The 2026 Legends Brunch Honors Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Candace Parker, Baron Davis, and Jamal Crawford While Featuring a Panel Discussion With Olympians Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, and Pau Gasol
The Legends Brunch is the highlight of NBA All-Star Weekend, a celebration of the great players who built the NBA from a fledgling league into a global enterprise. I cherished covering the Legends Brunch in person from
2005-2010, and every year that was my favorite All-Star Weekend event, along with attending the ABA Reunions in 2005 and 2006.
NBC is covering the NBA this season for the first time since 2002, so for the first time in more than two decades TNT's Ernie Johnson was not the host for the Legends Brunch telecast. Bob Costas, who served as NBC's main NBA host the last time that the network had an NBA contract, hosted the 2026 Legends Brunch. His communication style is different than Johnson's--Costas did not lead things off with a poem he wrote--but Costas is every bit as informed and talented as Johnson is.
Costas began the telecast by providing a brief recap of NBA All-Star Saturday Night, and then he introduced NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. Silver acknowledged the presence of the family members of Chuck Cooper (the first Black player drafted by an NBA team), Earl Lloyd (the first Black player to play in an NBA game), and Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton (the first Black player to sign an NBA contract). Then, he presented the Lifetime Achievement Award to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Abdul-Jabbar said that he is "deeply humbled, filled with gratitude for a league that gave me far more than a career. It gave me a home, a purpose, and a family." Abdul-Jabbar thanked all of his coaches and teammates collectively, but he singled out one coach by name: Farrell Hopkins, who he credited with impressing upon him the importance of being able to score effectively. Abdul-Jabbar took that advice to heart, eventually breaking Wilt Chamberlain's NBA career scoring record in 1984 and then holding the mark until LeBron James surpassed him in 2023. Abdul-Jabbar expressed gratitude that the NBA provided "a platform to stand for something larger than myself," namely social justice and community service. He emphasized the importance of what an athlete does beyond the basketball court: "Greatness is not measured in points only or in wins, but in the impact we leave behind."
Magic Johnson presented the Pioneer Award to Candace Parker, the only WNBA player to win championships with three different teams and the only WNBA player to win the Rookie of the Year award and the regular season MVP in the same season. Parker stated that she has been inspired by NBA legends, singling out Magic Johnson and Julius Erving in particular. She also noted the strong influence that her college coach, Pat Summit, had on her.
The Legends Brunch included a special tribute to the three pioneers mentioned above: Chuck Cooper, Earl Lloyd, and Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton. This is part of the NBA's season-long recognition of how Cooper, Lloyd, and Clifton played key roles in integrating the league.
Andre Iguodala, the President of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), spoke on a host of topics. He mentioned Chris Paul--who recently retired after being released by the L.A. Clippers--and said that Paul has a special ability to "lock in" to competition while also being able to "lock through" as a connector bringing people together. Iguodala recalled that when Paul was a rival player he did not like him very much, but that after serving as an NBPA Vice President while Paul was the NBPA President he saw firsthand how much Paul did on behalf of NBA players. Iguodala praised Abdul-Jabbar for speaking to him 15 years ago about the value of keeping up with the times to learn to speak the language of young people. Abdul-Jabbar advised Iguodala to do things like watching reality TV shows to better understand how young people think and how they communicate.
Antonio Davis, the President of the National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA or Legends of Basketball), spoke about the NBRPA's mandate to help Legends live with dignity and wellness so that they can prosper and can continue to make positive contributions to their communities.
The Bob Lanier Community Impact Award was first presented to Pau Gasol in 2023, and then Jalen Rose earned the honor in 2024. The award was not presented at the 2025 Legends Brunch, but it is important to keep Lanier's name alive, and to recognize players who have a positive community impact. Gasol presented this award to Baron Davis and Jamal Crawford. Davis spoke about his efforts to bridge the gap between the "privileged" and the "underprivileged." He said that he learned the importance of community while he grew up in the L.A. area. Crawford declared, "This honor truly means a lot to me. I feel so blessed because this isn't something you seek recognition for. You do what feels right to uplift as many people as possible, especially those who need it most." He thanked his grandparents, parents, sisters, and community members who inspired him. He lives by the motto, "If you can help someone, do it." Crawford added, "Giving back is not about recognition. It's about responsibility." He thanked Abdul-Jabbar and Erving for providing inspiration to him when he was a child--and even today. Crawford said that the sport's legends are the most important part of the game.
