We waited a little bit before we decided to discuss the retirement of Amar’e Stoudemire from the National Basketball Association at the age of 33. Perhaps it was because it is not know at this time if he will continue to play overseas or because we are not even certain that this will hold. Regardless, we are going to do that now and ask the question we always ask when we have a retirement of this magnitude; is Amar’e Stoudemire a Hall of Famer?
Coming out of High School as the 9th overall pick in the 2002 Draft, The Phoenix Suns had an immediate star as the big man won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. He helped elevate Phoenix to an NBA Championship contender, pairing with Steve Nash forming one of the most devastating pairings in professional basketball.
Five times with the Suns, Stoudemire would make the All-Star Team and he was named a Second Team All-NBA selection three times and a First Team Selection once. In 2007, he would finish second in MVP voting to the eventual winner, Kobe Bryant.
Opting out of his contract with Suns, Amar’e Stoudemire joined Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks and was still in superstar form, earning another All Star Game appearance and a Second Team All-NBA nod. Injuries would however pile up and season after season the 6’ 10’’ Stoudemire would become a shell of what he once was. He would finish his career with stints with Dallas and Miami.
On Tuesday, Stoudemire signed with the Knicks and announced his NBA retirement, proudly stating “Once a Knick, Always a Knick” (though his run in Phoenix was far superior).
Although Amar’e has no college resume (which can factor in the to Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame) his five All-NBA selections put him on the black side of the Springfield ledger. He has good career number with a PER of 21.8 and 92.5 Win Shares, though his relatively low VORP (16.81) might raise a few eyebrows and his career Rebounds/Game are not huge for a man his size.
Stating that, Amar’e Stoudemire is a player who competed in the NBA All-Star Game six times; a number that equates to many as a Hall of Famer, though we aren’t ready to usher him in just yet.
He will be eligible for the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021 and will likely be placed on the lower end of our top ten of our Notinhalloffame.com Basketball List. With Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan eligible the same year, Amar’e won’t get in immediately, and this is one case where if he got inducted in his second year or never, the result would yield equal surprise.
Still, we would like to thank Amar’e for the wonderful run and the memories he gave fans in Phoenix, New York and the NBA fans world over. It was a great career!
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