limited to a certain country. So when we evaluate a player's honor and contribution, we must not ignore his influence in the international market and other aspects.
As of now, the 2019 Hall of Fame inductees have been announced: three Hall of Fame candidates Ben Wallace, Chris Webb, and Marques Johnson have not been successfully inducted. Sydney Moncliffe, Paul Westfar, Bobby Jones and Vlad Divac were all inducted into the 2019 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, with Divac being inducted as an international player.
Influence comparison
Big Ben's influence is mainly through his own counterattack performance to tell everyone that the loss of the draft can not only stand in the NBA, but also become a championship center and superstar. It is also his resume that has inspired one basketball enthusiast after another who has experienced setbacks not to choose to give up and always adhere to his love for the sport.
Let's take a look at the main honors of the other two players who were dumped by Divac. Chris Webb: 5-time All-Star, 4-time All-Team, 1-time rebounding champion. Marques Johnson: 5-time All-Star, 3-time All-Team. And Divac? In his 16-season NBA career, he averaged 11.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, and his main honor was only once in the All-Star Team, and the only All-Star trip also had a classic scene of being played by Marbury.
So how exactly did Divac be able to overwhelm superstar players to be inducted into the Hall of Fame? Let's move on. Unlike other white interiors, he had excellent low-post singles abilities, both in terms of foot dexterity and toughness in confrontation, and he had a good fight with all the black interiors at the time. But his most prominent feature is not the strong play on the inside, the ability to plan the pass is his biggest label, with a wide passing vision. What's even more incredible is that as a center, he has more delicate and flowing passing techniques than most point guards.
In addition, his performance on the international pitch is even more terrible, which can be regarded as an out-and-out "international killer". This can be seen from the following honor data.
In 1986, he won the third place in the World Basketball Championship with the national team, the third place in the European Basketball Championship with the national team in 1987, the runner-up of the Seoul Olympic Games with the national team in 1988, the European Basketball Championship with the national team in 1989, the World Basketball Championship with the national team in 1990, and the European Basketball Championship with the national team in 1991.
He won the European Basketball Championship with the national team in 1995, the second place at the Olympic Games in Atlanta with the national team in 1996, the third place in the European Basketball Championship with the national team in 1999, the world basketball championship with the national team in 2002, and after retiring, he is still contributing to basketball in other ways, on November 8, 2012, Divac was re-elected president of the Serbian Olympic Committee; on September 1, 2015, Divac was promoted to general manager of the Sacramento Kings.
Single change Kobe Bryant's fierce role
Indeed, in terms of NBA honors, Divac is somewhat unworthy compared to several other candidates. But it was thanks to his performance in international markets and other areas that he was firmly inducted into the Hall of Fame. In terms of influence, he is definitely one of the premier European players, and the only player in history to single-handedly swap Kobe.
In 1996, the Lakers took O'Neal on a seven-year, $120 million contract to bring the Sharks to Los Angeles. After O'Neal's arrival, the role of the same center Divac naturally diminished sharply, not to mention that he could free up salary space to help the team sign O'Neal, so for Divac, it was only a matter of time before he was traded.
At this moment, the discerning West took another fancy to Kobe Bryant, who was not yet a high school student, and the former was convinced that the child would become a superstar in the future. But at that time, the Lakers only had the 24th pick in the first round, so West approached the Hornets to seek a win-win deal. The Hornets also happened to be in desperate need of an interior player, and devac's average of 12.2 points and 8.5 rebounds per game at that time could also be counted as a good rotation center choice, so the two sides hit it off and reached a deal. This is the origin of the "single exchange Kobe".
Haruki Murakami in the basketball world - Ben Wallace who has finally achieved success with many escort runs
Omoto entered the draft in 1996, and in the star-studded 96 Golden Generation, his name was not read at the draft as he wished. But he was not discouraged, but worked harder, and gradually gained a foothold in the NBA through his desperate court attitude and tough defensive ability.
Take a look at his career honors: 1 championship, 2 rebounding kings, 4 All-Stars, 1 block king, 4 consecutive DPOYs from 2002-03 to 2005-06, 5 times to the Best Team of the Season, 6 times to the Best Defensive Team. (The number of best teams below includes the first, second and third teams).
Ben Wallace is likened to Haruki Murakami in basketball, a strong candidate for the Hall of Fame every year, but each time it ends in failure. As for his failure again, Daben could not hide his disappointment: "To be honest, I think I should be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year, but now I can only hope for next year, I hope that next year can make progress." 」 ”
But as everyone knows, after failing to be selected in 2019, he will accompany him again in 2020. However, it is worth celebrating that this "fruit delivery" master finally entered the Hall of Fame in 2021, fulfilling his long-cherished wish!
Arguably, Big Ben is one of the best defenders in NBA history, winning a total of 4 defensive player of the year in his career, enjoying the first place in NBA history, and helping the Pistons lift the championship trophy in 2004. Fortunately, after years of running with him, he also waited for the day when he became the protagonist.
Back to the point, Divac's ability to suppress star players such as Ben and Weber is enough to see his huge influence, and to this day, as the general manager of the team, he is still contributing to the sport of basketball in another way. So the Hall of Fame, Divac deserved.