On Saturday, Tim Hardaway Sr. will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He is the father of Dallas Mavericks guard Tim Hardaway Jr.
Hardaway Sr. played 13 years in the NBA with four teams: Golden State Warriors (1989–96), Miami Heat (1996–01), Denver Nuggets (2002), and Indiana Pacers (2003).
In 867 career games, Hardaway Sr. averaged 17.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 8.2 assists, and 1.6 steals per game. Plus, he shot 43.1% from the floor and 35.5% from beyond the arc.
NBA rumors: Tim Hardaway among Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2022 inductees @NBCSBulls https://t.co/K2DUjPkfIh
— NBC Sports Chicago (@NBCSChicago) April 1, 2022
After being passed over five times, the Chicago native finally made it into the Hall of Fame. Tim Hardaway Sr. told Marc J. Spears of Andscape, “I was scared to answer the phone, to tell you the truth.”
“I had been rejected five times before. I was shaking. But after the third or fourth ring, I picked it up. A [Hall of Fame official] called and said, ‘I got better news than the previous times. I want to congratulate you for making it to the 2022 Hall of Fame.’”
The former Warriors guard is famous for his iconic “UTEP two-step” crossover move. In a separate interview with Andscape, Isiah Thomas mentioned, “In Chicago, I was known for the between-the-legs dribble.”
“And then I saw Tim when he was in high school at a Christmas holiday tournament that I came back to as one of the special guests.”
“Not only did Tim have the in-between the legs, but he added a crossover to it. We all played with the crossover, but none of us made it a staple piece to your move.”
Tim Hardaway Sr. ready to be inducted into Hall of Fame
Hardaway Sr. was selected 14th overall by the Warriors in the 1989 NBA Draft. During his rookie 1989-90 season, in 79 appearances, the guard averaged 14.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 8.7 assists, and 2.1 steals per game.
He was selected to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
In the following season, Hardaway Sr. played a full season. He recorded then career-high numbers. With the Warriors, the guard averaged 22.9 points, 4 rebounds, 9.7 assists, and 2.6 steals per game.
Then, in 81 games played in the 1991-92 season, Hardaway Sr. averaged career-highs 23.4 points and 10 assists per game. He also averaged 3.8 rebounds and 2 steals per game.
While with the Heat in the 1996-97 season, the guard averaged 20.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, 8.6 assists, and 1.9 steals per game. He then received his first and only All-NBA First-Team selection.
Additionally, Tim Hardaway Sr. received three All-NBA Second-Team selections (1992, 1998, and 1999) and five All-Star selections (1991–93, 1997, and 1998) during his playing career.
In 2009, his No. 10 jersey with the Heat was retired. The UTEP Miners also retired his No. 10 jersey.
Other 2022 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees include Manu Ginobili, Larry Costello, Lou Hudson, and George Karl.
NBA TV will exclusively televise the 2022 class enshrinement ceremony. Coverage begins this Saturday, Sept. 10 at 6 p.m. ET. The ceremony starts at 7 p.m. ET.
