Tim Hardaway, who commented against the LGBTQ community once, is now finally enshrined in the Hall of Fame

Jeet Pukhrambam | 10/09/2022
Tim Hardaway Sr. is now in the Hall of Fame, right where he belongs. The father of the Crossover was visibly emotional during his inductance.

Tim Hardaway Sr. is now in the Hall of Fame, right where he belongs. The father of the Crossover was visibly emotional during his inductance.

The emotive expression of getting into the Hall of Fame is something that is reserved for the greats. For a long time, Tim Hardaway was denied entry.

He believed that his comments against the LGBTQ community in 2007 were the cause of his rebuttal. He apologized for it. Claiming that it was said in vain and that he was ignorant at the time.

And because of that, the good folks at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame have decided to finally induct the worthy point guard.

A 5-time all-star, 5-time all-NBA player, including the first-team, Tim Hardaway was the small point guard before the small ball era. At a time when big men dominated, Hardaway used his dextrous handles to weave through opponents.

He was the crafty point guard before the crafty point guard even began. Moreover, he can lay claim to a skill that virtually every NBA player has tried to use, the Crossover.

Also read: “The reason I’m not in Hall of Fame is because of what I said about gay people”: Tim Hardaway accepted his homophobic remark in 2007 kept him from his place among the legends

 

Tim Hardaway gets inducted into the Hall of Fame and does the signature Crossover

We know how he must be feeling. It has been a long time coming for Tim and he rightfully deserves the praise. To invent a move and to thrive in a time when the league was solely focused on the big man archetype, here he was doing things differently.

Sure he may not have the panache and flair of some other guards of his time, like Isiah Thomas or Magic Johnson. But for Hardaway, it was more about the grind.

And to show off what his influence really meant to the world, he pulled off his signature Crossover while receiving his jacket. And guess who was in attendance?

His son, Tim Hardaway Jr. the Dallas Mavericks star, who has made a name for himself in the NBA.

He even made a comment about the ball-handlers of today, like Kyrie Irving, Chris Paul, and Stephen Curry. He remarked that while none have his particular skill-set, they were still quite good. Yeah, we think you’re right about Tim Sr.

He has had iconic moments throughout his career including his iconic Game 7 performance in the 1997 Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Hardaway is adored by Warriors and Heat Fans alike, and why shouldn’t they? He brought them much joy during a time of hardship.

Also read: “James Harden and Kyrie Irving play with it a little bit too much”: Tim Hardaway chose Kemba Walker as best ball handler over the former Nets duo

Post Edited By: Jeet Pukhrambam
hall of fame NBA Tim Hardaway Warriors

About the author

Jeet Pukhrambam

Jeet Pukhrambam is The SportsRush's Lead Editor for Basketball. After freelancing for five years as an independent writer, Jeet created thousands of blog posts and articles. He now covers intriguing news reports and throwback stories on all things NBA. His interest in NBA started with the ascendancy of Giannis Antetokounmpo in the 2016-17 season. Since then, Jeet has managed to coalesce his knowledge of the game and his writing to create pieces that are reflective of the current state of the league. Now, he ensures that The SportsRush produces the highest quality of writing. In his free time, he enjoys playing football, cooking, traveling, and dancing to techno. Jeet takes pride in his critical thinking, music playlists, and his love for spaghetti.

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