Sports commission announces Arizona Sports Hall of Fame class of 2020

PHOENIX — The Arizona Sports and Entertainment Commission today announced the 2020 inductees into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame, including:

• Legendary PGA golfer and ASU alum Phil Mickelson
• Former Phoenix Suns star and coach Paul Westphal
• Phoenix Mercury and Suns executive Ann Meyers Drysdale
• Former ASU basketball star Joe Caldwell
• Former ASU baseball standout Andre Ethier
• Former Arizona Diamondbacks executive Roland Hemond
• Retired Thunderbirds Executive Director John Bridger

The Arizona Sports Hall of Fame honors athletes, coaches, administrators, and others who have made significant contributions to Arizona sports.

The 2020 class was selected by a vote of trustees and the public in online balloting. The new members will be honored during the Crest Insurance Group Arizona Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Friday, April 23, 2021 at The Phoenician in Scottsdale.

“Congratulations to each member of this diverse, stellar Arizona Sports Hall of Fame class,” Crest Insurance Group President Cody Ritchie said. “These worthy honorees have made important contributions to Arizona sports, both on and off the field, and we are proud to recognize each of them.”

“Arizona has a rich sports tradition, and this Arizona Sports Hall of Fame class exemplifies that tradition perfectly,” ASEC Executive Director Nikki Balich-Cammarata said. “Each of these individuals has played an important role in shaping our state’s sports history.”

To be eligible for the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame, an individual must meet one of three criteria:

1. A native of Arizona.
2. Immediately recognized as an Arizonan.
3. Have made at least two significant contributions to the athletics community in Arizona.

The induction ceremony will start 7 p.m. on Friday, April 23, 2021 with inductees meeting the media on the Red Carpet at The Phoenician in Scottsdale.

The Paramount Promotions Pre-Party, with registration, cocktails, and a raffle, begins at 5:30 p.m.

For more information on the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame, or to purchase tickets to the induction ceremony, visit www.azsportshof.com.

About the 2020 inductees

After winning three individual NCAA Men’s Golf championships at ASU and leading the Sun Devils to the 1990 NCAA team title, Mr. Mickelson embarked on one of the sport’s most successful careers.

At 20, he became one of the few amateurs to win a PGA Tour event when he won the 1991 Northern Telecom Open in Tucson. His personality and daring play won legions of followers.

Mr. Mickelson, known as “Lefty,” has won 44 PGA Tour events, including five major championships – three Masters, a PGA Championship and an Open Championship.

The No. 8 scorer in Phoenix Suns history, Mr. Westphal played a key role on the franchise’s two NBA Finals teams. He was a star guard on the underdog team that reached the 1976 NBA Finals and then coached the Suns to the 1993 NBA Finals.

With his dazzling moves and elite skills, “Westy” won the hearts of the first generation of Suns fans, and his No. 44 was retired by the team in 1989.

After the Suns fell behind the Los Angeles Lakers two games to none in a best-of-five series in the 1993 playoffs, Mr. Westphal famously guaranteed that his team would rally to win the series – which it did, extending a run that ended in Game 6 of the Finals.

Mr. Westphal also led Grand Canyon University to the 1988 NAIA national title. He is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

A basketball pioneer, Ann Meyers Drysdale came to Phoenix as the General Manager of the Phoenix Mercury and Vice President of the Phoenix Suns. Meyers She played a role in all three of the Mercury’s WNBA titles and now serves the Mercury and Suns as a Vice President and broadcaster.

Ms. Meyers Drysdale made history when she became the first woman to receive a Division I athletics scholarship, from UCLA. She became a four-time All-American and led the Bruins to their only women’s national title in 1978.

She was the first draft pick of the Women’s Professional Basketball League, the nation’s first women’s pro league and a forerunner to the WNBA and earned co-MVP in 1979-80. She later became the first woman to sign an NBA contract, trying out for the Indiana Pacers in 1980.

Mr. Caldwell, nicknamed “Jumpin’ Joe,” set the career scoring record at ASU with 1,515 points (18.2 per game) and is the school’s No. 2 all-time rebounder with 929 (11.2 per game). Caldwell led the Sun Devils to the NCAA tournament in his three varsity seasons – 1962-64.

He was team captain all three years and MVP in 1963 and 1964, and the school retired his No. 32 in 2010. He won a gold medal with the 1964 U.S. men’s basketball team in Tokyo. Mr. Caldwell spent six seasons in the NBA and five in the ABA, earning All-Star honors twice in each league.

Mr. Ethier, a Phoenix native who graduated from St. Mary’s High School, is one of the great hitters in ASU’s storied baseball history. A career .371 hitter, heearned All-Pac-10 honors in 2002 and 2003 and ended his Sun Devil career with a 23-game hitting streak.

An outfielder, Mr. Ethier was selected by Oakland in the second round of the 2003 MLB draft and went on to a 12-year career with the Los Angeles Dodgers, batting .285 with 162 home runs and 687 RBI.

A three-time MLB Executive of the Year, the ageless Mr. Hemond is in his second tour of duty with the Arizona Diamondbacks as a special advisor to club President Derrick Hall.

Known as the father of the Arizona Fall League, Mr. Hemond devoted his career to championing scouting and player development. In 2011, he became the second person to receive the Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

As Executive Director of the Thunderbirds for 18 years, Mr. Bridger oversaw the explosive growth of the Waste Management Phoenix Open, long the most-attended event on the PGA Tour. He also directed the day-to-day operations and the strategic plan of the Thunderbirds, who have used the golf tournament to raise tens of millions for Arizona charities.

Mr. Bridger, who retired this year, is a native of Arkansas but grew up in Wellton, Ariz., and graduated from Northern Arizona University.

“Widespread community support enables us to provide a fitting ceremony for the 2020 Arizona Sports Hall of Fame class,” said ASEC Board Chair Denise Seomin. “We are grateful for the consistent support of our Induction Ceremony title sponsor, Crest Insurance Group, and PriorityZones, a state-of-the-art credentialing and access control platform.”

The Westward Look Resort has been named the 2020 Grand Canyon Games Venue of the Year. The Tucson resort is the host of the Visit Tucson Fall Festival Pickleball Championships.