John Calipari acknowledges former players as he enters Hall of Fame

John Calipari never could have been a Hall of Famer on his own ability.

“I never grabbed a rebound,” he said. “I never scored a point. I never had an assist.”

But he’s had some incredible players.

And when he was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday night, he insisted many of them join him.

From Marcus Camby, who helped him build a program at Massachusetts, to Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins, who solidified a powerhouse at Kentucky, Calipari was backed by dozens of the players who have made him one of college basketball’s most successful coaches.

“As you can see, I have been blessed to have all those opportunities,” Calipari said, “but the reason I stand here is more about the players I’ve coached.”

Also enshrined Friday were former NBA stars Spencer Haywood, Jo Jo White and Dikembe Mutombo, women’s basketball great Lisa Leslie and referee Dick Bavetta. Tom Heinsohn was inducted as a coach after already being enshrined as a player, joined by former coaches George Raveling and Australia’s Lindsay Gaze, plus ABA star Louis Dampier and early African American player John Isaacs.

Calipari was the last of the 11-member class of 2015 to speak in the ceremony inside Symphony Hall, not far from where he got his first head coaching job at 29 at the University of Massachusetts.

Venezuela qualifies for Olympics

Gregory Vargas made a free throw with 0.3 seconds left after being fouled on an offensive rebound and Venezuela stunned Canada, 79-78, to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Windi Graterol scored 20 points, and Heissler Guillent added 19 — eight in the final 4 minutes — in the semifinal game to help Venezuela qualify for the Olympics for the first time since Barcelona in 1992.

In the second semifinal, Argentina earned a spot in the Olympics, overcoming an 11-point deficit to beat Mexico, 78-70.