Moses Malone

One of the True Rocket greats (if not the greatest) will go into the Hall of Fame on Oct. 5th. Congratulations Mo!!!

http://www.nba.com/news/hall_of_fame_010530.html?nav=ArticleList



Basketball Hall of Fame to Enshrine Class of 2001
Moses' Promised Land: Hall of Fame

SPRINGFIELD, Mass.-- Moses Malone, a 12-time NBA All-Star and three-time MVP, elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in May, will be enshrined with Temple coach John Chaney and Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski as the Class of 2001. Enshrinement ceremonies will be held Oct. 5 at the Springfield Civic Center in Springfield, Mass., the birthplace of basketball.

Krzyzewski and Malone were elected by the Honors Committee on their first ballot. This was Chaney's third year being reviewed by the North American Screening Committee and his first year by the Honors Committee. An individual needed five of seven votes from their Screening Committee to become a Hall of Fame finalist and 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election.

This will be the last class to be enshrined in the current Hall of Fame. Construction of a new Hall, which is part of a $103 million, 18 1/2-acre redevelopment project along the bank of the Connecticut River, has been in under way since last July and is scheduled to open in summer 2002. The new 100,000-square-foot museum doubles the size of the current facility and will serve as a national and international shrine to the game of basketball.

Malone averaged 20.6 points and 12.2 rebounds in 19 seasons with Buffalo, Houston, Philadelphia, Washington, Atlanta, Milwaukee and San Antonio (1976-77 to 1994-95).

"It is an honor to think people consider me a great player," said Malone, who began his professional career by playing two years in tha ABA. "I never considered myself a great player. I considered myself a hard worker."

Malone, a native of Petersburg, Va., enjoyed his greatest success with Houston and Philadelphia. He earned his first two MVP awards in 1978-79 and 1981-82 with the Rockets, and he led Houston to the 1981 NBA Finals against Boston. In his first year with Philadelphia (1982-83), he won his third MVP award and led the Sixers to the NBA championship.


That legendary Sixers team lost only one postseason game, going 12-1 while on the way to the title. That team, coached by Hall of Famer Billy Cunningham, also included Hall of Fame forward Julius Erving, All-Star guards Maurice Cheeks and Andrew Toney, and Sixth Man Award-winner Bobby Jones, a 2001 Hall of Fame finalist.

"I have to give thanks to a lot of players who I played with," Malone said. "You can't think of me as a great player without mentioning the great players I played with and the great teams I played on."

He said if he had to single out one of his former teammates, it would be Erving.

"I love him," Malone said. "He is an ambassador of the game."

Malone, one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, is currently fifth in NBA history in points (27,409) and rebounds (16,212).

Krzyzewski won his third national championship at Duke this spring. He has amassed a 606-223 record in 21 seasons of coaching at Duke -- where he also won NCAA titles in 1991-92 -- and four seasons at Army.

His three championships tie him for third all-time with Bob Knight, behind John Wooden (11) and Adolph Rupp (four), all of whom are members of the Basketball Hall of Fame. Krzyzewski ranks second all-time in NCAA Tournament wins (56) behind Dean Smith's 65. With nine Final Four appearances, Krzyzewski ranks third all-time behind Wooden (12) and Smith (11). From 1988-92, Krzyzewski led Duke to five straight Final Four appearances and his 10 Final Four victories rank second behind Wooden's 21.

Among Krzyzewski's former players currently in the NBA are All-Star forward Grant Hill of the Orlando Magic; Chicago Bulls forward Elton Brand, the 1999-2000 Schick co-Rookie of the Year; Washington Wizards center Christian Laettner; Cherokee Parks and Corey Maggette of the Los Angeles Clippers; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Trajan Langdon and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Will Avery.

Former Krzyzewski player Billy King has also moved on to NBA success as the general manager of the 76ers.

Chaney has coached for 29 years; in that time, he has won 656 games and led his teams to 26 postseason berths. He won a Division II national championship with Cheyney State in 1978, and since taking over Temple in 1982, he has led the Owls to 18 postseason tournament appearances and five NCAA regional finals.

Chaney is the winningest coach in Atlantic 10 history with 284 victories. He has compiled 15 20-win seasons at Temple and currently ranks fifth all-time in most 20-win seasons.

Among Chaney's former players currently in the NBA are three-time All-Star Eddie Jones and backup center Duane Causwell of the Miami Heat; Sixers guard Aaron McKie, this season's winner of the Sixth Man Award; and New York Knicks guard Rick Brunson.

Other finalists were former NBA players Adrian Dantley, Earl Lloyd, Drazen Petrovic and James Worthy; Sixers coach Larry Brown; Los Angeles Lakers assistant Tex Winter. Also nominated were Junius Kellogg, Dino Meneghin, Lute Olson, Jerry Tarkanian and Kay Yow.