Bryant died aged 41 in a helicopter crash alongside his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others in California last month.
The Los Angeles Lakers great, an 18-time All-Star and five-time champion, was one of four first-time finalists named on Friday.
Duncan, the former San Antonio Spurs star with 15 All-Star appearances and five championships, and Garnett – another NBA great – are also finalists.
A four-time Olympic gold medallist with the United States, Tamika Catchings is the other first-time finalist.
Kim Mulkey, Barbara Stevens, Eddie Sutton and Rudy Tomjanovich are previous finalists also up for consideration again.
"When the nominees for the Class of 2020 were announced in December, we knew this class had the potential of being one of the most historic of all time," Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame chairman Jerry Colangelo said in a statement.
"The untimely passing of Kobe Bryant has left us in a state of reflective mourning and we're proud to honour his legacy while also recognising seven other individuals who have meant so much to our game.
"We congratulate our finalists and those who have supported them on their journeys, and we look forward to revealing the Class of 2020 at the Final Four in Atlanta."
The announcement will take place on April 4.
The Class of 2020 line-up was confirmed by the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame, with all the finalists announced in February officially named as new inductees.
Bryant, the great Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard, died alongside his 13-year-old daughter Gianna when they and seven others perished in a helicopter crash in California on January 26.
Bryant was 41. He was a five-time NBA champion with the Lakers and an 18-time All-Star, as well as an Olympic champion in 2008 and 2012.
Bryant's Hall of Fame nomination may have been first announced following his death, but his place was a matter of time, and he reportedly was already in line to be inducted this year.
Vanessa Bryant told ESPN: "It's an incredible accomplishment and honour and we're extremely proud of him.
"Obviously we wish he was here with us to celebrate, but it's definitely the peak of his NBA career and every accomplishment he had as an athlete was a stepping stone to being here.
"We're incredibly proud of him and there's some solace in knowing that he was probably going to be part of the 2020 Hall of Fame class."
The Hall of Fame ceremony will take place in Springfield, Massachusetts, on August 29.
Bryant's long-time fellow NBA superstars Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett also feature in the Class of 2020 - both were 15-time All-Stars in their playing careers - along with college coaching titan Eddie Sutton.
Rudy Tomjanovich, who led the Houston Rockets to two NBA titles, made the grade, together with 10-time WNBA All-Star and four-time Olympic gold medallist Tamika Catchings, trailblazing women's coaches Kim Mulkey and Barbara Stevens, and FIBA executive Patrick Baumann.
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame president John L. Doleva said: "The Class of 2020 is undoubtedly one of the most historic of all time and the talent and social influence of these nine honourees is beyond measure.
"In 2020, the basketball community has suffered the unimaginable loss of iconic figures commissioner David Stern and Kobe Bryant, as well as the game itself due to COVID-19.
"We have also banded together like never before in appreciation of the game and those who have made it the uniting force it is today. Today we thank the Class of 2020 for all they have done for the game of basketball and we look forward to celebrating them at Enshrinement in August."
The Los Angeles Lakers star contributed 38 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists to Saturday's 116-108 Game 3 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, claiming a 2-1 lead in the first-round series.
In the process, James claimed his 158th career postseason victory, moving clear of five-time champion Duncan and closing on 161-win all-time leader Derek Fisher.
The latest achievement of a glittering career was a source of great pride for James.
He said: "It's just always surreal for me when my name is associated with any of the greats. Obviously, you know how great Tim Duncan was in this league with that franchise.
"I had my battles with him and was a team-mate with him in the Olympics. Just seeing what he was able to accomplish, not only in the regular season but, more importantly, in the postseason...
"Basically, he lived in the postseason. That was his address.
"So, for me to be linked with a great in the Big Fundamental, it means a lot - not only to myself but to my home town and whoever has been following my career."
The Lakers have now enjoyed back-to-back wins after dropping the first game of the series to the eighth-seeded Blazers, but James is still determined to keep improving.
"At the end of the day, we want to get better every game throughout the series," he explained.
"We played extremely well in Game 2, we played really well tonight, but there's still some things we can get better at. We know that Portland's going to be better in Game 4.
"We have to have the same mindset going into Game 4, knowing that we're desperate and they're desperate as well. Who plays and who finds their keys and makes the least amount of mistakes will become victorious.
"Every game has its own challenges. We begin to prepare for them tomorrow, watch a lot of film and see the ways we can get better."
Portland were hampered by Damian Lillard's dislocated finger, suffered in Game 2, although he still top-scored for the Blazers on Saturday with 34 points.
"Obviously, I dislocated it, so it's going to have some effect in terms of ball-handling," Lillard said. "Tonight the biggest thing I felt was going up to shoot, gathering the ball.
"Sometimes I would subconsciously try to ease up on it, so I would lose the ball a little bit.
"When I'm making moves, in the middle of my dribble, sometimes I would ease up on it because I would feel the pain and lose the ball a little bit. It would stop me in my tracks.
"But I did as much treatment as I could. I tried to just ignore it. Once you decide to step out there, it is what it is. You've got to go out there and do what you've got to do. That's what I tried to do."
An NBA great with the Spurs, Duncan returned to San Antonio as an assistant coach ahead of this season.
He will lead the Spurs against the Hornets at the Spectrum Center, the team announced.
"Gregg Popovich will miss tonight's Spurs-Hornets game due to personal business," the Spurs wrote on Twitter.
"Tim Duncan will serve as the Spurs head coach tonight in place of Pop."
San Antonio (25-34) are 12th in the Western Conference, while the Hornets (21-39) have also struggled this season.
Duncan spent the entirety of his playing career with the Spurs, winning five championships and two MVP awards.
