The Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, who recently died in a helicopter crash at 41, will be placed in the 2020 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class without a vote according to Shams Charania from The Athletic.
Kobe Bryant will be a first-ballot enshrinement into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2020.
"Expected to be arguably the most epic class ever with Kobe, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett," HOF chairman Jerry Colangelo says. "Kobe will be honored the way he should be."
The finalists will be named Feb. 14 during NBA All-Star Weekend in Chicago, and the full 2020 class will be announced April 4 during the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four in Atlanta.
Bryant played 20 seasons in the league (all with the Lakers), and finished with five championships, a league MVP, two NBA Finals MVPs, 15 All-NBA selections, 12 All-Defensive selections, two scoring titles and 18 All-Star nods.
The Philadelphia-born Bryant is als fourth on the league’s all-time points list behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone and LeBron James.