The long wait is over for three-time NBA champion Toni Kukoc as he was included as Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer 2021.
Kukoc, the most dominating player of the early 90s in Europe became emotional during his speech, thanking Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen for his recent feat.
“I’d like to thank these gentlemen… Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen for kicking my butt during the Olympics in Barcelona, and then motivating me to work even harder to become an important part of the Chicago Bulls,” he shared.
The 52-year-old Kukoc, a European unicorn ahead of his time, said it was a dream come true, especially that he waited the recognition 15 years after his retirement.
Being included to the Hall of Fame proved to be surprisingly not an easy task for him, as it was getting to the NBA back in 1993 when European players were still a novelty.
“My sincere gratitude goes to Mr. Jerry Reinsdorf and the late Jerry Krause for insisting on bringing me to the Bulls and believing in me as a player when it wasn’t common for non-American players to play in the NBA,” he added.
Known for his impressive game performances, Kukoc also struggled before getting the attention of the crowd. He missed nine of 11 shots with seven turnovers in Team USA’s 103-70 shellacking of Croatia.
What doesn’t draw as many headlines — but speaks volumes to Kukoč’s skill and character — is the gold-medal game. Yes, the Dream Team earned its gold medal with a 117-85 victory.
Kukoc played a critical role especially in big shotmaking and sublime passing and ball-handling, giving Bulls’ second three-peat. Some of his notable achievements included three-time NBA champion, three-time EuroLeague Champion, three-time EuroLeague Final Four MVP, FIBA EuroBasket MVP, FIBA World Championship MVP, and FIBA Hall of Famer.
Meanwhile, aside from Kukoc, a 16-person Class of 2021 who was also enshrined were nine honorees from the North American and Women’s committees: ninth-winningest coach in NBA history Rick Adelman, two-time NBA champion and 11-time NBA All-Star Chris Bosh, NBA Finals MVP, and 10-time NBA All-Star Paul Pierce, the first Black NBA head coach Bill Russell, four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and NBA Champion Ben Wallace, five-time NBA All-Star and NBA Rookie of the Year Chris Webber, two-time NCAA national champion Villanova coach Jay Wright, seven-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Yolanda Griffith and seven-time WNBA All-Star and three-time WNBA MVP Lauren Jackson.
Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell is the fifth person to receive the honor of being a Hall of Famer as both a player and a coach.
The 2021 class also includes Val Ackerman, Cotton Fitzsimmons and Howard Garfinkel from the Contributor Committee, Clarence “Fats” Jenkins from the Early African American Pioneers Committee, Bob Dandridge from the Veterans Committee and Pearl Moore from the Women’s Veterans Committee.IMTSports
