2022 Michigan Sports Hall of Fame class: Chris Webber, John Beilein, Mickey Redmond

Detroit Free Press

The Michigan Sports Hall of Fame announced Thursday the latest group of inductees.

Antonio Gates, Chris Webber, Jennie Ritter, Meryl Davis, Charlie White, John Beilein, Mickey Redmond and Kathy Beauregard are the eight new faces for the class of 2022.

Chauncey Billups and Shane Battier — both in the 2020 class but were unable to make the ceremony when it was held in 2021 — will also receive their formal inductions.

Thousands of fans, the Hall of Fame’s Election Task Force and a Statewide Election Committee came together to come up with the induction class, who will be honored at the Sound Board Theater at MotorCity Casino Hotel on Sept. 10.

Chauncey Billups

Of all the well known and beloved names on this list, Mr. Big Shot was the  leader of the last great Pistons teams. Billups played for Detroit from 2002-08 before playing two games in 2009 and getting traded to the Denver Nuggets for Allen Iverson. He came back for 19 games in the 2013-14 season as well.

MR. BIG SHOT: Why Pistons great Chauncey Billups is a believer in former team’s rebuild

With Billups at point guard, the Pistons made six consecutive Eastern Conference finals from 2003-08, and two NBA Finals (2004 and 2005) and won the NBA championship in 2004.

Billups was the Finals MVP in 2004 and averaged better than 16 points and six assists per game during his time in Detroit, making three All-Star teams.

Antonio Gates

Gates was a multi-sport star at Detroit Central before going on to become a basketball standout at Kent State.

He pursued a career in football, signing with the Chargers as an undrafted free agent, and became one of the best tight ends in NFL history.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON? Antonio Gates Jr. may not blaze the trail his father did — and he’s OK with that

Gates, who spent his entire 15-year career (2003-18) with the San Diego Chargers, finished as the all-time leader among tight ends in touchdowns (116). He also finished third all-time among tight ends in career receptions (955) and yards (11,841).

Shane Battier

More than 25 years later, Battier remains one of the greatest Michigan high school basketball players ever.  He attended Birmingham Detroit Country Day, where he won three consecutive Class B state championships (1995-97) and he was named Mr. Basketball in his senior season.

He went on to play at Duke, where he made two NCAA championship games, winning one. Battier was selected sixth overall in the 2001 NBA draft by the Vancouver Grizzlies.

He won two NBA titles in his 13-year career and was named to the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.

Chris Webber

A key member of Michigan’s Fab Five from 1991-93, Webber averaged a double-double for his career at 17.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. The  Wolverines made consecutive national championship games, falling to Duke in 1992 and North Carolina in 1993.

MITCH ALBOM: Chris Webber finally gets the gold star, but remains a mercurial figure

Prior to his collegiate days, Webber attended Detroit Country Day from 1987-91, where he became the most sought-after high school recruit in the state since Magic Johnson.

He led the Yellowjackets to three consecutive state championships (1989-91), averaging  29.4 points and 13 rebounds per game as a senior, earning Michigan Mr. Basketball honors as well as national high school player of the year.

The No. 1 pick in the 1993 NBA draft, Webber averaged 20.7 points, 9.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists over 15 seasons and was a five-time All-Star. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.

Jennie Ritter

Ritter was one of the best players during Michigan’s rise to glory.

A 2002 graduate from Dexter, Ritter went onto pitch for Michigan from 2003-06 and helped lead the Wolverines to a 2005 national championship. Ritter was named to the All-Tournament team for her 5-1 record with 60 strikeouts in 54 innings.

During that stellar junior season — that included three no-hitters and a perfect game — Ritter was named All-Big Ten and National Fastpitch Coaches’ Association First Team All-American as well as the Big Ten Pitcher and Female Athlete of The Year.

Ritter also earned the same distinctions as a senior and finished her career as the Michigan program leader in strikeouts, shutouts, WHIP, innings pitched and strikeout ratio.

Meryl Davis and Charlie White

Davis and White, both born in Royal Oak, won gold in the 2014 Sochi Olympics in ice dancing, bronze in team skating and silver in the 2010 Vancouver Games for ice dancing. The duo also won the 2011 world championships in ice dancing and 2013 in London, as well as five consecutive ice dancing gold medals in the Grand Prix Finals.

Combined, Davis and White won 18 medals together (11 gold, five silver, two bronze) from 2008-14.

John Beilein

A coach at Michigan for 12 years, Beilein led a previously middling program and turned them into one of national prominence.

NEW GIG: How John Beilein is bringing ‘sunshine’ to Pistons and making a difference

The Wolverines went 278-150 in his tenure and made nine NCAA tournaments while winning two Big Ten titles, two Big Ten tournament titles and advancing to two national championship games in 2013 and 2018.

U-M made the second weekend of the NCAA tournament five times under Beilein and he set a school record for wins (33) in 2018.

Mickey Redmond

After enjoying an All-Star career as a player in the NHL from 1963-76 (including the final six years in Detroit), Redmond joined Detroit Red Wings telecasts in 1985 and has been a staple in the market for nearly 40 years.

FLASHBACK: Mickey Redmond, TV voice of Red Wings, was in life-altering trade 51 years ago

Redmond was named the Hockey Hall of Fame’s Foster Hewitt Memorial Award winner as a member  “of the radio and television industry who make outstanding contributions to their profession and the game of ice hockey during their broadcasting career.”

He’s known for his catch phrases as a color commentator which fans affectionally call “Mickey-isms.”

Kathy Beauregard

The former Western Michigan athletic director, Beauregard was longest-serving AD (1997-2021) at a school in the country and one of just nine female athletic-department executives in the Football Bowl Subdivision at the time of her retirement.

She worked at WMU for 42 years, during which Bronco programs won 58 MAC championships and went to 36 NCAA tournaments.

Contact Tony Garcia at apgarcia@freepress.com. Follow him on twitter at @realtonygarcia.

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