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How to get into the basketball hall of fame


The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame :: Election Process

NOMINATION PROCESS

 

A completed nomination form procured from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (hereafter BHOF) shall be submitted to the President and CEO of the BHOF by October 31. All nominees with completed nomination forms are added to the official ballot and presented to the appropriate Committee for review.

 

ELIGIBILITY:

 

Candidates must meet the following requirements in order to be eligible for Enshrinement into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame:

 

Player: A player must be fully retired for four full seasons before being eligible for Enshrinement. He/she may then be considered for Enshrinement in the fifth year of retirement. Should a player come out of retirement for a short period of time, as defined by the BHOF, his/her case and eligibility for Enshrinement shall be reviewed on an individual basis.

 

Coach: A coach must be either fully retired for four full seasons or, if still an active coach, have coached as either a fulltime assistant or head coach on the high school and/or college and/or professional level for a minimum of 25 years. That person will then be considered for Enshrinement in the sixth year of retirement or 26th year of active coaching.

 

Referee: A referee must be fully retired for four full seasons or, if still an active referee, have been an active referee for a minimum of 25 years. That person will then be considered for Enshrinement in the sixth year of retirement or 26th year of refereeing.

 

Contributor: A person is eligible for Enshrinement as a contributor at any time for significant contributions to the game of basketball. What constitutes a "significant contribution" shall be determined by the BHOF, its Election Process Committee, and the Contributor Direct-Elect Committee.

 

 

 

SCREENING COMMITTEES

 

There are two Screening Committees: North American and Women’s. These Committees review and select individual nominees (“Finalists) to be reviewed and voted upon for Enshrinement by the Honors Committee. The North American Committee consists of nine voting members; the Women’s Committee consists of seven voting members. In order to advance to the Honors Committee, a nominee must receive a minimum number of affirmative votes from the respective Screening Committee (North American: 7 of 9; Women’s: 5 of 7).

If a nominee receives zero affirmative votes for three consecutive years (0-27 or 0-21), that nominee’s candidacy is suspended for five years after which time he/she may again be reviewed by the appropriate Screening Committee. There is no limitation on the number of years a nominee may be considered for Enshrinement by a Screening Committee provided that the nominee receives at least one affirmative vote in any given three-year period.

The Screening Committees may put forth a maximum number of Finalists to the Honors Committee (North American: 10; Women’s: 4).

 

RESPONSIBILITY OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

After the vote of the Screening Committees, the Finalists will first be reviewed by the BHOF Board of Trustees. At this time, should it be determined by the Board of Trustees that a Finalist has damaged the integrity of the game of basketball, he/she shall be deemed not worthy of Enshrinement and removed from consideration.

 

HONORS COMMITTEE

 

The purpose of the Honors Committee is to review carefully the selected Finalist’s basketball record before casting a vote in favor of or against Enshrining the Finalist in the BHOF. There are 24 voting members on each of the two Honors Committees (North American and Women’s). The Honors Committees consist of Hall of Famers, basketball executives and administrators, members of the media, and other experts in the game of basketball. A Finalist must garner a minimum of 18 votes from the respective Honors Committee to be Enshrined in the BHOF.

If the Honors Committee does not elect a Finalist for five consecutive years, the Finalist’s nomination will be suspended for five years.

 

DIRECT-ELECT COMMITTEES

 

Established in 2011, there are four distinct Direct-Elect Committees: the Contributors, the Early African-American Pioneers, the International Game, and the Veterans (35+ years since retirement). The Direct-Elect Committees are charged with carefully reviewing the nomination packet of each candidate and directly electing up to one Enshrinee for the Basketball Hall of Fame annually.

 

 

What are the requirements for the NBA Hall of Fame? – Basketball Noise

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is located in the home of basketball in Springfield, Massachusetts. It is named after the man who invented basketball – James Naismith. The Hall of Fame was created in 1959, and opened to the public only in 1968. This includes coaches, players, and figures who have contributed to the development of basketball. The Basketball Hall of Fame is designed to immortalize the brightest basketball stars and the best moments of the game. It remains the world’s best sports museum.

What are the requirements for the NBA Hall of Fame? NBA players must have been retired for at least five years. The player must be nominated by another person and a form and supporting documentation must be with the President of the Hall of fame, by 1st November.

