On Sunday, October 13th, the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame is set to enshrine thirteen inductees from all corners of the basketball landscape. Amongst those thirteen names are three All-Star players from the NBA and WNBA that lit up the courts in the 2000s: Chauncey Billups, Vince Carter, and Seimone Augustus.
Billups attended University of Colorado for college, where he led the team to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 28 years before leaving in his sophomore year for the NBA Draft. After being drafted at number three by the Boston Celtics in 1997, Billups was shuffled around before landing in Detroit in 2003. In 2004, Billups won the championship with the Pistons and was bestowed the MVP Finals award. After playing seventeen seasons and being a five-time All-Star, he retired from playing in 2014. In November of 2020 he was named an assistant coach for the LA Clippers and is currently the head coach of the Portland Trailblazers.
A hometown hero, Carter started dazzling basketball fans early from the courts of Florida. After a slew of accomplishments in high school, he moved on to UNC before being selected fifth overall in the 1998 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors who then immediately traded him to the Toronto Raptors. He was named the 1999 Rookie of the Year and in 2000 he stunned as the Slam Dunk Contest champion. By the end of his 22-year career, Carter had played for eight teams, won an Olympic gold medal, and was named an All-Star eight consecutive times. He is now regularly featured as a broadcast basketball analyst.
A Louisiana native, Augustus was recognized early on for her exceptional skill by gracing the debut cover for Sports Illustrated for Women at just fourteen years old. Augustus attended LSU and led the team to its first of five consecutive appearances in the Final Four in 2004, amongst a smattering of other accomplishments. In 2006, Augustus was the first overall pick by the Minnesota Lynx in the 2006 WNBA Draft and was named Rookie of the Year. In 2011, Augustus helped lead the Lynx to their first championship and was named Finals MVP. In May 2012 she publicly came out when her profile was at its highest. By the time Augustus retired from the WNBA in 2020, she was an eight-time WNBA All-Star, a four-time WNBA Champion, and a three-time Olympic gold medalist. She has had her jersey retired by both the Minnesota Lynx and the LSU Tigers, a statue placed at LSU’s arena, and had an illustrious European basketball career. Post-retirement, Augustus has transitioned to coaching and is currently an assistant coach at her alma mater.
The ceremony can be viewed on NBATV on Sunday, October 13th at 6:00 PM EDT.
