The first hotdog is out of the kitchen! The NBA All-Star weekend is officially underway, and we have the first major update. Early on Friday evening, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame took center stage and announced the finalists for the 2025 HoF honor. The Nuggets and Knicks icon Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, and WNBA legend Sue Bird headlined the list. Above all, the list also surprised everyone with a special tribute to Kobe Bryant & his key allies from 2008.

You might have guessed it, right? Yes, Team USA, which stormed the Beijing Olympics, was also included in the list. Hopefully, they make it and we may get to see them all on one stage later in the year. Most importantly, the fans can’t keep calm about it, as they take over the internet, dropping their opinions on the list. Without a doubt, they don’t seem to have any reservations about the list.

Anyway, looking closely at the 17-member list that took over San Francisco tonight, one thing is very clear. These basketball icons went through a lot of scrutiny before making it to this point. In mid-December, Naismith announced the 95 nominees that were eligible for the honor, out of which 17 finalists emerged under six different categories such as North America, Women’s, Contributor, International, Women’s Veteran, and Veteran.

Moreover, there isn’t any surety whether all 17 of them would get inducted into the Hall of Fame. And we may have to wait until April 5th; that’s when the inductees of the Class of 2025 will be announced amid the NCAA Final Four frenzy in San Antonio, Texas. However, fans seem pretty convinced about their favorite inducted into the HoF, as they have already begun to celebrate.

Fans Rejoice Over HoF Finalists as Kobe Bryant’s Legacy Soars High

No one expected the 2008 Team Olympics to make it to the list. The story of ‘Redeem Team’ is a movie in itself. After a poor show in the 2004 Athens Olympics, finishing with the Bronze medal, the association roped in Kobe Bryant into the roster along with legendary Mike Krzyzewski to coach the side. Guess what? The star-studded team with Mamba, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and many more went on to dominate the world. In response to the honor, a fan asked an important question, “will Bron be a hall of famer before he even retires?“

Well, it does seem like that. The 40-year-old Lakers superstar might walk on the prestigious stage along with 2008 Olympics teammates on September 6 in Springfield, Massachusetts. On the other hand, fans celebrated Dwight Howard‘s selection in the final 17. A fan wrote, “As he should be!!” Without a doubt, Superman (sorry Shaq!) holds the all accolades under his name to deserve his name included in the HoF, and to list some of his achievements: NBA champ, 8x All-Star, 3x DPOY, 2x Blocks Leader, 4x Rebounding Leader.

Meanwhile, some sections of the fans looked at the funny side of Howard’s story. A fan wrote, “Damn I thought this post was gonna say the Lakers signed Dwight Howard again.” We all know that the big man has been desperate to get his feet back on the NBA. After his success with the Lakers in 2020, he has remained a free agent and took his talents to China. Meanwhile, when the Lakers found themselves in a drama, trying to find a big man, the 39-year-old did everything possible to get the LA team’s attention. Looks like he’s getting the signs to hang his boots.

In the case of Carmelo Anthony, the Knicks legend received rousing support from fans for the honor. At the same time, some fans looked to pull his legs. A fan wrote, “Players drafted after LeBron are making the HOF THIS YEAR.” Melo, who entered the league in the same draft class as Bron but was selected with the 3rd pick. Previously, Dwyane Wade, who was the 5th pick in the same draft class, received the HoF. Looks like LeBron James is the last man standing from that era.

Another fan didn’t hesitate to take the attention away from Melo, as they wrote, “Hot take, Howard has better NBA career than Carmelo. I said NBA not Olympics.” It’s true that Melo hasn’t won a ring, but the influence he has passed on to the younger generation is almost immeasurable!

What do you think? Let us know in the comments.