NBA: 50 greatest players who aren’t in the Basketball Hall of Fame

50 greatest players who aren’t in the Basketball Hall of Fame: 4. Tim Hardaway Sr.

Tim Hardaway Sr. is one of the 50 greatest players to never win a championship and one of the most important point guards in NBA history. He not only popularized the crossover, but made the pull-up three one of the most fashionable shots in basketball.

Neither of those statements is hyperbolic, either; Hardaway was a household name in basketball circles.

One-third of the dare-I-say iconic Run TMC, Hardaway came close to winning a championship and played at a level that would certainly justify an induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Hardaway was a five-time All-Star with five All-NBA nods to match. He was even named All-NBA First Team during his phenomenal 1996-97 season with the Miami Heat. He finished that memorable campaign with averages of 20.3 points, 8.6 assists, and 1.9 steals per game.

Miami would go on to reach the 1997 Eastern Conference Finals, with Hardaway thriving as the No. 1 scoring option and the primary facilitator on a team that otherwise lacked consistent shot creation.

That was made even more impressive by the fact that it was an official return to prominence for a player who had their career interrupted by a devastating knee injury. Prior to the injury in 1993-94, Hardaway accumulated averages of 22.7 points, 10.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.2 steals between 1980-91 and 1992-93.

He, Chris Mullin, and Mitch Richmond made a perimeter-oriented style of basketball cool—and even won a playoff series along the way.

For what it’s worth: Mullin and Richmond have already been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Hardaway is the lone Run TMC member who hasn’t been, and one could even argue that he had the best career of the three.

For the stat-craving fans: Hardaway is No. 18 all-time in career assists, ranking ahead of Tony Parker and Bob Cousy.