Kobe Bryant's Hall Of Fame Ceremony Moved To May 2021
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced Friday that the induction for the 2020 class will be postponed from August to May of 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The induction is now scheduled for May 13-15 at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26 at age 41, is among the inductees, along with Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and WNBA star Tamika Catchings.
"The decision to reschedule Enshrinement into May of next year, along with diminished museum guest visitation and a very uncertain future regarding our multiple collegiate and high school basketball events this fall, has forced us to make these very difficult decisions," Hall of Fame president and CEO John Doleva said in a statement. "Our goal now is to conserve resources so that we may stabilize in 2021 and return to our growth trajectory in 2022 and beyond."
Bryant spent all 20 seasons of his career with the Lakers. He was a five-time NBA champion, two-time Finals MVP, one-time regular season MVP in 2008, 18-time All-Star and was named to the NBA All-Defensive team 12 times.
He had career averages of 25 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.4 steals over 1,346 games before retiring in 2016.
In a television interview from her home in April, Bryant's wife Vanessa told ESPN that she wishes he could celebrate the honor in person.
"It's definitely the peak of his NBA career," Vanessa said. "And every accomplishment that he had as an athlete was a stepping stone to be here, so we're incredibly proud of him."
