Report: Sacramento Kings great Chris Webber elected to Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame
The wait is finally over for Kings great Chris Webber.
Webber, who starred at Michigan before leading Sacramento to the brink of greatness, has been elected to the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame, sources told ESPN’s The Undefeated on Saturday night. A formal announcement is expected Sunday.
Webber was a five-time NBA All-Star who took a wildly popular and entertaining Kings team to the Western Conference finals in 2002. He earned All-NBA First Team honors in 2001, Second Team honors in 1999, 2002 and 2003, and Third Team honors in 2000.
Webber led Michigan’s “Fab Five” team to the NCAA championship game before becoming the No. 1 pick in the 1993 NBA Draft. He was named NBA Rookie of the Year in 1994 while playing for the Golden State Warriors.
The Washington Wizards traded Webber to the Kings for Mitch Richmond and Otis Thorpe in May 1998. Webber teamed with other Kings greats such as Vlade Divac, Peja Stojakovic, Mike Bibby, Doug Christie, Bobby Jackson and Jason Williams to form what Sports Illustrated called “The Greatest Show on Court.”
The Kings made eight consecutive playoff appearances under former coach Rick Adelman from 1998-2006. They posted the best record in the NBA in 2001-02 and went to the playoffs as the No. 1 seed before eventually losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in a memorable seven-game series in the Western Conference finals.
Webber averaged 20.7 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks over his 15-year career NBA career. He made four of his five All-Star Game appearances while playing for the Kings from 1998-2005. He averaged 23.5 points, 10.6 rebounds and 4.8 assists over seven seasons in Sacramento. The Kings retired Webber’s No. 4 jersey on Feb. 6, 2009. Webber retired in 2008 and became eligible for induction to the Hall of Fame in 2013.
This story was originally published May 16, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
