FIBA elects Hidayet Türkoğlu to the Hall of Fame

The 46-year-old Türkoğlu, who has accomplished countless achievements in his 20-year career with the A National Basketball Team, Anadolu Efes and the American Basketball League (NBA) and has been serving Turkish basketball as the president of the federation since 2016 after ending his active career, became the first Turkish athlete to be elected to the FIBA Hall of Fame.

In his professional career that started 30 years ago, Türkoğlu, who attracted attention by winning 5 trophies in 4 years with Anadolu Efes, was selected 16th in the 2000 NBA draft by the Sacramento Kings and started his historic journey of 997 games.

The first Turkish player to start a game in the starting lineup in the NBA and nicknamed "Mr. Fourth Quarter" for his contribution to the team in the final quarter during his second stint with the Magic, Türkoğlu came very close to winning the championship in the 2009 NBA finals, but could not overcome the Los Angeles Lakers.

Türkoğlu, who won silver medals with the Turkish National Team in the 2001 European Championships and 2010 World Championships hosted by Istanbul, was selected in the best 5 of the World Championships with an average of 12.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists.

Türkoğlu, who brought one of the world's leading facilities to Turkish basketball during his presidency of the federation, made history by taking his podium success as an athlete in the European Championships beyond Turkey's borders for the first time last summer.

- "12 Giant Men" legend Hidayet Türkoğlu

Türkoğlu, who wore the national jersey 309 times in all age groups and scored 3,475 points, was part of the squad that won the silver medal at the European Championship in 2001 and the World Championship in 2010.

In the 2010 World Championship, Türkoğlu played an important role on the way to the final with an average of 12.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists and was selected in the best 5 of the tournament.

Türkoğlu played in the European Championships in 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2005, 2007, 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2013 and the World Championships in 2002 and 2010.

Wearing the national jersey for the first time in 1994, Türkoğlu had memorable performances in the national team jersey as well as in the NBA.

Türkoğlu, who experienced his first European Championship excitement in 1999 and played an average of 24.6 minutes per game, became the top scorer of the national team with an average of 12.4 points.

In the 2001 European Championship hosted by Istanbul, 22-year-old Türkoğlu, who took the stage in the semifinal match in which Germany was 70-67 ahead in the last 9 seconds, sent the match into overtime with a 3-point basket. Türkoğlu, who used the last ball in overtime and led the national team to the final, came close to a triple double with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists.

Türkoğlu, who played in 6 games in the championship and averaged 15.5 points, was among the best of the national team with an average of 3.5 assists.

In the 2010 World Cup last 16 round, Türkoğlu played one of his best games in the tournament as the national team defeated France 95-77. Türkoğlu had 20 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists in a game in which the national team entered the last quarter with a 26-point lead.

Türkoğlu, who had one of the best performances of his career in the second round of the 2007 European Championship by scoring 34 points against Italy, carried the game into overtime, but Italy left the park victorious.

After 2010, the national team entered a period of stagnation and ended its 15-year medal longing, this time during Türkoğlu's presidency of the federation.

The European runner-up finish in Riga, the capital of Latvia, was the first podium success for the national team outside Turkey's borders.

- He played an important role in Anadolu Efes' first "Final Four" success

Born on March 19, 1979 in Istanbul, Türkoğlu attracted the attention of Anadolu Efes with his performance at a young age and became a professional at the age of 16.

Averaging 13.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in 22 games in the 1999-2000 Europa League season, Türkoğlu played a major role in making Anadolu Efes the first Turkish team to reach the Final Four.

The doors of the NBA opened for the 20-year-old Türkoğlu, who contributed greatly to his team with his versatile play between 1996 and 2000, winning one league championship and two Turkish Cup and Presidential Cup titles.

- 997-game historic journey started with Kings

Selected 16th overall by the Sacramento Kings in the 2000 NBA Draft, Türkoğlu made history as the second Turkish basketball player to make it to the NBA after Mirsad Türkcan.

On December 8, 2000, he started in the starting lineup in the Kings' 111-98 win over the Houston Rockets and became the first Turkish player in NBA history to do so, leaving the court with 16 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist.

In his first season, Türkoğlu was named to the "NBA's second best rookie team" and was nominated for the "6th best rookie" award in his second year after averaging 10.1 points and 4.5 rebounds. In the summer of 2003, he was traded to the 1999 and 2003 NBA champion San Antonio Spurs in a three-way trade.

