NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) – On Sunday, Bob Dandridge finally received a call he’d waited almost four decades for. Dandridge, a Norfolk State legend who played 13 seasons in the NBA, was elected to the Naismith Hall of Fame, and will be enshrined with 15 others in Springfield, Mass. on Sept. 11.
Dandridge, 73, was voted in by the Veteran’s Committee, and will join a star-studded 2021 class that includes Chris Bosh, Paul Pierce, Bill Russell (voted in as the first Black head coach in NBA history), Ben Wallace and Chris Webber.
Nicknamed “the Greyhound,” Dandridge grew up in Richmond, and led then-Norfolk State College to the 1968 CIAA championship. He was selected 45th overall in the 1969 NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, which went on to win the 1971 and 1978 NBA championship.
Dandridge was named an NBA All-Star four times, and spent his last four seasons with the Washington Bullets.
Two years ago, Dandridge said being inducted into the hall “would mean a lot to the people who’ve seen me grow, from the playgrounds of Richmond, Virginia, to Norfolk State, to the Wizards, to the Bullets, to the Bucks because a lot of people put a lot of energy into Bob Dandridge being Dob Dandridge.”
