Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame facts for kids
The Hall of Fame in 2010
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| Established | 1959 (organization) February 17, 1968 (facility) |
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| Location | Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Type | Professional sports hall of fame |
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is a special museum and hall of fame located in Springfield, Massachusetts. It's like a giant library for everything about basketball, helping to keep its amazing history alive. The Hall of Fame is named after James Naismith, a Canadian-American doctor who invented basketball right there in Springfield!
The Hall of Fame started in 1959. Its first building opened on February 17, 1968. As of 2024, the Hall has welcomed 436 players, coaches, referees, and other basketball stars. The Boston Celtics team has the most people inducted, with 40 members.
Contents
Exploring the Hall of Fame Buildings
How the Hall of Fame Began
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame was created in 1959. At first, it didn't have a building. A person named Lee Williams, who used to be an athletic director, started it. In the 1960s, it was hard to get enough money to build the first home for the Hall of Fame.
But they succeeded! The first building opened on February 17, 1968. This was just after the National Basketball Association (NBA) played its 18th All-Star Game. In its first year, the Hall of Fame honored four important people.
Early Contributions to Basketball
Besides honoring basketball legends, the Hall of Fame also wanted to help the sport grow. In 1979, they started sponsoring the Tip-Off Classic. This was a special pre-season college basketball game. Since then, the Tip-Off Classic has often marked the start of the college basketball season. It usually returns to Springfield, Massachusetts every few years.
Growing Popularity and New Homes
The first Hall of Fame building was open for 17 years. During that time, over 630,000 people came to visit! Because so many people loved it, a new, bigger building was needed.
On June 30, 1985, a new $11.5 million building opened. It was built right next to the Connecticut River in Springfield. This new Hall of Fame also started to recognize women for their contributions to basketball for the first time. One of the first women inducted was Senda Berenson Abbott. She was the first person to introduce basketball to women at Smith College.
The second Hall of Fame building became very popular. More visitors came than expected! This was partly because basketball was becoming more popular. Also, its location by the river was beautiful, and the building had interesting, modern architecture.
The Modern Hall of Fame Building
In 2002, the Basketball Hall of Fame moved again. It only moved about 100 yards south along the riverfront in Springfield. This new building cost $47 million and was designed by famous architects.
The building looks very cool! It has a shiny, metallic silver sphere that looks like a basketball. Two other shapes, called rhombuses, are on either side. At night, the dome lights up. Inside, there are 80,000 square feet of space.
The old second Hall of Fame building wasn't torn down. Instead, it became a health club. The current Basketball Hall of Fame has a full-sized basketball court called Center Court. Visitors can play on it! Inside, you'll find a game gallery, lots of interactive exhibits, and several theaters. There's also an "honor ring" where you can see all the inductees. A large theater can seat up to 300 people for special ceremonies. In 2002, famous inductees included the Harlem Globetrotters and Magic Johnson. Magic Johnson was a five-time NBA champion and an Olympic gold medalist!
As of 2011, the Hall of Fame has welcomed many more visitors than expected. Basketball fans from all over the world travel to see it.
How People Get Inducted
Who Can Be Inducted?
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is special because it honors many different types of basketball people. Unlike some other sports halls of fame, it includes:
- International and American professional players.
- American and international amateur players.
- Coaches, referees, and other people who have made a big difference to basketball.
This makes it one of the most complete sports halls of fame in America!
The Selection Process
To choose who gets into the Hall of Fame, there are several committees. As of 2016, there are six committees that help find and elect candidates. Four of these committees help screen, or check, potential candidates:
- North American Screening Committee (9 members)
- Women's Screening Committee (7 members)
- International Screening Committee (7 members)
- Veterans Screening Committee (7 members) - "Veterans" are people whose careers ended at least 35 years before they are considered.
Since 2011, the Veterans and International Committees can also directly choose one person for each group of new inductees.
Three other committees were formed in 2011 to directly elect one candidate for each induction class:
- Contributor Direct Election Committee - This committee helps choose people who have made a big difference to the game, even if they weren't players or coaches.
