Hall of Famer? That's kinda queer
The 2000 enductees for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame were Bob McAdoo and Isiah Thomas (as players), Pat Head Summitt and Morgan Wootten (as coaches) and Danny Biasone and Charles Newton (as contributors).
Check that list again. Nope, don't see John Ameche there.
Abdul-Jabbar, Archibald, Arizin, Auerbach, Auriemma ... again, no Amache, alphabetically, athletically or anonymously.
The only reason this comes up is because Ameche, the former NBA player who became famous for outing himself last year in his book, "Man in the Middle," two years after his retirement, will be the grand marshall for the L.A. Gay Pride Parade set for this weekend (Friday through Sunday).
On the official L.A. Pride website, under the list of honorees, Ameche is listed last (after 13 others). And his bio reads:
"Following an illustrious basketball career, including an induction into the National Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000, Amaechi was named national spokesperson for the ...."A Hall of Famer?
Maybe we missed something here.
Is this Alan Ameche in the National Football Hall of Fame?
Continue:
"(Ameche) has risen above myriad reactions from athletes and the media as an articulate example of one who can stand up for himself to the benefit of a world-wide community. ... the actions of John Amaechi exemplify the core mission ... to advocate for equality and acceptance by celebrating our diverse community."
Sorry. We can't get past that Hall of Fame reference. It even mentions that he retired in '04, which would make a Hall of Fame induction impossible.
Maybe England's National Basketball Hall of Fame. Does one exist?
For what it's worth, Ameche is/was the gay pride marshall for parades in Chicago and Utah (last week), says this story in the New York Times.
"I really owe Salt Lake. My time there would have been so multiply miserable had it not been for so many
people -- gay, straight and otherwise -- who made my time there so special," Ameche told the Associated Press.
Amaechi signed with the Jazz in 2001, feeling betrayed by his former team, the Orlando
Magic, who he claims reneged on a promise of a rich contract.