NBA | Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwon among Naismith Hall of Fame inductees

SAN ANTONIO — Pat Riley stood on the stage in the Marriott Riverwalk ballroom with his 2008 Hall of Fame jersey in his hands, a microphone in front of him, giants of the sport of basketball surrounding him and a giant grin on his face.

He knew this Hall of Fame class would be one of the most memorable ever.

Because his wife, Chris, told him so.

"She said, 'Just think, if Dick Vitale gets in this year, this is going to be the greatest class — unbelievable! — of all time,' " Riley said, drawing a laugh from those gathered to watch the announcement of the Naismith Hall of Fame class. "We will be promoted for ever and ever."

Vitale was among the seven legends who will be inducted in the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., on Sept. 5, joining Riley, Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwon, Adrian Dantley, former Immaculata University head coach Cathy Rush and Detroit Pistons owner Bill Davidson.

Riley ranks third all-time in NBA coaching victories with 1,208, won four championships with the Lakers as a head coach and one with the Heat, and has two more championship rings as an assistant coach and a player.

Vitale was overcome with emotion during Monday's announcement and admitted he "cried like a baby" upon learning he was in the Hall of Fame.

"I sit here in awe," Vitale said. "I can't run, can't jump, can't shoot but just have had a tremendous — I'd like to think — passion about the game."

It's a passion he shares with every member of the new class, which will be inducted Sept. 5 in Springfield, Mass., home of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Olajuwon and Ewing both played in three Final Fours, with Ewing's Georgetown team beating Olajuwon's Houston squad for the 1984 national championship. Olajuwon got his revenge as a pro, leading the Houston Rockets to the first of two straight titles with a seven-game victory over Ewing's New York Knicks in the 1994 NBA Finals — a team coached by Riley.

Rush was a pioneer who took a tiny school, Immaculata College, from obscurity to immortality. She had been nominated in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2005. She lead the Mighty Macs' three Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women championship seasons of 1972, 1973 and 1974.

Dantley is a former NBA and Notre Dame star. Davidson was the first pro sports owner to win titles in three professional leagues — three with the Pistons, two with the Shock and one with the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning.

Notes

• The Charlotte Bobcats solved two problems: securing a naming rights deal for its arena and getting out of a television contract that limited the team's reach. A person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press on Monday that Charlotte Bobcats Arena will be renamed Time Warner Cable Arena. In exchange, the Bobcats will immediately end a TV deal with the cable company that prevented Bobcats games from being shown on regional sports networks and satellite TV services.

• LeBron James was held out of Cleveland's practice on Monday to rest his back, which has been tightening up and bothering the Cavaliers forward. James was unable to sit in a chair during timeouts in a recent game because of back spasms.

• NBA commissioner David Stern and NCAA president Myles Brand on Monday announced a new program to improve youth basketball around the country.

The Associated Press and McClatchy

newspapers contributed to this report.