MIAMI — Former Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade is among the 12 finalists for the Basketball Hall of Fame.
The list of finalists for the class of 2023 was announced Friday in Salt Lake City, Utah, where the NBA All-Star Game weekend events were taking place.
Wade was a 13-time All-Star who won three championships with the Heat and was NBA Finals MVP in 2006.
"A young Dwyane Wade never thought this moment would be here," Wade, who is part-owner of the Utah Jazz, said. "Sometimes when you're young and you have a dream, a lot of people don't believe in your dream because it seems so far-fetched. But I've always been a dreamer."
Other finalists include six-time All-Star Pau Gasol, who won two championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and was the NBA's rookie of the year in 2002; 14-time All-Star Dirk Nowitzki, who spent his entire 21 seasons in the NBA with the Dallas Mavericks, winning a championship in 2011; six-time All-Star Tony Parker, who helped the San Antonio Spurs win four NBA titles and was NBA Finals MVP in 2007; and longtime Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, who is the league's all-time leader in coaching wins and guided the team to five championships.
The inductees for the August ceremony in Springfield, Massachusetts, will be announced before the Final Four in April.