But who and how determines the nominees and laureates? Which players are eligible to enter the Hall of Fame? How are the votes held? Why did Gary Payton have to wait six years and Bernard King – 20? And Richie Guerin – 43? Why was even Michael Jordan inducted into the Hall of Fame only six years after the last announcement of his retirement? And why isn’t Gregg Popovich still in the Basketball Hall of Fame?

To learn the answers to these, as well as other questions related to the Hall of Fame, in this article we will talk about the rules which determine the induction into the Hall of Fame.

In total, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, founded in 1959, has five nominations for which it accepts members:

  • Player;
  • Coach;
  • Referee;
  • Contributor- a person who cannot be classified in the three previous categories, but who has helped the development of basketball; and
  • Team.

Entire teams began to enter the Hall of Fame at once, since 1959. Then, by including the first basketball team in history (James Naismith’s students) and three great teams of the early 20th century (Original Celtics, Buffalo Germans, New York Renaissance), Hall of Fame leaders took a break. And once again, inducting a team into the Hall of Fame has been a separate category already in this millennium, honoring two of the great U.S. Olympic teams of 1960 and 1992.

Induction into the Hall of Fame can be in two or more categories at once, which John Wooden, Bill Sharman, and Lenny Wilkens managed to achieve. They were inducted into the Hall of Fame both as a player and as a coach. Wilkens, by the way, was inducted into the Hall of Fame as a part of the “Dream Team” because he was on the coaching staff, helping Chuck Daly.

Well, the answer here is pretty straightforward. Basically – anyone. You, and your friends. Anyone. The main thing is that you fill out the form required by the leadership, add to it evidence of the importance of the person (newspaper clippings, books, or some other data that would confirm that it makes sense to consider this individual), and send them to the president of the Basketball Hall of Fame before November 1st . If your nominee meets all the criteria, his merits and the opportunity to be in the Hall of Fame will be considered by one of the Committees of the Hall.

A player, coach, or referee applying for the Hall of Fame must be retired for a minimum of 5 years. In the case of the coach or referee, there is a more different approach – if a person has been engaged in this activity for 25 years or more, then he can get into the Hall of Fame as an acting coach or referee.

Since the selection process itself takes almost a year, players are only inducted into the Hall of Fame six years after the end of their careers or later. Thus, for example, in 2014, those basketball players who finished their careers in 2008 can be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

And what if a player suddenly changes his mind during these 5-6 years and returns to the sport? In the NHL we witnessed living legends that were included in the Hall of Fame, and they then returned to the ice – Gordie Howe, Guy Lafleur, and Mario Lemieux (in hockey there is just a three-year waiting period, which can be canceled at all for the greatest). In this case, the Hall of Fame management assesses how significant the return from retirement was. Jordan was well-versed in his sports career, and he waited until 2009 for inclusion. But Pippen’s tour of Scandinavia in 2008, when he played for Finnish ToPo and Sweden’s Sundsvall, was not deemed serious, and Pippen’s career basically “ended” at the end of the 2003/04 season.

In addition to accepting new members, the Hall of Fame also gives awards annually. For example, the Curt Gowdy Prize is awarded to the best members of the press, and the Mannie Jackson Award is also called the Basketball’s Human Spirit Award. Receiving these awards does not mean that a person becomes a member of the Hall of Fame; admission to the Hall is an independent honor.

The most important claim to the Basketball Hall of Fame is complete anonymity. Not only are the voting results hidden from the public, but even those who are members of a committee. The US is generally used to the baseball type of Hall of Fame, where every year there is a kind of public game with bets, numbers, and percentages that are recruited by candidates for inclusion. Therefore, sports fans, who tend to single out levels of “gloriousness” even in the Hall of Fame, always find a reason to criticize those who were included in the Hall of Fame or to scold the Hall itself for the fact that someone has not yet been honored.

Tour of the Basketball Hall of Fame. There is a lot of history and interactivity here, and you can also play basketball. Do not forget that if you liked the post, then you can express your emotions in the form of a plus sign or a comment.

The City of Springfield, Massachusetts is nicknamed "City of Firsts" because of the many innovations that first appeared here: the first gun factory in the US, the first American dictionary, the first lathe in the US, the internal combustion engine car, the first sleeping car for passenger trains and much more.

Basketball was invented in 1891 in Springfield by James Naismith, a college instructor in the Christian Youth Organization. In 1959 the Basketball Hall of Fame was created and in 1968 it was opened to the public. That's where I headed.

