Former Sixers Point Guard Mo Cheeks and Executive Rod Thorn Make Hall of Fame

A pair of men with Sixers ties will be inducted as members of the 2018 class into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Maurice Cheeks and Rod Thorn were honored on Saturday as the announcement was made official on a televised ceremony.

Cheeks, a 6-foot-1 guard, spent the first 11 seasons of his 15-year career with the 76ers, which drafted him with the 36th overall pick in the 1978 NBA Draft out of West Texas A&M University. In 853 games (610 starts) with the 76ers, he averaged 12.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 7.3 assists and 2.3 steals in 33.5 minutes per game. The floor general shot .528 from the field and .790 from the free-throw line for Philadelphia. Cheeks’ No. 10 was retired by the 76ers in 1995, shortly after his retirement from the NBA.

"This honor is truly deserved," Sixers head coach Brett Brown said in a press release by the team. "I am happy to see him in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, alongside so many other greats. Mo will always be remembered as a champion, an elite defender and a fierce competitor, but more importantly, he was a great teammate and he’s an even better human being. Mo Cheeks epitomizes what the city of Philadelphia is all about.”

The Chicago native was named an All-Star four times in a 76ers uniform and was instrumental in the team’s 1983 championship run, leading the team with 7.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game, while adding 16.3 points in the postseason.

Thorn served as the Sixers president for two years and has worked in several aspects of the professional game, including being named the NBA executive of the year in 2002 with the New Jersey Nets.

"The Philadelphia 76ers organization congratulates former team executive and respected basketball dignitary Rod Thorn on being selected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame," the team said in a press release. "Over the course of his long and storied career, Rod has made a tremendous impact on the game of basketball. We are thrilled for Rod and his family as he receives this well-deserved honor."