{"id":170302,"date":"2025-12-20T13:16:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-20T18:16:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=170302"},"modified":"2025-12-20T13:16:43","modified_gmt":"2025-12-20T18:16:43","slug":"ten-most-deserving-basketball-hall-of-famers-class-of-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/12\/20\/ten-most-deserving-basketball-hall-of-famers-class-of-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Players Who Should Be Part Of The 2026 Naismith Basketball Hall Of Fame Class, Including A Pair of Shoo-Ins"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2026 Naismith Hall of Fame<\/a> nominees have been revealed, featuring 25 newcomers. There are 200 potential nominees that voters have to sift through. Who should be part of the class in 2026?<\/p>\n

Ten Most Deserving Basketball Hall Of Famers In the Class of 2026<\/h2>\n

While there are no set guidelines for how many nominees can make a class, class sizes have varied, sometimes considerably.\u00a0 Since the start of the decade, the class size has been between 9 and 16. Last year’s class — headlined by Carmelo Anthony<\/a>, Dwight Howard<\/a>, and Sue Bird<\/a>— matched the 2020 class for the fewest to get inducted.<\/p>\n

Finalists for the Class of 2026 are slated to be revealed during NBA All-Star weekend in February. The Class will be classified on April 4 at the NCAA Final Four,<\/a> with enshrinement weekend Aug. 14 and 15.<\/p>\n

Elena Delle Donne<\/h3>\n

Elle Delle Donne<\/a> is considered a lock for the class of 2026. Delle Donne is one of the best women’s basketball players and one of the most efficient scorers ever at her position.<\/p>\n

Delle Donne, a highly regarded basketball recruit, took a long road to stardom. After leaving Connecticut before even playing a game, Delle Donne gave up basketball for a season. Instead, she played volleyball for the Delaware Blue Hens.<\/p>\n

Delle Donne would eventually return to the court in 2009-10 for the Blue Hens, where she dominated for the next four seasons. The 2013 National Player of the Year was a three-time All-American who led the nation in scoring in 2012, tallying 3,039 points.<\/p>\n

Delle Donne, who battled Lyme disease throughout her collegiate and WNBA<\/a> career, was selected No. 1 by the Chicago Sky in 2013. She was a two-time WNBA MVP (2015, 2019) and led the Washington Mystics to the 2019 championship.\u00a0 In 2019, she became the first player in WNBA history to shoot 50% from the field, 40% from the 3-point line, and 90% from the free throw line.<\/p>\n

Named one of the W25 team, as one of the top players in the WNBA’s first 25 years, Delle Donne retired in 2023. She finished her career as a seven-time WNBA all-star, four-time All-WNBA first team member, and Olympic gold medalist.<\/p>\n

Candace Parker<\/h3>\n

Candace Parker<\/a> also appears to be a “shoo-in” for the Hall of Fame. She has dominated at every level: college, WNBA, and international.<\/p>\n

While at Tennessee, Parker helped the Volunteers<\/a> to two NCAA titles. She was also twice named the National Player of the Year and Final Four Most Outstanding Player.<\/p>\n

Selected with the No. 1 pick in 2008 by the Los Angeles<\/a> Sparks, Parker became the first player in WNBA history to win Rookie of the Year and WNBA MVP. Parker is 10th on the WNBA all-time scoring list (6574), a two-time WNBA MVP, and three-time WNBA champion. Additionally, she is a two-time Olympic gold medalist.<\/p>\n

Blake Griffin<\/h3>\n

Like Parker and Delle Donne, Blake Griffin<\/a> is on the ballot for the first time. However, he is not a “shoo-in” like the women. Griffin had one of the most dominant single seasons in NCAA history at Oklahoma and was a six-time NBA all-star. He was named the 2011 Rookie of the Year and was selected to the second or third All-NBA team five times. Additionally, he was the face of the \u201c<\/strong>Lob City\u201d Clippers<\/a>\u00a0and one of the most explosive and marketable stars of the 2010s.<\/p>\n

Shawn Marion<\/h3>\n

Shawn Marion<\/a> has been on the ballot since 2019. He has a strong case to get into the Hall, but he doesn’t have any MVPs, Finals MVPs, or was the No. 1 offensive option for his team.<\/p>\n

However, Marion is still a candidate because of his two-way versatility and defensive toughness, with the ability to guard all five positions. He was also super efficient, excelling in transition and off-the-ball scoring. Additionally, he played a central role in the \u201c<\/strong>Seven Seconds or Less\u201d Suns<\/a>, which reshaped NBA offense.<\/p>\n

Marion played 16 years in the NBA, earning four NBA all-star berths and all-NBA third team selections (twice). Marion won an NBA championship with the Dallas Mavericks<\/a> in 2011. He compiled over 17,000 points and 10,000 rebounds. Additionally, he ranks in the top 100 of the NBA in scoring, rebounds, blocks, and steals.<\/p>\n

