Seminole Summary Sunday: Leonard Hamilton a Candidate for Hall of Fame

We took a hiatus for the holidays, but we’re back to talk about the week that was in Florida State athletics.

Contests on the court were few and far between, but one of the greatest coaches in FSU sports history got a big piece of news this week. FSU head men’s basketball coach Leonard Hamilton was named an eligible candidate for the Naismith Hall of Fame Class of 2021.

Now in his 19th season at FSU, Hamilton has accomplished just about everything short of a Final Four appearance. The school’s winningest head coach, Hamilton has nearly 400 wins to his name during his time in Tallahassee.

Over his previous 18 seasons, Hamilton has led the Seminoles to eight NCAA Tournament appearances and their only two ACC championships. During the 2018-19 campaign, FSU won a school record 29 games en route to a second straight appearance in the Sweet 16.

The 3-time ACC Coach of the Year, Hamilton’s coaching career began during the 1987-88 season at Oklahoma State. After four years in Stillwater, Hamilton took over at Miami where he spent 11 seasons.

Hamilton left Miami as the program’s all-time wins leader and led the Hurricanes to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances before a brief NBA head coaching stint with the Washington Wizards. He was a 2-time Big East Coach of the Year at Miami.

Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is home to 400 inductees. The 2021 Enshrinement Ceremony is scheduled for September.

Football

Recognitions: Asante Samuel Jr., CB (first-team All-ACC); Marvin Wilson, DT (second-team All-ACC)
Weekly Commitments: None
2021 Recruiting Class Ranking*: No. 23 nationally, eighth in ACC (17 total commitments)*
Big Picture: It was a quiet week for FSU on the recruiting trail, but the Seminoles did land a transfer in former Georgia linebacker Jermaine Johnson.

Men’s Basketball

Record: 5-1 (1-0 ACC)
Ranking: No. 21 AP; No. 21 Amway Coaches
Past Week: (1-0), beat Gardner-Webb on Monday, 72-59
Upcoming: at Clemson (Tuesday); vs. Duke (Saturday)
Recognitions: None
Weekly Commitments: None
2021 Recruiting Class Ranking*: No. 2 nationally, first in ACC (four total commitments)*
Big Picture: It didn’t go as smoothly as planned, but FSU bounced back from its first loss with a win over Gardner-Webb. FSU faces a critical week with games against Clemson and Duke.

Women’s Basketball

Record: 3-1 (2-1 ACC)
Ranking: None
Past Week: (1-0), beat Pittsburgh on Sunday, 67-53
Upcoming: at Virginia Tech (Thursday)
Recognitions: None
Big Picture: FSU won last weekend. The Seminoles will be back in action on New Year’s Eve.

*247Sports Composite rankings

Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson