Former Bulls star Toni Kukoc will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday. A native of Split, Croatia, he was voted in by the International Committee.
Kukoc joined the Michael Jordan-led Bulls midway through their run of six NBA titles in eight years. Although he was a three-time MVP of the European League Final Four, his new teammates were skeptical.
“When we came here, it was different times. People didn’t know about us,” he said. “We were pioneers. . . . It was a time when the NBA became a global game, not just an American game.