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NBA: 6 players on the bubble of Hall of Fame entry

By Luke Duffy

BOSTON - MAY 02: Rajon Rondo #9 of the Boston Celtics tries to keep Derrick Rose #1 of the Chicago Bulls from passing the ball in bounds in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2009 NBA Playoffs at TD Banknorth Garden on May 2, 2009 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Celtics defeated the Bulls 109-99. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
BOSTON - MAY 02: Rajon Rondo #9 of the Boston Celtics tries to keep Derrick Rose #1 of the Chicago Bulls from passing the ball in bounds in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2009 NBA Playoffs at TD Banknorth Garden on May 2, 2009 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Celtics defeated the Bulls 109-99. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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Naismith Hall of Fame
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5. Marc Gasol

You might think that Marc Gasol‘s brother Pau still isn’t guaranteed his own entry into the Hall of Fame, and he ended up being the better brother of the two. It is more fun to think about how the younger Gasol might get in, and in truth, of all the guys on this list, nobody has done more in the last 12 months to force their way into the conversation.

Gasol only ever made three All-Star teams. Once he was the Defensive Player of the Year, in 2012-13. If we’re listening to cases like this, then Howard should be a shoo-in. But Gasol went to the Toronto Raptors at the trade deadline last season and proved to be the final piece in what was a title-winning team.

Obviously Kawhi Leonard got most of the plaudits, and “Mr. Toronto” Kyle Lowry wasn’t far behind. You also might look at Gasol’s 9.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game in those playoffs and seriously doubt why he is here at all. But Gasol’s veteran qualities and willingness to do whatever it took to help the team win, including seeing his own numbers suffer, helped the Raptors get over the hump.

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As impressive as that was however, those feats alone won’t get him into the hall. Following that up with a gold medal showing for Spain at the FIBA World Cup last summer certainly helped though. This was added to a gold won in 2006 in Japan in the same competition and two Olympic silvers in 2008 and 2012.

International basketball doesn’t resonate with everybody, but if anything the fact it can look and feel like a totally different sport at times makes what Gasol was able to achieve there even more impressive. If that’s not enough though, he has one more credential he can bring to the table in an argument.

Teams who have never won a title but came close and were a lot of fun to watch hold a special place in the hearts of NBA fans. Gasol was very much a part of one of those, as he came to embody (alongside the likes of Tony Allen and Zach Randolph) the “Grit N’ Grind” era of Memphis Grizzles basketball.

A conference finals was the best he could manage there, but he was basically an 18 and 8 guy in the playoffs for them. After 11 seasons and 831 games (with a hugely impressive 816 starts), Gasol is likely to see his number retired in Memphis one day. Not bad considering he was traded there for his brother.