Nets' Buck Williams among Naismith Basketball HOF 2025 finalists
Nets' Buck Williams among Naismith Basketball HOF 2025 finalists
The Brooklyn Nets have had plenty of great players come through the franchise and that has been while the organization was in New Jersey and now, in Brooklyn. One of the players who have had his Nets jersey retired by the franchise in 1999 is continuing to be honored, this time by the NBA that he spent 17 years playing in before retiring from the league.
The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced the 17 finalists for the 2025 class on Friday that will be considered for election prior to NCAA Men's Final Four in April. Williams was among the finalists, meaning that he could be enshrined in the Hall after a career that saw him play for three different teams, including the Nets, Portland Trail Blazers, and New York Knicks.
With the Nets, Williams spent his first eight seasons putting up numbers that the franchise had only seen from a few players in its history as he averaged 16.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game. While putting up those numbers, Williams won Rookie of the Year and proceeded to be named to the All-Star team three times in his eight years with the organization before moving on to the Trail Blazers.
Not only was Williams named to an All-Defensive team four times, he's also third in NBA history in offensive rebounds (4,526) and 16th in total rebounds (13,017), showing just how much of an impact he had throughout his long career. Prior to his start with the Nets, where the team drafted him with the third overall pick in the 1981 NBA Draft, Williams had an All-American career at Maryland where he was a two-time All-ACC honoree.
With Portland, Williams helped the team reach the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992 while still being a solid player for them to the tune of 10.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game while shooting 55.0% from the field. Williams has already been honored by the Nets a long time ago for what he did for the franchise and now, he could be immortalized in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame if the panel deems him fit for that honor.
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