Getty Miami Heat floor general Tim Hardaway looks on during a December 2000 game against the LA Clippers.
The long wait is finally over for Tim Hardaway. Nineteen years after he last donned the jersey and sneakers for an NBA game — and even longer since his final game with the Miami Heat — the legendary floor general finally received his Hall of Fame nod.
While one might expect to hear that the 55-year-old was elated to know the call was coming, it actually caused him a whole lot of angst.
“You know, I’ve been through this before, for about three or four times… and I was scared to answer the phone [to] tell you the truth,” Hardaway told ESPN’s Jay Bilas. “I was shaking because I just didn’t want to hear them say, again, ‘You didn’t have enough votes.'”
On this occasion, though, the fear he felt was, at long last, unnecessary.
The Feels Floweth
In his heyday, Hardaway was more than an elite-level baller, although he certainly was that with his five-All-Star appearances and career averages of 17.7 points, 8.2 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He was also one of the more fiery players in the Association.
The passion he has for both the game and his legacy within it look to be running strong in retirement, too.
“I answered the phone and he said ‘I got some really good news for you this time,’ I just started crying,” Hardaway revealed. “I just started crying and went upstairs, told my wife, got all goosebumps and we just shared a moment with each other. And that’s how it was.”
Hardaway looked to be getting choked up even as he recounted the story. And the feels continued to flow as he talked about his upbringing on Chicago’s South Side and the various coaches who molded him as a player and person.
“I’m gracious, I’m humble and it’s a tribute to them because, without them, I wouldn’t be here.”
He also had a lot of love to show his former Heat teammates during an interview with the Miami Herald:
“I love my teammates,” Hardaway said of his time with the Heat. “Ike Austin, P.J. Brown, Dan Majerle, Voshon Lenard, Jamal Mashburn, Duane Causwell, Mark Strickland, John Crotty, Gary Grant. Man, we had a ball. It was all about business, but we had fun taking care of business. It was just the camaraderie that when you got there, it was all about let’s win, let’s win, let’s win.
“Playing with a great center in Alonzo Mourning. I had never seen nobody that can block shots like that in my entire life.”
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Hardaway Holds No Ill Will for His Delayed Induction
It’s no secret that anti-gay comments made by Hardaway in 2007 played a major role in his years-long HOF exclusion. However, the iconic baller understands that he reaped what he sowed.
“They made me wait and I do understand why they made me wait,” Hardaway told the Herald. “They wanted to put some hurt on me and they put some hurt on me. But I put some hurt on a lot of people myself with my comments. I understand that my comments weren’t right and they never should have been said.”
In the years that have passed since he made the now-infamous remarks, Hardaway has worked hard to make amends and be an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community. However, he hasn’t stopped feeling the pain he caused others.
“Every day I make amends. Every day I think about it,” Hardaway said. “A day doesn’t pass that I don’t think about what I said and just be like, ‘That was [messed] up [stuff] that you said, Tim. That was really [messed] up.’”
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Heat Icon Sounds off on His Legacy Finally Being Cemented