The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is welcoming a new slate of honorees, with the organization announcing its Class of 2025. The full list of 2025 selections was announced on Saturday, ahead of the men's Final Four.
The list is highlighted by a quartet of NBA and WNBA stars. Carmelo Anthony, a 10-time NBA All-Star, and Dwight Howard, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, were both named to the Class of 2025 as first-time nominees. WNBA legends Sue Bird and Maya Moore were also named as first-ballot Hall of Famers, with Moore's Minnesota Lynx teammate, Sylvia Fowles — a two-time WNBA champion and the 2017 WNBA MVP — also earning a place in the Hall.
Other members of the Class of 2025 include referee Danny Crawford, current Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan and Miami Heat owner Micky Arison, who all receive the honor after their first nominations.
Donovan was eligible for the Hall of Fame due to his long career, as coaches must have at least 25 years of experience to be nominated. In addition to a decade of NBA coaching experience, Donovan started his coaching career in college basketball in the 1990s and spent nearly two decades as Florida's head coach, winning back-to-back national titles.
Arison, who has owned the Heat since 1995, was elected into the Hall in the contributor category, a catch-all category that includes former NBA commissioners, sports executives and others who have made “significant contributions” to the game of basketball.
The final honoree is the 2008 U.S. Olympic men's team, the Mike Krzyzewski-led "Redeem Team" that won gold after a disappointing bronze medal finish at the 2004 Olympics. (Anthony and Howard were both on that squad, meaning that they will be essentially honored by the Hall twice this year.) The team is the only member of the Class of 2025 that is not a first-ballot selection.
Full list of the Class of 2025:
Carmelo Anthony*
Dwight Howard*
Sue Bird*
Maya Moore*
Sylvia Fowles*
Danny Crawford*
Billy Donovan*
Micky Arison*
2008 U.S. Olympic men's team
* denotes first-ballot Hall of Fame selection
