I've never actually considered whether or not LaMarcus Aldridge would make it into the Hall of Fame or not. I don't know if that's because I just assumed it would happen, or if it just never permeated my bubble of concern. But Tom Haberstroh and Dan Devine [brought it up on their podcast](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMJyV0JRufs&t=1336s) for Yahoo! Sports called The Big Number, so it has me thinking, and the answer is yes.
This shouldn't be a controversial take, either. It's actually pretty simple when you look at his production, longevity, and, quite frankly, some of the other players who made it in.
Aldridge should undoubtedly make the Hall of Fame
-------------------------------------------------
Devine made the stat case on the podcast, and it was a compelling one. Aldridge is one of 22 players to accumulate 20,000 points, 8,000 rebounds, and seven all-star appearances. He also had five All-NBA selections, but that part aside for a second. All of the other 22 hoopers who provided that much production are either already in the HOF or are locks to make it once they become eligible.
He played for 16 years and made it to the playoffs in 9 of them. He may not have had a bunch of long runs in the postseason, but we're not going to blame him for playing in Portland when we know players can't do it alone, and much of his time spent there was alongside an injury prone Brandon Roy, a (through no fault of his own) failed Greg Oden drafting, and a young Damian Lillard acquisition.
He's performed well in the playoffs overall, averaging 21 points and 9 rebounds. As mentioned on the podcast, he was an important part of the Spurs when he came to the organization to help transition from the Tim Duncan era. The franchise won over 60 games with him on the roster twice, going from 55 wins to 67 in his first year on the team.
If Kawhi Leonard doesn't go down in the 2017 playoffs, who knows what happens? Now, I'm not going to slander anyone in the Hall of Fame. The players there deserve to be there, and I respect the work that they put in to earn that right. I'm just saying that Aldridge is equally, if not more, deserving than some of the members who wear those jackets.
Chris Webber, Tim Hardaway Sr., Yao Ming, Mitch Richmond, and Adrian Dantley are just a few players who, again, all belong in the HOF, but if they're in, Aldridge should be in. Now, I don't know if he'll go in on the first ballot. That's for others to decide. However, there's no doubt that the LA should make it, considering all he's done as one of the perennial stud power forwards in this game during his time in the league.
The one thing I'd correct that they said in the episode is when Haberstroh said he was concerned because Aldridge wasn't nominated for the 2025 class. [LaMarcus wasn't eligible for that class](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/41736998/basketball-hall-fame-nba-eligible-next-three-years). He will be for the 2026 group, so we'll see how it plays out from there.