Toni Kukoč selected to Hall of Fame Class of 2021 originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Toni Kukoč's wait is over.
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced Kukoč as an honoree in its Class of 2021 Sunday morning.
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Not only was Kukoč an integral member of the Bulls' second three-peat team, winning Sixth Man of the Year in 1996, he enjoyed a decorated international career, winning three EuroLeague titles, a FIBA World Championship MVP and a World Cup gold medal among other individual and team honors.
The Bulls selected Kukoč 29th overall in the 1990 NBA Draft, but he joined the team for the 1993-94 campaign after playing three additional seasons abroad. He currently occupies an advisory role in the organization.
“When Toni joined the Bulls in 1993, he had already established himself as one of the best players ever to come out of Europe,” Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “While we knew what kind of player he was, we were not sure how he would adapt to the NBA. He quickly proved that his game was suited to play with the best players in the world. He was a star player on his championship teams in Europe, and one of the best sixth men in the NBA on our second three-peat championship teams in Chicago. There are not many players in the history of the game who have excelled at the level that Toni has. Congratulations on this very well-deserved honor.”
Kukoč averaged 11.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists across 13 NBA seasons -- 14.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists in seven with the Bulls. But baseline statistics always undersold his multi-pronged impact and status as one of the franchise's greats. His enshrinement among the game's most legendary should grant him his just due.
Joining Kukoč -- an International Committee selection -- in the Class of 2021 are players Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, Chris Webber, Ben Wallace, Yolanda Griffith and Lauren Jackson, and coaches Rick Adelman, Jay Wright and Bill Russell.
The Class of 2021 will be enshrined in September.
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