Amar’e Stoudemire<\/h3>\n

Amar’e Stoudemire,<\/a> who was first eligible in 2021, should be in the Basketball Hall of Fame, and there is no better time than the present. Stoudemire didn’t win any NBA titles and had his career cut short by injuries. However, he was dominant when healthy.<\/p>\n

The 2003-04 NBA Rookie of the Year was a six-time all-star and earned either first or second team All-League honors five times. He finished in the top-15 of the MVP voting five times and averaged 18.7 points for his career. Additionally, like Marion, he played a key role in the Suns’ reshaping of the NBA’s offenses.<\/p>\n

Chamique Holdsclaw<\/h3>\n

It is kind of shocking that Chamique Holdsclaw is not in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. A 2018 Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, Holdsclaw is one of the best players to come out of Tennessee, winning three NCAA championships while being named National Player of the Year (twice) and Final Four Most Outstanding Player.<\/p>\n

Holdsclaw, the No. 1 pick in 1999 by Washington, was a bridge figure between the college explosion of women\u2019s basketball and the early WNBA era. Holdsclaw earned the 1999 WNBA Rookie of the Year award, became the cornerstone of the Mystics franchise, and was named a WNBA All-Star five times. She was also key to the USA Basketball’s dominance on the World Stage, earning Olympic and World Championship gold medals.<\/p>\n

Kelvin Sampson (Coach)<\/h3>\n

Kelvin Sampson<\/a> has had his ups and downs as a coach.\u00a0 The 70-year-old, in his 37th season as a head coach, is 24th all-time on the NCAA list and has been to 21 NCAA tournaments with four programs, posting a 31-21 record while reaching three Final Fours. He is enjoying his most successful stint with the Houston Cougars.<\/p>\n

Sampson has transformed Oklahoma and Houston into national title contenders. Sampson is 309-85 in 12 seasons with the Cougars, with five regular-season titles and three conference-tournament crowns. The Cougars have made eight straight NCAA tournament appearances, reaching the Sweet 16 in each of the past six tournaments. They have also made two Final Fours, finishing runners-up to Florida last season.<\/p>\n

Mark Few (Coach)<\/h3>\n

Mark Few<\/a> figures to be the most likely of the nominees returning to the ballot. Few, one of the best coaches in college basketball, just missed earning enshrinement last season. Few is 753-131 for an 83.1% winning percentage since becoming head coach at Gonzaga in 1999-2000. The winning percentage is the best among active college basketball coaches.<\/p>\n

Gonzaga has won a total of 41 WCC titles (22 regular-season, 19 conference tournaments) and has made the NCAA tournament in each season under Few. The Bulldogs have made 14 Sweet 16 appearances, 6 Elite Eight appearances, and two national championship games (2017, 2021). Additionally, 11 players have been selected as All-Americans, and 30+ players have gone on to the NBA.<\/p>\n

Doc Rivers (Coach)<\/h3>\n

Doc Rivers<\/a> is a strong candidate despite not being a finalist last year. Rivers, who also played 13 seasons in the NBA, has over 1,100 wins and has made the playoffs in 21 of 27 years. He won an NBA title in 2008 with the Boston Celtics and reached the Finals once more, and he has a career postseason record of 114-112.<\/p>\n

Mike Thibault (Coach)<\/h3>\n

Mike Thibault<\/a> is on the ballot for the first time and will likely not make it this year. But the 75-year-old is considered a legitimate future candidate, especially considering there aren’t many women’s basketball coaching options.<\/p>\n

Thibault, who began his coaching career in the NBA, transitioned to the women’s side early in the 2000s. He led the Connecticut Sun from 2003-to-2012 and the Washington Mystics from 2013-22.\u00a0 Selected as the WNBA’s Coach of the Year three times, Thibault is the league’s all-time wins leader and led the Mystics to the 2019 WNBA crown.<\/p>\n

\u00a9 Kirby Lee,<\/a> Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 2026 Naismith Hall of Fame nominees have been revealed, featuring 25 newcomers. There are 200 potential nominees that voters have to sift through. Who should be part of the class in 2026? Ten Most Deserving Basketball Hall Of Famers In the Class of 2026 While there are no set guidelines for how many nominees […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3146,"featured_media":170334,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,773,2,62,49709],"tags":[226,3877,920,3694],"class_list":["post-170302","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-college-basketball","category-featured","category-nba","category-wnba","tag-blake-griffin","tag-kelvin-sampson","tag-mark-few","tag-naismith-memorial-basketball-hall-of-fame"],"modified_by":"Daniel Benjamin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170302","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3146"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=170302"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170302\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":170338,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170302\/revisions\/170338"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/170334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=170302"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=170302"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=170302"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}