Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard are going into the Basketball Hall of Fame this year, not once but twice. LeBron James and Chris Paul are part of the group headed to the hall as well, even before their playing careers end. The Class of 2025 was announced Saturday, the AP reports. It includes the 2008 US Olympic men's team that Anthony and Howard played on—dubbed the "Redeem Team," which won gold at the Beijing Games and started a still-going run of five consecutive Olympic titles for USA Basketball's men's program. Also selected Saturday are WNBA greats Sue Bird, Maya Moore, and Sylvia Fowles; Chicago Bulls and Florida coach Billy Donovan; Miami Heat managing general partner Micky Arison, and longtime NBA referee Danny Crawford. "I made it to the real basketball heaven," Howard said. "It's crazy."
The inductees:
- Bird: A four-time WNBA champ and two-time NCAA title winner, the pioneering point guard described her selection as surreal. "I don't think there's any way to really wrap your head around it," she said. Bird is the WNBA's all-time leader in wins, games played, assists, and minutes, per CBS Sports. She earned five gold medals at the Olympics with Team USA and four gold medals at the FIBA World Cup.
- Moore: She was the WNBA's rookie of the year, Finals MVP, and season MVP. After playing seven seasons, Moore retired to advocate for reforming the nation's criminal justice system.
- Fowles: She was a WNBA All-Star eight times and league MPV once. Fowles was named the leagues defensive player of the year four times, per USA Today. "I don't think (any) one of us go into this thinking that we're going to be Hall of Famers," she said. "You just do your job."
- Anthony: In his only college season, he led Syracuse to an NCAA title. Anthony is 10th all time in NBA scoring after 19 seasons. He won three Olympic gold medals with Team USA.
- Howard: He led the NBA in rebounding five times and won a championship with the Lakers. Howard ranks 10th all time in NBA rebounds and was named defensive player of the year three times.
- Donovan: The coach won back-to-back NCAA titles at Florida, where his team won at least 30 games in three seasons. He now coaches the Chicago Bulls.
- Arison: As managing general partner, he oversaw Miami's path to NBA titles in 2006, 2012, and 2013. "For some, this is an individual honor," Arison said. "But for me, this speaks to what our entire Heat family—players, coaches, staff, and fans—have built together."
- Crawford: The referee worked more than 2,000 NBA regular-season games over 32 seasons. He was selected for the NBA Finals in 23 of those years.
- 2008 US Olympic men's team: The Redeem Team went 8-0 in Beijing, with an average margin of victory of 27.9 points. The team returned the US to Olympic glory after the 2004 squad had settled for a bronze medal.
Enshrinement weekend is Sept. 5-6 at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, and the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, per the AP.
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