After Crawford finished speaking, Costas mentioned the new documentary "Soul Power," produced by Julius Erving, George Karl, and Common. The four part series on Amazon Prime tells the story of the ABA. Costas noted the tremendous impact that the ABA had on basketball history--and on the way basketball is played today--with innovations such as the three point shot (which was not invented by the ABA but was popularized by the league), the Slam Dunk Contest, and a wide open style of play. Many Hall of Famers started their careers in the ABA, including four-time MVP/three-time champion Julius Erving, three-time MVP/one-time champion Moses Malone, two-time MVP/three-time champion Mel Daniels, one-time MVP/one-time champion Artis Gilmore, one-time MVP/two-time champion George McGinnis, three-time champion Roger Brown, four-time scoring champion George Gervin, David Thompson, Bobby Jones, and Louie Dampier. Costas declared, "No one personified the league more than Dr. J, one of the greatest players in the history of basketball and the greatest player in the history of the ABA."
The Legends Brunch concluded with a panel discussion moderated by Costas featuring Olympians Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, and Pau Gasol.
Robertson recalled Team USA's tryout process for the 1960 Olympics, which involved eight teams competing in Denver. The AAU was very powerful at that time, and tried to get as many of their players as possible on the Olympic team. Costas asked Robertson if the 1960 squad was the greatest U.S. team ever other than the fabled 1992 Dream Team. Robertson acknowledged his team's greatness but also felt that the 1956 squad led by Bill Russell should be considered.
Robertson wore a knee brace, but Costas pointed out that Robertson looks much younger than 87. Robertson explained that he is wearing the brace because old men sometimes do "foolish" things; he strained his leg trying to see how much weight he could lift over his head.
Magic Johnson said that a key moment for the 1992 Dream Team happened when Michael Jordan rejected the honor of being the only captain and insisted that Larry Bird and Magic Johnson should be co-captains with him. Johnson said that this forged team unity. He remembered that the Dream Team's scrimmages were often Eastern Conference players competing against Western Conference players, and he said that those now-legendary battles were very intense.
Johnson praised Robertson not only as a great player but also as the first player who became a "businessman outside of basketball," along with Dave Bing.
The always gracious Gasol praised Robertson, Johnson, and the other legends who came before him for paving the way for him to become an NBA player. He was 12 years old when the Dream Team won Olympic gold in his hometown Barcelona. Gasol talked about how his L.A. Laker teammate Kobe Bryant ran right through him on a screen when Team USA faced Spain in the 2008 Olympics. Gasol said that play set the tone for Team USA to do whatever it takes to win the gold medal after falling short several times in previous FIBA events when Bryant was not on the roster. Gasol recalled that Bryant later put his Olympic gold medal in Gasol's L.A. locker to send a message, noting that Bryant was very "intentional" about making sure that they were on the same page about winning an NBA championship. Gasol had an 0-3 career playoff series record before teaming up with Bryant, who led the Lakers to NBA championships in 2009 and 2010 with Gasol as the second option. If Gasol had continued to be aggressive and not been satisfied with winning two NBA championships, perhaps the Lakers would have won at least one more title.
One of Johnson's most vivid Olympic memories is how Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen made a point of taking turns guarding Toni Kukoc--their future Chicago Bulls teammate--full court when Team USA faced Croatia in the 1992 Olympics.
Johnson singled out Erving for helping him when he was weighing the pros and cons of leaving Michigan State as an underclassman. After Johnson sought Erving's advice, Erving not only counseled him but he flew Johnson to Philadelphia to stay with him for a few days to discuss matters in detail. Johnson said that this was an important time not just in his career but in his life, and he praised Erving for being such a great mentor. That story epitomizes not only how special Erving is, but also the impact that basketball's legends can have (1) when their counsel is sought and (2) when young players have the humility to realize that they don't know everything and that they can benefit from the experiences of the great players who came before them.
