LOS ANGELES -- Former Lakers Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard — two of the defining stars of the 2000s era—are headed to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Announced Saturday as part of the 2025 class, the duo will be inducted not once but twice: individually for their stellar NBA careers and collectively as members of the gold medal-winning 2008 U.S. Olympic "Redeem Team."
Anthony and Howard, along with LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Jason Kidd, Chris Paul, Chris Bosh, Deron Williams, Tayshaun Prince, Carlos Boozer, and Michael Redd, got the nod for their golden dominance at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics Games.
The "Redeem Team" went 8-0 in Beijing, finishing the Games with a 118-107 win over Spain, redeeming the United States’ 2004 bronze finish in Athens.
Anthony, who finished his career with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2022, played 19 years in the NBA. He was one of the most skilled isolation players in his time, with a deadly mid-range post game. The Brooklyn native stacked up 10 All-Star nods, six All-NBA selections, and a scoring title with the Knicks (28.7 ppg) in 2011-2012. He was also named to the NBA’s 75th-anniversary team.
“This is it. It don't get no better than this. It don't get greater than this,” Anthony said.
“If you go through that process with the good, the bad, the ugly, and you come out on the other side of it, and this is the blessing I get for going through that, this is the greatest accomplishment that I ever will accomplish, let me tell you that.”
Anthony said he never thought about the Hall of Fame. He explained that he didn’t have time to reflect on his achievements while going through the process.
“You're just playing basketball, and you look up, okay, you accomplished this. And it's on to the next,” he said.
Howard, who also finished his career with Anthony in L.A. in 2022, had a nearly decade-long run of being one of the best centers in the NBA, not just for his powerful dunking ability, which won him the 2008 Slam Dunk Contest, but also for his dominance as a defender, rebounder, shot blocker, and rim protector.
He stacked up three Defensive Player of the Year honors (from 2009 to 2011), five All-Defensive Team selections (four being First Team), eight All-NBA selections, and earned eight All-Star selections in his 18-year career.
“I gave 110 percent every time I stepped on the court,” Howard said. “When I got the call, it was the best feeling in the world.”
The 2004 No. 1 draft pick also led the league in rebounds five times and twice in blocks, mostly during his eight-year stint with the Orlando Magic, where he led them to the 2009 NBA Finals. He won his only NBA title in his second stint with the Lakers in their championship bubble run in 2020, redeeming a disappointing first go-around with L.A.
“This is what you dream for. It's what you sit at home and shoot basketball all day and all night for, just to make it to basketball heaven,” Howard said.
Sue Bird, Maya Moore, and Sylvia Fowles headline the women’s class and join Anthony and Howard as first-ballot Hall of Famers. They were joined by current Bulls head coach Billy Donovan, who won two NCAA championships as a coach. Longtime NBA referee Danny Crawford and Miami Heat owner Micky Arison also made the 2025 class.