Robert Hughes, Leta Andrews Naismith Hall of Fame finalists

Former Fort Worth Dunbar boys basketball coach Robert Hughes and former Granbury girls coach Leta Andrews are finalists for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

They are among 12 finalists announced Saturday morning during NBA All-Star festivities in New York.

Hughes, 86, coached high school basketball in Texas for 47 years and ranks first on the all-time wins list for boys high school coaches, with a record of 1,333-247. He led his teams to 35 district championships and five state championships.

“For whatever reason, they bought into my theory and to my old saying: ‘Never, ever let anyone outwork you,’” Hughes said. “It was a case of we just worked hard.”

Hughes’ coaching career began at Fort Worth I.M. Terrell during the era of racial segregation. At Terrell, he won three Prairie View Interscholastic League championships. He then moved to Dunbar, where he won two UIL titles and built the Wildcats into one of the most consistent programs in the country.

And he did that from the ground up, first convincing his players they would win before that belief spread through the school and community.

“Sometimes, we forget that we have to sell ourselves and what we’re doing,” he said. “You have to sell it to the students. You have to sell it to the parents, and you sell it to the general public. You are a salesperson. ... Shoot a layup, block a shot, run the floor. That’s what fans bought tickets for. You don’t have to beat your chest or point to the grandstands.”

Andrews, 77, coached for more than 50 years and is the all-time winningest girls high school coach with 1,416 victories. She led her teams to 16 state final-four appearances and a state championship in 1990.

“All you’re doing when you first start coaching is trying to survive and taste the fruits of success,” said Andrews, who retired last year. “I was fortunate enough to have a lot of girls who wanted that same taste ... it’s very, very heartwarming.”

She coached the West team in the McDonald’s All-America Game in 2004 and the West team in the Gatorade All-America Game in 2009. She was named the NHSCA National High School Coach of the Year in 2007 and won the Morgan Wootten Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007. She was inducted into the High School Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.

Yet even with a stockpile of career awards already earned, Andrews was in shock Saturday morning when she found out she was a Naismith finalist.

“I’m just trying to search for a way to put it all together. It’s been utopia,” she said. “You always try to be your very best all the time, and I don’t know if you have to be better than the others, but you have to learn from others.”

Hughes served as head coach of the McDonald’s All-America Game West team in 2001, was named the NHSCA National High School Coach of the Year in 2003 and won the the Morgan Wootten Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010. He has been inducted into the Texas Basketball Hall of Fame (1993) and High School Basketball Hall of Fame (2003).

Hughes won’t be sweating it out on whether he makes the final cut for his latest honor.

“If they’re going to [induct me], they ought to do it. If not, the sun will shine the next day, and I’ll still be the guy from Stop Six,” he said.

The other finalists are 39-year NBA referee Dick Bavetta, two-time College Coach of the Year John Calipari, two-time NBA Coach of the Year Bill Fitch, eight-time NBA All-Star Dikembe Mutumbo, four-time Division III national champion coach Bo Ryan, seven-time NBA All-Star Jo Jo White, and three-time WNBA MVP Lisa Leslie.

Previous finalists included again this year for consideration are five-time NBA All-Star Tim Hardaway, four-time NBA All-Star Spencer Haywood and three-time NBA All-Star Kevin Johnson.

The Class of 2015 will be announced April 6 in Indianapolis before the NCAA men’s championship game. A finalist needs 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Enshrinement is Sept. 10-11 in Springfield, Mass

This story was originally published February 14, 2015 at 10:41 AM with the headline "Robert Hughes, Leta Andrews Naismith Hall of Fame finalists."