Selected Previous NBA Legends Recaps:
The 2025 NBA Legends Brunch Honors Oscar Robertson, Gary Payton, and Rick Barry, and Features a Panel Discussion With Run TMC (2025)
The
2024 NBA Legends Brunch Honors Tamika Catchings, Jalen Rose, Reggie
Miller, and Larry Bird While Also Featuring ABA Panel Discussion (2024)
NBA Legends Brunch Honors Bill Russell, Karl Malone, John Stockton, and Pau Gasol (2023)
Jerry West Gives Powerful Speech After Being Honored as NBA Legend of the Year (2022)
Legends Brunch Honors Alonzo Mourning, Five Great Mavs (2010)
NBA Legends Brunch Honors Phoenix' Rich Basketball History (2009)
King James Reigns in Houston (2006 NBA All-Star Weekend) Labels: Baron Davis, Candace Parker, Chuck Cooper, Earl Lloyd, Jamal Crawford, Julius Erving, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Nat Clifton, NBA All-Star Weekend, NBA Legends Brunch, Oscar Robertson, Pau Gasol
posted by David Friedman @ 10:30 AM
The Basketball Hall of Fame Welcomes A Diverse Class of 12 Inductees
The 2019 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class includes the first black player drafted by an NBA team (Chuck Cooper of the Boston Celtics), an all-black team that became the first squad to win three straight collegiate national championships (Tennessee A&I, 1957-59), the New York Knicks' first superstar (Carl Braun), the pioneering women's team from Wayland Baptist, two of the greatest defensive players in pro basketball history (Bobby Jones and Sidney Moncrief), the face of the Warriors' franchise for six decades (Al Attles), two prominent NBA All-Stars from the 1970s/1980s (Paul Westphal and Jack Sikma), NBA championship-winning coach Bill Fitch, one of the first European players to make a big impact in the NBA (Vlade Divac) and one of the WNBA's first stars (Teresa Weatherspoon).
Divac gave the first speech during Friday night's induction ceremony. I was struck by the fact that when he first arrived in the United States he did not speak a word of English, but now he gave a wonderful Hall of Fame acceptance speech in that language. Think about that for a moment. Could you move to Serbia in your 20s, qualify for the Hall of Fame in some endeavor and then give your acceptance speech in Serbian? Divac declared, "To me, the game of basketball has always been about love." He also said, "You have to give in order to receive...Basketball is the opposite of selfishness. Basketball is solely about giving and sharing and caring for one another."
Jack Sikma is
one of the few players who has a move named after him. Sikma patented
the inside pivot move that is now referred to by his name. He had
tremendous footwork and smarts. Before the ceremony, Bill Walton said,
"He was a beautiful player" and a "brilliant analyst as to what to do
(and) when (to do it)." In the final three seasons of his career,
Sikma--who up to that point had made seven three point field goals in
the nine years since the league had added the three point arc to the
court--shot 203-618 (.328) on three pointers. His coach, Milwaukee's Del
Harris, was two decades ahead of his time in terms of spacing the court
and having his center shoot from long distance--and Sikma was both talented enough and smart enough to make that late-career addition to his skill set.
Braun, who received the honor posthumously, was known for his two handed set shot that was unorthodox even during his own era. The highlight reel showed that he had many other shots in his repertoire as well, including a running one hander. Braun set the NBA's single game scoring record of 47 points. His daughter Susan accepted the award on his behalf and stated that her father played for the love of the game, and that she can picture him now in heaven with his old teammates taking a brief break to watch the ceremony before going right back to playing the game he loved.