The Basketball Museum and Hall of Fame building is a large, circular building that resembles a basketball. In front of the entrance there is a monument to James Naismith - the doctor is sitting on a bench, three children are around him, and Naismith is holding a basketball in his hands.

Entering the lobby, I find a lot of stands with artifacts of various basketball stars - Michael Jordan, Steve Nash, John Stockton. As you approach each of the booths, a video plays on the screen in which each player talks about their passion for the game. On the floor of the hall there are prints of basketball shoes - everyone has the opportunity to compare their shoe size with the size of, for example, Kobe Bryant.

The museum, which costs $20 for adults (due to the pandemic, the price is reduced - on normal days the ticket costs $28), consists of three floors. A tour of it starts from the third floor, which is dedicated to the anthropometric data of basketball players: arm span, players' height. Cardboard figures of basketball players in real height are installed in the room. This is how I would look next to Shaquille O'Neal.

There is also a stand with the size of the players' palms, but at the moment they are asked not to touch it. Because of the virus, of course.

By the way, using anthropometry, the museum also asks to keep a social distance - just stay at arm's length.

The 2nd floor of the museum is dedicated to the history of basketball. There is a story about how, wanting to find a way to keep students busy during gymnastics lessons, James Naismith offered them a game in which they had to throw a ball into a fruit basket. This is how basketball was born.

Visitors will also learn about how basketball has evolved over time. In 1950, the Minneapolis Lakers played the Fort Wayne Pistons. The Pistons, wanting to keep the main star of the rivals George Mikan, who stood out for his height - 208 cm, simply passed the ball to each other throughout the game, practically did not give it to the Minneapolis players. They won with a score of 19:18, which is the fewest points in the history of the NBA, scored by teams in one match. After that, the league introduced a rule according to which each team has 24 seconds to attack.

Other milestones in the history of the game were the emergence of professional leagues and the eventual creation of the National Basketball Association in 1949. And in March 1939, Evanston, Illinois hosted the first college basketball final. The University of Oregon defeated the Ohio State University team. This event attracted the attention of fans from all over the country. The tournament became an annual event and is now known as the March Madness.

Of course, part of the exposition is devoted to the place of black players in the history of basketball. As in other sports in the US, black players played separately from whites. But, unlike, for example, baseball, in basketball, teams made up of black basketball players could face teams from professional leagues.

The most famous such team was the Harlem Globetrotters. Founded in the late 1920s, the club played exclusively away and was not a member of any professional league. The team was distinguished by the fact that during the matches they combined elements of sports and show - the use of dribbling, non-standard tricks and tricks.

In 1948 and 1949, the Globetrotters played against the then strongest NBA team, the Minneapolis Lakers. The victory in both games led to the fact that the leadership of the Association decided that black basketball players could play in the league. So at 19In 1950, the first three black players appeared in the NBA: Chuck Kupper, Nat Clifton and Earl Lloyd. The first two were representatives of Harlem.

In 1966, another watershed story occurred when Texas Western College became the first college team to win a championship by producing an all-black starting five in the final game. In 2006, the movie Playing by Someone Else's Rules was released, based on these events, and in 2007 the Texas Western team was included in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

This year the museum opened a new exhibition dedicated to basketball fans. Perhaps one of the most prominent fans on display is James Goldstein, a businessman who first played basketball in the 1960s and fell in love with the game and now attends at least 100 games a season. James stands out not only for his passion for basketball, but also for his appearance - one of his outfits can be seen in the museum.

Another superfan is Nav Bhatia, a Canadian businessman of Indian origin. He's been a fan of the Toronto Raptors since the team's inception at 19.95 and for all these years he has not missed a single home game of his favorite team. He is also known for buying tickets for basketball games and giving them away to local children.

Also in the museum you can learn stories about the emergence of the players' union, women's basketball, the place of Jews in basketball.

Of course, the museum is full of various artifacts: uniforms, sneakers, balls. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird even stay together in the museum: their T-shirts and Converse are on display next door.

Shaquille O'Neal sneaker - I think it will fit both of my feet.

The memory of Michael Jordan is imprinted not only on the form with number 23, but also on a part of the floor from the arena of the Utah Jazz. It was from this spot that Jordan scored the series-clinching shot against the Utah Jazz in 1998, allowing Chicago to become an NBA champion for the 6th time in 8 years.

