Kobe Bryant's induction to Hall of Fame postponed to next year

Written by : Jose Alvarado Sandoval ( DJ Malanga )

The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremony for Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett and six others is postponed until 2021.

Hall of Fame Board of Governors chairman Jerry Colangelo broke the news on Wednesday (May 27) to ESPN.

The ceremony was due to be held Aug 29 in Springfield, Massachusetts, following a presentation the previous day in Uncasville, Connecticut.

The Boston Globe recently reported that the Hall of Fame was looking to postpone the events until October, but Colangelo told ESPN that holding the ceremony this year won't be possible due to the ongoing effects of the Covid-19, pandemic.

"We're definitely cancelling," Colangelo said. "It's going to have to be the first quarter of next year. (The board will) meet in a couple of weeks and look at the options of how and when and where."

He told ESPN that the Hall of Fame explored the possibility of moving the ceremony from Springfield's 2,611-seat Symphony Hall to the city's 8,319-seat MassMutual Centre to provide more opportunity for social distancing, but ultimately the decision was made to wait until next year.

Kobe Bryant died on Jan 26 aged 41 in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, that also claimed the life of daughter, Gianna, and seven others.