The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced Thursday the presenters for its Class of 2024 induction ceremony, which will honor former Phoenix Suns and the Phoenix Mercury players.
Several presenters have ties to the Suns.
Julius “Dr. J” Erving will join 2017 inductee Tracy McGrady in welcoming one of this year’s class’ headliners, Vince Carter, during the induction weekend on October 12-13 at the Mohegan Sun Casino and Resort in Uncasville, Conn., and The Hall in Springfield, Mass. The original dates of August 16-17 were rescheduled due to scheduling conflicts, primarily related to the Summer Olympics, which ended on August 11.
Carter spent part of his career with the Suns and is among the Suns and Mercury players in the 12-person class. Others include the late Walter Davis and Michele Timms. Former Suns and Hall of Famers Grant Hill and Charlie Scott, longtime Miami Heat president Pat Riley, who played for the Suns in the 1970s, and former Suns owner and Hall of Fame president Jerry Colangelo will also be among the presenters.
Davis will be inducted by Colangelo, Scott, Bob McAdoo, former Kansas and North Carolina coach Roy Williams, David Thompson and Bobby Jones. Davis, who played at the University of North Carolina, finished his career as the Suns’ all-time leading scorer, a six-time All-Star, a two-time All-NBA selection, and his No. 6 jersey was retired from the Suns Ring of Honor when he ended his 15-year professional career in 1992. Drafted in 1977, he played his first 11 seasons in Phoenix.
In addition to Williams, each of Davis’ anchors has a connection to his home state and North Carolina. Four-time All-Star Jones and former NBA MVP McAdoo were both stars like Davis for the UNC Tar Heels in the 1970s. Scott, who played for the Suns from 1972-75, was an All-American at UNC the previous decade.
Legendary WNBA point guards Katie Smith and Teresa Edwards will be on hand to induct Timms, the Mercury’s all-time leaders in assists and steals per game (4.8, 1.6). Timms, born in Australia, also ranks fifth overall in those categories for the franchise. She was the Mercury’s starting point guard when the WNBA launched in 1997, was an All-Star in 1999, helped the Mercury reach the WNBA’s first Finals in 1998 and retired from playing in 2001. Timms’ No. 7 jersey hangs in the rafters at Footprint Center and she is in the team’s jersey Ring of Honor.
Carter briefly played for the Suns in the 2010–11 season. As one of the greatest dunkers and point guards of all time, Carter was known for his nicknames “Half-Man, Half-Amazing” and “Air Canada” during his first six years with the Toronto Raptors. He had the longest career in the NBA, at 22 years, before retiring in 2020. That tenure will soon be matched by LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers in the upcoming 2024–25 season.
Other 2024 inductees include Jerry West, Herb Simon, Harley Redin, Doug Collins, Dick Barnett, Michael Cooper, Charles Smith, Seimone Augustus, Bo Ryan and Chauncey Billups.
Riley played for the Suns in their first NBA Finals appearance in 1976, but is best known for coaching the rival Lakers to four titles in the 1980s. He will be among the anchors for Lakers icon Jerry West, alongside Cooper, McAdoo, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, Pau Gasol, James Worthy, Vlade Divac and former Lakers coach Del Harris.
This article was originally published on the Arizona Republic: 2024 Hall of Fame Inductees Announced for Suns and Mercury Legends