- He stayed in Orlando for the "Magic" years of his career.

In the summer of 2004, Türkoğlu was traded to the Orlando Magic, whose roster included Dwight Howard, and set a career-high with 39 points against the Washington Wizards in March 2008.

David Steele, who covered the Magic's games for the NBA, wrote: "A unique and versatile mix of talent. He has a rare combination of size, intelligence, shooting and playmaking ability." Türkoğlu, who scored 19.5 points, grabbed 5.7 rebounds and a 45.6 percent field goal percentage in the 2007-2008 season, was awarded the "NBA's most improved player" award.

The 28-year-old Türkoğlu, who reached the peak of his career under Stan Van Gundy, who took over the team in the summer of 2007, led his team to the NBA finals when he "played with ice in his veins," as Magic digital content manager Josh Cohen described him.

In 2009, in the first round of the playoffs, Türkoğlu hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left in Game 4 against the Philadelphia 76ers, who trailed 2-1 in the series.

In Game 7 of the conference semifinals, where they won the series 4-3 against the Boston Celtics, the national athlete recorded a double-double with 25 points and 12 assists and reached double digits in 6 games against the Cleveland Cavaliers of LeBron James.

In the first finals series of his career, Türkoğlu scored more than 20 points in two games against the Los Angeles Lakers, and his block against Kobe Bryant in the final minutes of the second game was memorable. The Lakers won the series 4-1 and became champions.

Apart from 2009, Türkoğlu has reached 1 conference final and 5 semifinals in the playoffs in his NBA career.

After leaving for the Toronto Raptors in July 2009, Türkoğlu's 5th stop in the NBA was the Phoenix Suns, where he was traded in the summer of 2010. After 25 games, the national player returned to his former team Magic in December 2010 and finished his NBA career with the Los Angeles Clippers.

- Turkish basketball player who played the most games in the NBA

In his 15-year NBA career, Türkoğlu, who played for 6 teams, played 997 games in the regular season (571 of them as a starter) and 109 games in the playoffs, becoming the "Turkish basketball player who played the most games in the NBA".

Türkoğlu, who finished his NBA career with averages of 11.1 points, 4 rebounds and 2.8 assists, is the only Turkish player to surpass the 10,000 point threshold (11,22).

Türkoğlu also left an unforgettable legacy in the club's history with his stats with the Orlando Magic.

In the Magic's all-time statistical rankings, Türkoğlu ranks in the top 10 in minutes played (fifth, 16,233), three-pointers made (fifth, 794), assists (sixth, 1,927), free throws made (sixth, 1,402), points scored (seventh, 7,216), games played (seventh, 497) and rebounds (eighth, 2,221).

- Breakthrough in facilities, Turkey's first basketball high school

After ending his active career, Türkoğlu served as TBF Chief Executive Officer (CEO) between November 2015 and June 2016 and was elected as the president of the federation three times in a row starting from October 2016.

During his term as president of the federation, Türkoğlu worked hard for the Turkcell Basketball Development Center, which he called "my biggest dream", and brought a great facility to basketball, which was put into service with the Presidential Cup in the 2024-25 season.

The Turkcell Basketball Development Center, which is one of the world's leading basketball facilities, draws attention with its main hall as well as 5 halls that serve national teams and youth teams at the same time.

Turkey's first basketball high school, located within the 70 thousand square meter facility, opened its doors to students this year with the aim of training athletes and administrators for Turkish basketball.

- FIBA Hall of Fame

The FIBA Hall of Fame, which aims to record the history and development of international basketball and the names that shaped the game, aims to honor the figures who contributed to the spread of basketball around the world and took root in different continents.

The FIBA Hall of Fame, which evaluates basketball not only on the basis of sporting achievements but also on the basis of impact, continuity and historical trace, selects figures who transformed the game, took basketball to a leap forward in their countries and made an impact across continents.

In addition to Türkoğlu, Sue Bird (USA), Celine Dumerc (France), Clarisse Machanguana (Mozambique), Dirk Nowitzki (Germany), Ismenia Pauchard (Chile), Wang Zhizhi (China) and Ludwik Mietta-Mikolajevicz (Poland) were elected to the FIBA Hall of Fame this year.

The 2026 Hall of Fame inductees will be honored on April 21, 2026 in Berlin, Germany.