West, Billups, Carter joined the prestigious ranks of basketball greats, marking a milestone in their celebrated careers at the Hall of Fame.
Chauncey Billups and Vince Carter were among the basketball legends honored at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, on Sunday night.
Leading the 2024 class of 13 inductees, Billups and Carter were two of the seven players entering the Hall. Joining them were Michael Cooper, Walter Davis, Seimone Augustus, Dick Barnett, and Michele Timms.
The class also included Bo Ryan, Charles Smith, and Harley Redin as coaches, while Doug Collins, Herb Simon, and Jerry West were recognized for their contributions to the game.
West, who passed away in June at 86, had already been inducted into the Hall of Fame as both a player and an Olympian. With this new honor, he became the first person to be inducted three times.
When Jerry West made history Sunday night, the stage was packed with Lakers legends. West became the first person ever to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame three times.
The 14-time All-Star, 12-time All-NBA selection, and 1970 NBA scoring champion first entered the Hall in 1980 as a player, then again in 2010 as part of the gold-winning 1960 U.S. Olympic team.
West contributed to nine Lakers championships, winning one as a player and eight as an executive.
Vince Carter, now 47, played for eight teams over his 22 NBA seasons. Averaging 16.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.1 assists across 1,541 games (982 starts), he was named Rookie of the Year in 1998-99 while with the Raptors and went on to secure eight All-Star selections.
Billups, now 48, played 17 seasons in the NBA, appearing in 1,043 games (937 starts) for the Detroit Pistons, Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Clippers, Toronto Raptors, and New York Knicks.
A five-time All-Star, three-time All-NBA selection, and the MVP of the 2004 Finals, Billups averaged 15.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 5.4 assists throughout his career. He’s currently the head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, a position he’s held since the 2021-22 season.
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Picture Credit: © David Butler II-Imagn Images