Case for Chris Webber in Hall of Fame

[mozichrome]

He is, by some measures, the greatest passing big man in the history of the sport. He averaged 4.2 assists per game over his 15-year career, and he assisted on 20.2 percent of his teams' baskets while on the court — an outrageous number for a true power forward. Of all players listed at 6-foot-9 or taller, only three assisted on a larger percentage of hoops: Larry Bird, Toni Kukoc, and Alvan Adams. That passing ability will be the starting point in evaluating Webber's Hall of Fame case as he becomes eligible for the first time in 2014.

Webber was part of that trailblazing trio, and for a two-season window from 2000 to 2002 — as Webber entered his prime, and before Garnett and Nowitzki hit theirs — Webber had a real claim to the "Best Power Forward Alive" throne.1 Webber in those years nudged his Player Efficiency Rating into the 23-25 range, almost mandatory for a big man Hall of Fame candidate, and racked up enough counting numbers to put himself in historically elite territory. Here is the total list of players who piled up at least 17,000 points and 8,000 rebounds, while averaging at least four assists per game with a career PER above 20: Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, Bird, and Webber. There's some unfair cherry-picking there, since Webber barely exceeds all those thresholds. But cutting the criteria still produces a ridiculously elite list of just 11 guys, all current or future Hall of Famers — plus Webber.

Webber isn't a surefire candidate. He doesn't have a ring (we'll get to this, Sacto fans) as he approaches an opaque voting body that overvalues ringzzz. He never had a no-brainer MVP-type season with a PER in the mid/high-20s,3 in part because Webber was never a very efficient shooter for a big man. And a devastating knee injury in the 2003 playoffs effectively ended Webber's prime and prematurely aged him into a lead-footed jump-shooter — a role he was never equipped to play as well as Nowitzki and Garnett. But it's clear he has the raw numbers to get in, especially given the precedent. And that does not even factor in Webber's college play, which could cut both ways. He was the best player on an iconic team that made back-to-back title games, but the University of Michigan had to erase those wins (among other penalties) after revelations that Webber and other players took huge sums of money from a booster. Webber later pleaded guilty to criminal contempt of court in connection with the matter, and voters who care about maintaining the faux-veneer of amateurism surrounding college sports might hold that against him.

For those who get queasy about the idea of Webber in Springfield, the highlight passes represent something else: the empty flash of a front-running star who did not want the ball, and the responsibility that came with it, in crunch time. There is also a related line of thinking that Webber never embraced the grittier aspects of winning basketball — that he was a lazy screen-setter, a lollygagger on transition defense, a lesser defender than he should have been, and an overrated rebounder who couldn't snag highly contested boards.

rest of article, just posted some important quotes
http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9682949/chris-webber-hall-fame-case

 

[ROFL_GUY]

as a LAKER FAN... he deserves to be in the HALL


great player with ery unique talents for his position

 

[HiphopRelated]

Reggie is in...no argument against CWebb

 

[Buckeye Fever]

Reggie is in...no argument against CWebb

Reggie most definitely belonged

 

[HiphopRelated]

Reggie most definitely belonged

then so does Webb is all I'm saying

 

[GzUp]

chris before he got injured and was having those battles with the lakers was so cold

At him taking the last second shot at times

He held himself back, he was so talented... i wanna say he was the most talented pf of alltime.

I would say yes he belongs in HOF.

 

[Whitty Hutton]

CWebb belongs in no doubt. Including what he did at Michigan, no question
He was part of 3 of the most fun to watch squads I ever saw, too bad none could win championships. His Lebron mentality held him back from beasting even more though

 

[intruder]

One of my favorite big men to watch. Good Post game. Can take you off the dribble. Has very good range with that line drive.

Maybe not first ballot HOF but definitely in.

 

[Liquid]

CWEBB is a HOF. Those who watched basketball daily can tell you that.

Stop obsessing over stats and see the impact. Brought Michigan and the young movement in college. Changed the Kings organization almost overnight. Should have won a championship if the refs did not cheat for the Lakers that one year. That will always be a travesty in my eyes, that Kings team was the best in basketball and fun to watch.

 

[NkrumahWasRight Is Wrong]

id vote yes.

one could argue that his series loss to the lakers was as close to earning a ring as possible without actually getting it. winner of that series had the ring, easily.

as the article noted, his numbers are legendary, and his skills were very unique. those are the types of players that should be in.

im not sure his michigan career will be acknowledged as much as it should, do to his uncomfortable standing with the ncaa..

if i had to bet, id say he gets in on second ballot.

 

[noble]

he should be in only if shawn kemp gets in cuz kemp was better

 

[LezJepzin]

If Mitch Richmond, Chris Webber and Kevin Johnson are all inducted in the same year,

 

[Whitty Hutton]

he should be in only if shawn kemp gets in cuz kemp was better

at dunking and defense

 

[954UAlreadyknow]

the boy C. Webb gotta get in..........

 

[HiphopRelated]

he should be in only if shawn kemp gets in cuz kemp was better

Nah, not buying that, Kemp just put on a better show