Despite boasting a decently impressive resume through his 15 years in the league, Tracy McGrady didn't start to consider himself a Hall-of-Fame-worthy player until getting a job at ESPN and hearing his colleague Rachel Nichols call him a “future Hall of Famer” upon introducing him to the viewers.
“I didn’t know what the Hall of Fame was until I got to the NBA,” McGrady told reporters, via Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype. “I didn’t even consider myself a Hall of Famer until I started working for ESPN and Rachel Nichols, every day we do a show [and she would say], ‘Future Hall of Famer.’ That s*** just didn’t sound right to me and I’m being brutally honest. It didn’t sound right to me.”
McGrady started to make his mark in the league after signing with the Orlando Magic, becoming a top-10 scorer in the league with a 26.8 points per game clip, and eventually winning back-to-back scoring titles in 2003 and 2004.
While McGrady isn't the first player without a championship to be enshrined in Springfield, his postseason resume is often seen as unimpressive compared to others across the hall.
Yet his history in the league runs deeper than just championships and postseason appearances, being a transcendent player at his size, who was able to score the ball with the best of them, rebound and facilitate with the greatest of ease as a 6-foot-8 shooting guard/small forward.
His uniquely diverse style of play and memorable plays like scoring 13 points in 33 seconds as a member of the Houston Rockets are Hall-of-Fame-worthy feats that make him a fine recipient of the honor.
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