Dirk Nowitzki, Dwyane Wade headline loaded list of finalists for Hall

Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol and Tony Parker headline the list of 12 finalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as the greatest class of international players in the sport’s history. All three are finalists on their first ballot, as is Dwyane Wade, and the lot of them should be locks four years after they all retired in 2019.

The Hall of Fame announced its list of finalists on Friday of All-Star weekend. The official Class of 2023 will be unveiled during the NCAA Final Four on April 1. This year’s honorees will then be enshrined on Aug. 12.

Legendary San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich joins his longtime point guard Parker as a finalist. Both should follow Tim Duncan (a 2021 inductee) and Manu Ginobili (a 2022 inductee) into the Hall of Fame. They won four championships as a quartet. Becky Hammon, who joined Popovich’s coaching staff for the tail end of the dynasty, was also named a finalist for her contributions to the game as a player.

The Hall of Fame’s other finalists for the Class of 2023 are Jennifer Azzi, Gary Blair, Marian Washington, Gene Bess, David Hixon and Gene Keady.

More on the headliners of this year’s list of finalists:

Dirk Nowitzki

• 2011 NBA champion (Finals MVP)

• 2007 NBA MVP

• 14-time NBA All-Star

• 12-time All-NBA selection (four-time First Team, five-time Second Team)

• Sixth on NBA’s all-time scoring list (31,560 points)

Nowitzki retired as the greatest European player in basketball history, setting the NBA table for its current list of foreign-born superstars, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic. The ninth overall pick in the 1998 draft, Nowitzki played 21 NBA seasons, all for the Dallas Mavericks, winning league MVP honors in 2007. His march to the title in 2011 — defeating Kobe Bryant’s Los Angeles Lakers, Kevin Durant’s Oklahoma City Thunder and LeBron James’ Miami Heat — cemented his legacy as an all-timer.

Only James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Bryant and Michael Jordan have scored more points than…