Every once in a while, in any sport played in the USA, there is a player who walks off the field in their final game and, metaphorically, straight into the Hall of Fame. Such players are not like Zach Thomas, who played with distinction for years in the NFL but was unfortunate to miss out repeatedly until he was inducted this year. A “first ballot” Hall of Famer, someone who after the mandatory five years of retirement is elected in his first year of eligibility, is rare - but we can be fairly sure that in 2028, Tom Brady will be one.

What is it that makes a player such an inevitable inductee into their sport’s Valhalla in this way? It differs between sports, from a statistical point of view. If people are heading to sinlicencia.org to find a betting site just so they can bet on one team, there is a fair chance it has a first ballot Hall of Famer on it. But there are certain characteristics about a player whose place in the pantheon of greats is guaranteed, and we’ll run through them here.

They can carry a team on their back

Not that they’ll usually need to, because the presence of such a player attracts other high-achievers and improves the players around them. But a player like Brady or Michael Jordan could go into a seeming fugue state where the sport happened through them, making clutch play after clutch play and delivering a team to the optimal success whenever they needed to. In 2017, Brady took the Patriots from 28-3 down at the half to win in overtime against the Falcons, securing yet another Super Bowl ring. And the scary thing about it was just how routine he made it look.

They are admired even by those who can’t like them

You could say that Brady and Jordan lacked a certain natural charisma that made people warm to them as people. This is often a trait in perfectionists and winners; they don’t always understand or value the idea of being liked. When it comes down to it, doing what they do to the highest possible degree is what matters to them. When they’re doing their thing, rival fans may be praying for them to come up short. But the main reason people are happy to see those rare failures is because they know that if a player like this gets in a groove, there’s nothing the opponent can do to stop them. We may not always love these players, but we can’t help but admire them.

They are talked about as future Hall of Famers before they’ve even retired

Zach Thomas is the perfect example of someone who deserves to be in the Hall of Fame, but had to wait years before he was finally inducted. There was uncertainty as to whether it would happen, because he was good, but there was a dispute over whether he was great. There is no disputing the greatness of a Brady, a Jordan, or a Wayne Gretzky. The closest thing we have to a future first ballot inductee in any sport right now is probably LeBron James - and to reach that level, look at the career he’s had to have.

As part of the impending NBA All-Star festivities, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame has announced their Finalists for the Class of 2023.

They are:

Jennifer Azzi:  The former Stanford Point Guard led the Cardinal to a National Championship in 1990, winning the Final Four MVP, and the Naismith Award during the regular season.  Internationally, she won Gold for the United States in the 1996 Olympics and 1990 and 1998 FIBA World Championships.  

Gene Bess:  Bess had a career record of 1,300-416 making him the winningest coach in NCAA history.  Spending his entire career at Three Rivers Community College, he is a two-time Junior College Champion as a Coach.

Gary Blair:  Blair coached for 37 years, most notably leading the women’s program at Texas A&M to a National Championship in 2011.  He had a lifetime record of 852-346.

Pau Gasol:  The Spanish Center went to six All-Star Games and helped lead the Los Angeles Lakers to two NBA Championships.  Gasol also was a two-time Second Team and two-time Third Team All-NBA player and while representing Spain, he is a two-time Olympic Silver Medalist, won an Olympic Bronze, and also led his country to Gold in the 2006 World Cup.

Becky Hammon:  Hammon was a six-time WNBA Selection and was named to the NBA 15^th, 20^th, and 25^th Anniversary Team.  She won Bronze representing Russia in the 2008 Olympics and was the first female Assistant Coach in the NBA (San Antonio).  Hammon won the WNBA Championship in her first year as a Head Coach with Las Vegas.

David Hixon:  Hixon was Amherst College’s Men Head Coach for 42 years, winning two Division III National Championships and two Division III Head Coach of the Year Awards.

Gene Keady:  Keady was the Head Coach for Purdue for 25 years and led the Boilermakers to six Big Ten Regular Season Titles.  He is a seven-time Big Ten Coach of the Year.

Dirk Nowitzki:  A Finalist on his first year on the ballot, Nowitzki was the centerpiece for the Dallas Mavericks for over a decade, and took them to their first NBA Championship in 2011.  The 2007 MVP was a four-time First Team, five-time Second Team and three-time Third Team All-NBA recipient and also was named to the NBA 75^th Anniversary Team.

Tony Parker:   Parker won four NBA Championships with the San Antonio Spurs and was a six-time All-Star.  The 2007 NBA Finals MVP was a three-time Second Team All-NBA player and would represent France in many tournaments, most notably winning EuroBasket Gold in 2013.

Gregg Popovich:  Popovich is still active, and is already a legend in basketball coaching.  “Pop” led the Spurs to five NBA Championships.  He is also a three-time NBA Coach of the Year and the was the Head Coach for the U.S. Team that won Gold at the 2020 Olympics.

Dwyane Wade:  Wade was the long-time Point Guard with the Miami Heat where he won three NBA Championships.  The first ballot nominee went to 13 All-Star Games, and was an eight-time All-NBA Selection (two First Team, three Second Team and three Third Team).  He is also a 75^th Anniversary Team.

Marian Washington:  Washington was the Women’s Head Coach for Kansas from 1979 to 2003 and had a record of 560-363.

The Class of 2023 will be announced during this year’s Final Four

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate those who made it to this stage.

Regular visitors of Notinhalloffame.com know that we are slowly working on the top 50 of every major team in the NHL, NBA, NFL and MLB.  Once that is done, we intend to look at how each team honor their past players, coaches and executives.  As such, it is important to us that the Kansas City Royals have announced that Ned Yost has been elected to their Hall of Fame.

Yost becomes the 27^th inductee to the Royals Hall and it will become official on September 2, during their home game against Boston.

Previously managing the Milwaukee Brewers, Yost took over as the Royals skipper in 2010, and four years later, would helm Kansas City to the Pennant.  The next year the Royals won it all, and he is the only Royal Manager to have won consecutive pennants.  Yost is also the team’s all-time leader in wins (746).

Yost retired in 2019, and was eligible for the franchise Hall of Fame for the first time this year.  He received 88.2% of the vote, more than the 75% required.

To be eligible for the Royals Hall of Fame alumni must have been active with the ballclub for at least three seasons and accumulated a minimum of 1,500 plate appearances or 300 innings pitched, or managed the equivalent of three full seasons.  They also have to be retired for three years.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Ned Yost for this impending honor.

Regular visitors of Notinhalloffame.com know that we are slowly working on the top 50 of every major team in the NHL, NBA, NFL and MLB.  Once that is done, we intend to look at how each team honor their past players, coaches and executives.  As such, it is important to us that the Seattle Mariners have announced that Phil Esposito has been chosen for the inaugural Tampa Bay Lightning Hall of Fame class.

Esposito will be honored on alumni weekend (March 16-18), and will be part of the first class with already named inductees, Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier.  

"As good as the Lightning are now, expanding the NHL into Florida was a daunting task as big-time hockey had never been tried in this warm weather state.  Esposito was tasked as the team’s first General Manager, and he used his creativity to generate as much interest in the product as he could.  The Lightning only reached the playoffs once under Esposito, but he laid the groundwork for the team to make it.  He would later serve as their radio color analyst.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Phil Esposito for this impending honor.