The next room of the museum is actually the Hall of Fame. Unlike the boxing or baseball gyms, the basketball gym has more interactivity. The Hall of Fame is not only a room with plaques on the wall with the names of its members, but also touch screens where you can see information about each representative entered into the Hall: his activities, role in the history of basketball, photos and video clips.

Players, coaches, judges, teams, journalists, people who have contributed to the development of basketball can be elected to the Hall of Fame. In order for a player to have the opportunity to be included in it, three years must have passed since the end of his career, coaches and referees can become members of the Hall even during their career, but for this they must have worked in basketball for at least 25 years.

I study the list of Hall of Fame representatives, I find Russian names. In 1992, Sergei Belov was inducted into the Hall, becoming the first non-American player to receive this honor. Also included in the Hall are Alexander Gomelsky, Uliana Semenova (two-time Olympic champion, three-time world champion, ten-time European champion as part of the USSR national team) and Lidia Alekseeva (22 years coached the USSR women's team and won 2 times at the Olympic Games, 5 times at the World Championships, 12 times at the European Championships).

Due to the coronavirus, the induction ceremony for new inductees into the Hall of Fame has been postponed this year. The Class of 2020 is bright - Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan have been selected into the Hall of Fame.

As you exit the Hall of Fame room, everyone is greeted by Larry Bird saying, “Now you know our History. Now is the time to play this Great Game."

Yes, there is a basketball court in the museum! Everyone can play basketball, dunk (there are several backboards lowered for convenience) or throw the ball into rings from different eras (of course, the most popular is a wooden basket).

Hall of Famers say that on a normal day, basketball stars like players and coaches can be found on the court. They communicate with the guests of the museum, teach various basketball tricks. Unfortunately, due to quarantine restrictions, this is not possible at the moment. Nevertheless, nothing prevented me from temporarily disconnecting from the real world and, like a child, forgetting in the game.

Photo by the author.

Basketball Hall of Fame | it's... What is the Basketball Hall of Fame?

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is located in the birthplace of basketball in Springfield, Massachusetts. Named after the inventor of basketball, James Naismith.

The hall was created in 1959 and opened to the public on February 17, 1968. The Hall of Fame includes players, coaches, functionaries who have contributed to the development of basketball. Unlike other American Halls of Fame, like American football and baseball, not only professional American basketball players, but also amateurs and Europeans can enter the basketball hall of fame; women are also included in the Hall of Fame (for example, the creator of women's basketball, Senda Berenson). 11 May 1992 years old, the first non-American player was included in the Hall of Fame (they became the Soviet professional basketball player Sergei Belov). In addition to individuals, there are nine teams inducted into the Hall of Fame [1] . In 1985, the Hall of Fame moved to another building on Connecticut's east shore, and on September 28, 2002, the Hall of Fame moved to the third building in its history. The 7,400 m² complex cost $45 million.

Inducted into the Hall of Fame at the annual sessions, although no one was inducted into the Hall in 1968 and 2007 [2] . For 2012, the Hall of Fame consists of 313 people (three of them (John Wooden, Lenny Wilkens, Bill Sherman) were accepted twice - as players and as coaches) and 9 teams.

Since 1959, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame has honored the best moments of the game and the brightest stars in basketball. On the occasion of its 50th anniversary, we would like to look back and see how the main shrine of this greatest game fulfills its purpose of remaining the best sports museum in the world.

Humble beginnings... At the very beginning of its journey, the Basketball Hall of Fame occupied a very small property on the campus of Springfield College (Massachusetts, USA), at a distance approximately equal to the height of the jump when throwing the ball into the basket from the place where December 21, 1891 the very first basketball game was played. On that day, a physical education teacher named James Naismith, who taught classes in the then unremarkable gymnasium of the Youth Christian Association College in Springfield, introduced 18 of his students to a new game.

The goal of this new game seemed fairly simple: toss a round ball into a round basket attached to the railing of the gym's balcony 10 feet from the floor. However, in the first game, the winning team managed to score only one ball and only thanks to a 25-foot throw from William Chase. The pace of the game was slow and the beginning more than modest, and yet the new activity quickly spread, so that by 1894 basketball was being played in France, China, India and a dozen other countries.