If a person gets enough votes from one of the screening committees, they can move on to the Honors Committee. This committee has 12 members, plus other specialists. To be inducted into the Hall of Fame, a person needs at least 18 "yes" votes (75% of all votes) from the Honors Committee.
Rules for Being Considered
To be considered for induction, a player, retired coach, or referee must have been fully retired from their role for at least three full seasons. Before 2018, referees could be considered after 25 years of service, even if they were still active.
Rules for active coaches also changed in 2017. Coaches can become eligible after 25 years of full-time service at the high school level or higher, or three seasons after they retire. Starting with the class of 2020, active coaches must meet the years of service rule and be at least 60 years old.
People who have made a "significant contribution to the game of basketball" don't have a years-of-service rule. Sportswriters and commentators can also be full members of the Hall of Fame. This is different from the Baseball Hall of Fame, where they are in separate sections.
Some Criticisms of the Process
Some people have different opinions about how the Hall of Fame chooses its members. For example, the voting process is kept private, which some people don't like. In other sports, the voters often discuss their choices openly.
The Hall has also been criticized for sometimes choosing active college coaches or less famous players, while some very accomplished players and coaches are not included. For example, Leo Ferris helped create the 24-second shot clock for the NBA, but only Danny Biasone (the other developer) has been inducted.
Some people also point out that the Basketball Hall of Fame has more members than the Baseball Hall of Fame, even though it started later. The President and CEO of the Hall, John Doleva, explains that this is because basketball includes many different levels of the game. He says, "Naismith invented this game for everyone: men, women, high school, college, pro, coaches, players. We really represent the entire game, so we have a broader class."
Hall of Fame Inductees
Since 1959, 436 coaches, players, referees, contributors, and teams have been inducted. The most recent group joined on October 12, 2024.
Some people have been inducted more than once for different roles! For example, John Wooden, Lenny Wilkens, Bill Sharman, Tom Heinsohn, and Bill Russell have all been inducted as both a player and a coach. John McLendon was inducted as both a coach and a contributor.
There have been three times when the Hall inducted new classes but didn't honor any players: in 1965, 1968, and 2007.
Other Special Awards
Ice Cube Impact Award
On November 14, 2023, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame created a new award called the Ice Cube Impact Award. The first person to receive this award was Ice Cube himself, on January 15, 2024.
College Basketball Awards
Each year, during the Final Four of the men's and women's college basketball tournaments, the Hall gives out several awards to top college players.
For men, the Hall presents awards to the best players in Division I for each of the five main basketball positions:
- The Bob Cousy Award: Given since 2004 to the best point guard.
- The Jerry West Award: Given since 2015 to the best shooting guard.
- The Julius Erving Award: Given since 2015 to the best small forward.
- The Karl Malone Award: Given since 2015 to the best power forward.
- The Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award: Given since 2015 to the best center.
The winners of these awards are chosen by a special Hall of Fame committee, along with the famous player each award is named after.
The Hall also gives similar awards for the top Division I women's players at each position. One of these awards has been given since 2000, and the others started in 2018:
- The Nancy Lieberman Award: Given since 2000 to the best point guard.
- The Ann Meyers Drysdale Award: First given in 2018 to the best shooting guard.
- The Cheryl Miller Award: First given in 2018 to the best small forward.
- The Katrina McClain Award: First given in 2018 to the best power forward.
- The Lisa Leslie Award: First given in 2018 to the best center.
Just like with the men's awards, the selection committee for the women's awards includes the famous player the award is named after.
The Hall used to give out the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award. This award went to two college seniors, one male and one female, who were considered the nation's best student-athletes and were also shorter players. The men's award started in 1969, and the women's in 1984. Both of these awards were stopped after the 2012–13 season.
More About Basketball Halls of Fame
- FIBA Hall of Fame (for international basketball)
- List of members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
- National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (for college basketball)
- Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
See also
In Spanish: Salón de la Fama del Baloncesto para niños