I grew up rooting for Julius Erving's Philadelphia 76ers. A major contributor to those great teams was
Bobby Jones, who was efficient offensively and tenacious defensively. Jones had asked his Denver Nuggets teammate David Thompson and his former 76ers coach Billy Cunningham to present him but Thompson is ill and Cunningham was unable to attend as a result of Hurricane Dorian. In their places, Jones tapped Erving and Charles Barkley. Jones mentioned that he is happy that the Hall is rewarding defense and he said that he would not have had the career he did without the teachings of his college coach, Dean Smith. Jones thanked all of his teammates and he even thanked the referees, which is likely a first at a Hall of Fame ceremony. I interviewed Jones 14 years ago at the 2005 ABA Reunion in Denver and found him to be every bit as gracious, humble and soft-spoken in person as he has always appeared to be.
Fitch was not able to attend the ceremony but he gave his speech via a pre-recorded video. His name may not be familiar to younger fans, but he lifted the Cleveland Cavaliers from first year expansion team to three straight playoff appearances, then he coached the Boston Celtics to a title in his second year with the team and then he led Houston to the NBA Finals in his third year with that team. Later he led the Nets and then the Clippers to the playoffs in an era when both teams were perennial laughingstocks. He ranks 10th in NBA history with 944 regular season wins.
The accomplishments of Tennessee A&I and their coach John McClendon (who the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame honored as a contributor in 1979 and as a coach in 2016) are remarkable: they won three straight national titles--they are the first basketball team to win back to back national titles in any collegiate division--and they did so while overcoming the blatant racism of the day. They also played a style featuring pressure defense and fast-breaking offense that was far ahead of its time. Dick Barnett, the team's star who later became an NBA All-Star and a two-time NBA champion, narrated the video that placed the team's accomplishments in the historical context of an era that included the brutal murder of Emmett Till, the saga of Rosa Parks and the landmark Supreme Court ruling in Brown vs. Board of Education. Barnett began the video by declaring that Coach McClendon "sounded the trumpet that would never call retreat."
Barnett's speech was powerful and gripping on a sweeping historical scale. Teresa Weatherspoon's speech was powerful and captivating in a more personal manner. If you have not seen her speech yet, stop reading for a moment and watch it now:
Teresa Weatherspoon's 2019 Basketball Hall of Fame Speech.
Weatherspoon began by noting that there was "nothing rolling for me" (i.e., she was not using the teleprompter). She spoke of the importance of the history of the game and she became overcome by emotion several times, including when she thanked God for knowing her name and for making it such that her name is remembered. She also was deeply moved when she thanked each of her older brothers and sisters for watching over her while she watched and learned from them. Weatherspoon concluded by telling a story about three frogs trapped in a deep barrel of hot water. The frogs jumped and jumped trying to get out, while the critics outside the barrel told them to stop jumping and accept that there was no way out. First one frog gave up and died, and then a second frog gave up and died. The third frog never gave up and he eventually escaped. What was his secret? He was deaf! Weatherspoon said that she has always been "deaf" to the critics and naysayers who tried to put limits on what she could accomplish. What a wonderful message! I can definitely picture showing this speech to my daughter Rachel when she is a little older.
Younger fans who may be dimly aware of Al Attles as a presence around the Golden State Warriors probably have no idea that he was a player, a championship-winning coach and an executive during his six decades (!) with the franchise. Attles was not big even during his playing days but he was known as the "Destroyer" and everyone around the league knew not to mess with him.
When I was a kid, there was a time that Sidney Moncrief was arguably the second best guard in the league behind only Magic Johnson. Moncrief's Milwaukee Bucks could never get past Boston and Philadelphia to reach the NBA Finals but he was a great player who played on some great teams. Injuries curtailed his prime and shortened his career but when he was healthy and at his peak he wreaked havoc at both ends of the court. Moncrief said, "The game taught me how to prepare for opportunities, how to execute strategies, how to compete unconditionally, and how to adjust when you experience setbacks."
Chuck
Cooper was the first black player drafted by an NBA team, Nat
"Sweetwater" Clifton was the first black player to sign an NBA contract
and Earl Lloyd was the first black player to play in an NBA game. Lloyd
was inducted in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003 and Clifton was
inducted in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014.
