Reinsdorf, Krause Among Early Nominees For Basketball Hall Of Fame

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jan 7, 2013 11:20PM

Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf and former Bulls GM Jerry Krause are among the nominees for the Basketball Hall of Fame, according to Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. For Reinsdorf, it’s his first time on the ballot.

Reinsdorf and Krause won six championships with the Bulls and, while they were both blessed to have inherited a shooting guard named Michael Jordan, they recognized the need to build a contender around him. Krause, in particular, was instrumental in drafting Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant, who became the main complementary players of the Bulls first three-peat, and Toni Kukoc was the main player off the bench during the Bulls’ second three-peat. Krause made ballsy trades such as sending the popular Charles Oakley to New York for Bill Cartwright and Will Perdue to San Antonio for the unpredictable Dennis Rodman, a trade that led to three more championships.

Krause was often ridiculed by Jordan, Pippen and other Bulls and media—he was given the nickname “Crumbs” by His Airness—and his claim that “organizations win championships” was derided at the time. (That’s also a statement Jordan has learned the hard way in his stints in Washington and Charlotte.)

Seven votes are needed to advance to the finalist stage and the finalists will be announced during All-Star Weekend in Houston in February.