12/22/25
The first-time nominees for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame were announced last week. Included was Garfield’s Brandon Roy, among other first-time nominees. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame takes into consideration the entire career of nominees for entering the hall, unlike some sports, like the NFL, which only looks at the professional career in that league.
Roy went to Garfield, where he helped lead the Bulldogs to a third, fourth, and fifth-place finishes at the State Tournament. Roy went to the University of Washington, where he scored over 1,000 points in his career. In his senior year, the Huskies made their second consecutive Sweet Sixteen appearance, and he was named PAC-10 Player of the Year and was a first-team All-American. In January 2009, Roy’s number three was retired by Washington.
Roy was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the sixth pick of the 2006 NBA Draft, but was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers. Incidentally, his first game was in Seattle against the SuperSonics, where he dropped 20 points. Roy was named the 2006-07 NBA Rookie of the Year despite only playing 57 games that year. The next year, he was a reserve on the Western Conference All-Star team. In 2008-09, Roy played in 78 games, averaged 22.6 points per game, made the All-Star team, was named All-NBA Second Team, and finished in the top 10 for the MVP voting. Roy made his third straight All-Star team in the 2009-10 season while being named to the All-NBA Third Team and averaging 20.8 points per game. Before the 2011-12 season, Roy retired, citing injuries to his knees. Roy made a comeback and played for the Timberwolves in the 2012-13 season for five games before needing another surgery on his knees. Roy retired for good following that season.
Roy went into coaching and led Nathan Hale to the State Championship in the 2016-17 season. He was named Naismith National High School Coach of the Year when the Raiders went 29-0 and had Michael Porter Jr. and Jontay Porter on the team. Roy then moved to Garfield and led the Bulldogs to State Championships in 2017, 2020, and 2023. Last year, Garfield took third place in what would be Roy’s last season as head coach of the Bulldogs.
Roy’s son, BJ, is playing in his freshman year at the University of Washington, wearing his father’s number three jersey. Roy’s daughter, Mariah, won a State Championship with Garfield in her freshman year in the 2023-24 season.
According to NBA.com, the finalists are typically announced at NBA All-Star weekend, which is February 13 through February 15. The 2026 class will be announced at the NCAA Final Four on April 4, and the enshrinement ceremony is August 14 and 15.
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