Julius
Erving joined Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor, Tommy Heinsohn, Kareem
Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Isiah Thomas, Dominique Wilkins, Ray Allen and
Mannie Jackson as presenters for Chuck Cooper. As noted above, Erving (along with
Charles Barkley) also presented Bobby Jones, so this ceremony marked the
14th and 15th times that Erving has been a Basketball Hall of Fame presenter. It was awesome to see such an array of talent from across the generations sharing the stage, but also poignant to look at how the aging process eventually takes its toll even on our sporting heroes.
In addition to Weatherspoon's powerful and inspirational speech, I was most touched by the tributes to Tennessee A&I and Chuck Cooper. I recall the poignant words of Earl Lloyd near the conclusion of the must-see documentary
"Black Magic": "Black folks are the most forgiving and nicest people on this Earth. I
said, 'What could we have possibly done to deserve the kind of treatment
we are getting?' It's a tough question to answer truthfully. One person
said to me, 'Well, the Lord will test you.' I said, 'I understand that
but 200 years is a long time to be tested. I wish somebody would tell me
if I passed or flunked this test.'"
The ceremony closed with a speech by
Paul Westphal, who combined a nice mixture of humor with some very plaintive messages about thanking those who have helped you before it is too late to do so. He wondered aloud if the recently deceased
John Havlicek and
John MacLeod knew how much they had meant to him. Westphal called Havlicek the "best mentor a rookie could ever have." MacLeod was Westphal's coach in Phoenix when Westphal blossomed into a perennial All-Star/All-NBA player.
-----
The diversity of the 2019 Basketball Hall of Fame class is wonderful but for those of us who tend to focus more on the NBA one wonders why certain players, coaches and teams have been honored while others have not been recognized. Some players wait decades before they are inducted, other players who seem to be deserving have yet to be inducted, and then other players are inducted quickly despite not seeming to be inherently more qualified than those who suffered long waits and those who have not been inducted at all.
There are not easy or obvious answers to these questions. A little over a decade ago,
then-NBA Commissioner David Stern described the Hall of Fame selection process as "absolutely unacceptable" and "troublesome." For many years, I loudly and repeatedly chastised the Hall of Fame for ignoring players and coaches who spent the bulk of their careers and/or their best seasons in the ABA.That particular situation did not improve until
after Jerry Colangelo became the Hall of Fame Chairman. Suddenly, doors that had been closed to the ABA for decades opened up and in rapid succession the Hall of Fame welcomed ABA stalwarts
Artis Gilmore (2011),
Mel Daniels (2012),
Roger Brown (2013),
Bobby "Slick" Leonard (2014),
Louie Dampier (2015),
Spencer Haywood (2015),
Zelmo Beaty (2016) and
George McGinnis (2017).
The ABA problem was perhaps simpler to address because it was obvious that a whole group of worthy candidates was being ignored specifically because of their ABA connections. The most glaring omissions have now been rectified and it is further heartening to see a guy like Bobby Jones--a defensive-minded player who began his career in the ABA--get recognized as well.
It is not so simple to figure out why particular individuals have not been inducted decades after their accomplished careers ended. There is not a set of objective criteria signifying what a Hall of Famer is, and the longer that someone is neglected the easier it is to keep neglecting that person in favor of more recently retired players whose accomplishments are better known.
I enjoyed watching the 2019 Basketball Hall of Fame ceremony and I learned some things about various inductees that I did not know, but I also feel bad for players like
Bob Dandridge who have seemingly been forgotten. Dandridge was a two-way player who performed a key role for two NBA championship teams (1971 Bucks, 1978 Bullets). Will Dandridge have to wait to be inducted posthumously like Braun was this year and like Roger Brown was in 2013?
Labels: Bobby Jones, Carl Braun, Chuck Cooper, Dick Barnett, Jack Sikma, Julius Erving, Paul Westphal, Sidney Moncrief, Teresa Weatherspoon, Vlade Divac
posted by David Friedman @ 9:01 PM