Today's Basketball Hall of Fame opened on February 17, 1968 at a turning point for the sport. Just a month before January 20, 1968, Alvin Hayes helped the University of Houston to a thrilling 71-69 victory over Lew Alcindor of the University of California Bruins. More than 50,000 fans gathered at the Astrodome in Houston that evening, and millions of people followed at home as this truly epic battle was the world's first nationally televised game.

Just three days after this tipping point, New York City's Madison Square Garden became the venue for the 18th annual National Basketball Association All-Star Game. The all-star cast included many future Hall of Famers such as Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas, Elgin Baylor and Jerry West, Wilt Chamberlain and Willis Reed, not to mention the triple threat of Bill Russell, John Havlicek and Sam Jones. For the first time in history, basketball was in the spotlight of sports fans across the country.

The inauguration of the Hall in 1968 was not only timely, but, in fact, became the culmination of the history of the game, which appeared more than thirty years ago.

The background for this was the events that took place in 1936 when the United States defeated Canada 19-8 in the final of the Berlin Olympic Games. Dr. Naismith, himself of Canadian origin, was able to attend the game thanks to the foresight and generosity of the National Basketball Coaches Association, which raised the necessary funds months before the opening ceremony to send the game's inventor to Berlin, paying all expenses. Naismith later said that he felt the greatest sense of pride, watching how his game is played on the international stage.

The National Basketball Coaches Association soon went one step further and erected a monument to the late Dr. Naismith and his remarkable game. America's entry into World War II on December 8, 1941 caused the Hall of Fame to be forgotten for a while, but in 1949 the Association returned to the idea of ​​immortalizing the game and its inventor. Ten years later, in 1959, despite the absence of a building to call it home, the Basketball Hall nevertheless began to exist, and its first heroes were finally announced.

The Hall of Fame experienced many hardships during its first two decades on the Springfield college campus. Each year, several thousand visitors flock to the home of basketball, seeking inspiration from the stories and memorabilia featured here. The hall grew rapidly.

The recognition of the need to expand the Hall of Fame has accelerated efforts to make it the world's first source of basketball information. In 1979, with the assistance and support of the local organizing committee, the Basketball Hall of Fame sponsored a special, very first game of the season that served as the official start of the intercollege basketball season.

In the early 1980s, the popularity of the game reached unprecedented heights. The rivalry between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson breathed new life into Dr. Naismith's game. The fight between Byrd and the Magic stirred up fans around the world.

Meanwhile at the University of North Carolina, another bird (Bird's surname means bird) was ready to spread its wings, fly high above the clouds, hover in the air, and finally return to earth to change the game forever . Who is she? Michael Jordan.

Byrd, Magic, Michael and many others contributed to the rise of basketball in the early 1980s, basketball was about to turn 100 years old, and the need for a Hall of Fame that would more reflect growth and development games, became more and more obvious.

On June 30, 1985, over 10,000 basketball fans literally descended on the city of Springfield, including renowned NBC broadcaster Willard Scott, to attend the grand opening of the new Hall of Fame. On that day, three floors of basketball history welcomed visitors, and the museum's new high-tech exhibits gave it a futuristic look.

Also in 1985, the Basketball Hall of Fame entered a new era by recognizing women's contributions to the game. In 1892, Senda Berenson Abbott, the "first lady" of basketball, introduced the new game to the women of Smith College. Bertha Teague served as a high school coach in Ada, Oklahoma for 42 consecutive seasons, winning eight state championships. Margaret Wade worked at Delta State University, and although her stay there was short, from 1975 to 1977 she and her team managed to win three national championships in a row. The Basketball Hall of Fame is becoming more expansive, a reflection of the game itself.

The 1985 Hall of Fame version also contributed to preserving important moments in the game's history. Basketball is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. In 1992, Mike Krzyszewski becomes the first coach since John Wooden to win the National Collegiate Athletic Association championships, while the United States Dream Team wins gold at the Summer Olympics. And in 1997, the Women's National Basketball Association, the women's professional league, burst onto the American sports scene.

The growing popularity of the game determines the relocation of the museum, and in 2000 the construction of the third Hall of Fame begins.

In September 2002, at the grand opening of the new building, great coaches such as Larry Brown, Lute Olson, Kay Yow, as well as players Drazen Petrovic and Magic Johnson take their rightful place in the Hall of Fame.

Today, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is 40,000 square meters of basketball history and home to over 300 heroes.


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