When an athlete begins to play a sport at a young age, the dreams they envision for themselves from being drafted to making the playoffs to winning championships, are all topped by one thing. Being recognized as good enough at your craft to make the Hall of Fame in any sport is the pinnacle of all achievements. It shows that during your days, you were the best of the best and now, you are forever immortal and up there with some of the most talented people on the face of the earth.
Every year, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame gains another wave of legendary names and this year was no different. The 2017 list of inductees is headlined by Tracy McGrady and also features Zack Clayton, Nikos Galis, Mannie Jackson, Tom Jernstedt, Jerry Krause, Rebecca Lobo, George McGinnis, Muffet McGraw and Bill Self. All of these names are remarkably good in their area of expertise and have now seen the lifetime of work they put in towards their passion come to fruition with a Hall of Fame berth.
However, none of these names could be where they are today without help from their loved ones plus so many more and the Hall of Fame enshrinement speech gives these icons the perfect opportunity to say what they want to say about their long, but rewarding journey. You can watch McGrady’s speech here and the rest of the 2017 basketball Hall of Fame enshrinement speeches below, videos courtesy of OfficialHoopHall on YouTube:
