April 6, 2024
Seimone Augustus, Michele Timms headline Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2024
By Aya Abdeen
Fellow inductees Harley Redin and Michael Cooper also have ties to women's basketball
On Saturday, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced its Class of 2024. Seimone Augustus, Michele Timms, Harley Redin and Michael Cooper are the inductees who have impacted the world of women’s basketball. The induction ceremony will take place in August in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Continue reading with a subscription to The Next
Get unlimited access to women’s basketball coverage and help support our hardworking staff of writers, editors, and photographers by subscribing today.
Already a member?
Login
The Next, a 24/7/365 women’s basketball newsroom
The Next: A basketball newsroom brought to you by The IX. 24/7/365 women’s basketball coverage, written, edited and photographed by our young, diverse staff and dedicated to breaking news, analysis, historical deep dives and projections about the game we love.
Augustus was drafted No. 1 overall in 2006 by the Minnesota Lynx out of LSU and played in the WNBA for 16 seasons. She spent most of her career with the Lynx, winning championships in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017. She spent her final season with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2020.
Augustus received several awards during her career, including 2011 WNBA Finals MVP and 2006 Rookie of the Year. She was named to six All-WNBA teams, eight WNBA All-Star teams, and the WNBA 20th and 25th anniversary teams.
After retiring from the WNBA in 2021, Augustus spent two seasons as an assistant coach for the Sparks. The Lynx retired her jersey in May 2022, and a statue of her was unveiled on the LSU campus the following year.
Timms played five seasons with the Phoenix Mercury from 1997 to 2001 and was named an All-Star in 1999. Before coming to the United States, she played for Lotus München in Germany in the 1989-90 season, which made her the first Australian (male or female) to play professional basketball outside the country.
Timms also represented the Australian national team in two Olympics and won bronze and silver medals in 1996 and 2000, respectively. The Mercury retired her jersey in 2002.
Add Locked On Women’s Basketball to your daily routine
Here at The Next, in addition to the 24/7/365 written content our staff provides, we also host the daily Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast. Join us Monday through Saturday each week as we discuss all things WNBA, collegiate basketball, basketball history and much more. Listen wherever you find podcasts or watch on YouTube.
Redin was the head coach for Wayland Baptist University from 1955 to 1973, compiling a record of 431-66. He led his team, known as the Flying Queens, to consecutive undefeated seasons in 1956 and 1957. He also coached the U.S. national team in events including the 1963 World Tournament and the 1971 Pan-American Games.
In addition, Redin was part of the AAU Rules Committee that pushed for several modern rule changes, including using a 30-second shot clock and allowing women to play full court. He will be inducted posthumously.
Cooper will be inducted for his career as an NBA player, but he was a longtime WNBA coach as well. He spent nine seasons with the Sparks as an assistant coach (1999) and head coach (2000-04, 2007-09) and four seasons with the Atlanta Dream as head coach (2014-17). He led the Sparks to back-to-back WNBA championships in 2001 and 2002 and compiled a record of 388-230 during his coaching career. He was named WNBA Coach of the Year in 2000.
The 2023 Naismith Hall of Fame class included Becky Hammon, Gary Blair and the 1976 U.S. Olympic team.
Written by Aya Abdeen
Aya Abdeen is a student in sports journalism at Arizona State University and has been a contributing writer for The Next since December 2022. She is also a sports reporter for the Sun Devils’ women’s basketball team for The State Press. Her work has also appeared on AZPreps365.
