Local legend Chauncey Billups headed to Basketball Hall of Fame
Apr 3, 2024, 10:47 AM | Updated: 10:48 am
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Colorado legend Chauncey Billups is reportedly headed to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in the class of 2024.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania broke the news on Wednesday morning, saying an official announcement should come this weekend at the NCAA men’s Final Four.
Vince Carter and Chauncey Billups have been elected into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame @HoopHall Class of 2024, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Official announcement on Saturday at the Final Four. pic.twitter.com/zIX6pQgsHx
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 3, 2024
It’s an incredible honor for Billups, who is brimming with Colorado connections.
He graduated from George Washington High School in 1995 as a three-time Colorado Mr. Basketball and four-time All-State first team pick. Billups then took his talents to the University of Colorado where he averaged more than 18 points, five rebounds and five assists per game with the Buffs. He led CU to its first NCAA Tournament berth in nearly 30 years during the 1996-1997 season.
After two seasons at CU, Billups went pro where he was taken with the No. 3 overall pick by the Boston Celtics in the 1997 NBA Draft. He won a championship with the Detroit Pistons and was named the 2004 NBA Finals MVP.
It then came full circle for Billups, when he was traded to the Denver Nuggets during the 2008 season for Allen Iverson. Billups finally got the most out of the talented Carmelo Anthony and led Denver to the 2009 Western Conference Finals. He finished sixth in NBA MVP voting that year.
Billups was traded to the Knicks in 2011, along with Anthony, even though he wanted to finish his career with the Nuggets. He retired in September of 2014 after a wildly successful NBA career. He eventually became the head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers in 2021, where he works now.
Billups is still wildly popular in Colorado for his high school, college and pro careers. Now, he’ll get the ultimate basketball honor in 2024, one that is well deserved.
