Yao asks Hall of Fame to delay his nomination

[greenpride32]

Just a thought but, maybe he's thinking of coming back...

TP!  Beat me to the punch... Was gonna say the same exact thing.

These were my thoughts also.  He might be considering a PJ Brown type role if he's healthy and the right opportunity arises.

[Roy H.]

As Rya indicated, the contributor category includes those who have made "significant contributions to the game of basketball".  For a list of contributors, see here.  At a quick glance, it doesn't appear that any have gotten in due to charity or humanitarian work.

If the Hall allowed recognition for humanitarian work, Dikembe would be a clear-cut inductee.  However, I'm not sure that they do, at least the way the rules are currently construed.  

Interestingly, I just found out that Satch Sanders got in the Hall as a contributor, rather than as a player.  It seems like he made it in largely as a "catch all", and I can see borderline players like Dikembe get squeezed in this way, even if they don't meet the strict criteria for induction.

[Eja117]

The contributor list is kind of a weird list. There's a shoe salesman. Hubie Brown gets in as a contributor but not a coach. 

[fairweatherfan]

The contributor list is kind of a weird list. There's a shoe salesman. Hubie Brown gets in as a contributor but not a coach. 

Hubie Brown was a good (but not great) coach, but played a huge role in developing and running overseas basketball clinics at a time when there wasn't a big basketball presence in those places.  He did a lot to spread the game, though he's more famous as a coach and broadcaster.