The Team USA men’s basketball team of Beijing Olympics 2008 have been inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The team had won gold medal in the People’s Republic of China after settling for bronze four years earlier at Athens 2004.
The squad comprised of stars such as Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. The team was also known as the ‘Redeem Team’ which emerged victorious in all eight matches with an average win margin of 27.9 points. They played under Hall of Fame head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
The Redeem Team is one of nine inductees from the Class of 2025, which include two team members individually commemorated: three-time Olympic champion Carmelo Anthony and Olympic gold medallist Dwight Howard.
USA have been a dominant force in both men’s and women’s basketball at the Olympic Games, with three female players also honoured by the Hall of Fame committee. This is the first time three women’s basketball players have been inducted into the Hall of Fame in the same class.
Five-time Olympic champion Sue Bird guided the US to gold at all five Games she competed in, from her Athens debut right up to Tokyo 2020 in 2021.
Bird is the second most decorated basketball Olympian, male or female, in history, behind the newly retired Diana Taurasi who won six gold medals.
Sylvia Fowles, who won four Olympic golds throughout her career, and double Olympic champion Maya Moore round up the player inductees.
The other inductees to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame are Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donavan, former NBA referee Danny Crawford and Miami Heat owner Micky Arison.
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Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame: Class of 2025 inductees
- Beijing 2008 US Olympic Men’s Basketball Team
- Carmelo Anthony
- Danny Crawford
- Billy Donovan
- Dwight Howard
- Sue Bird
- Sylvia Fowles
- Maya Moore
- Micky Arison
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball’s most complete library, in addition to promoting and preserving the history of the sport.
Dedicated to Canadian-American physician James Naismith, who invented the sport in Springfield, the Hall of Fame inducted its first class in 1959, before opening its first facility on February 17, 1968. As of 2024, the Hall has formally inducted 436 players, coaches, referees, and other basketball professionals.
