MN High School Basketball Hall of Fame 2nd Annual Induction March 26, 2019

NOTE: Here is an article that has been revised in the aftermath of the 2nd Annual Induction held last Tuesday, March 26, 2019. What I wanted to add was this. It has been an incredible honor for me to be involved in the Hall of Fame. I say that because I was a lifelong basketball fan--not a coach, not a journalist. I never got to meet the coaches and players whom I watched play the game until, well, it's been 20 years now, when I became self-employed and master of my own schedule. I started blogging about high school basketball and the rest is history.

So I've had the honor and the pleasure of getting to know many players and coaches and parents, etc. etc., over the past 5-10-20 years, and it has been a great, enriching experience. Previously, the kinds of player who we've inducted into the Hall of Fame were icons, people on pedestals. Now, they're actual human beings. Kenny Novak, Jr., whom lots of people dislike because his team enjoys a little too much success, turns out to be a wonderfully nice man! Who knew! And this past week I got to meet the family of Edina great, Bob Zender. And, trust me, I was class of 1968. I hated Edina as much as the next guy. But, my goodness, what a wonderful family. What nice people! And that gives one the sense that Bob Zender must also have been a really good, nice man, who passed on to his sons the right kinds of values and humility.

So, the Hall of Fame has been a great experience for me. I mean, you should have heard Ed Prohofsky talk about the process of bringing adapted athletics for students with disabilities into the family of MSHSL sports. All Minnesotans should take pride in this, but the fact is it happened a lot sooner because of Ed Prohofsky.

But, anyway, here's the point. The 29 inductees to the Hall of Fame over the course of 2 seasons are no longer icons on a distant pedestal. They're real human beings. And their legacies is not just that they were great basketball players or coaches or whatever. It is that they are wonderful human beings with families and friends who love them. That is their legacy.

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In case you haven't heard, Minnesota now has a High School Basketball Hall of Fame. There are other Halls of Fame, of course. 2019 inductee Ed Prohofsky is in 5 other Halls of Fame. But there has never been a Hall of Fame dedicated to Minnesota high school players (though the Hall of Fame does elect coaches, as well, and teams and other contributors).

The 2nd annual induction will be held Tuesday March 26 at 4 p.m. at the Marriott City Center Ballroom in downtown Minneapolis. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $25. From there, the Hall of Famers, at least, will head down to the Target Center, where they will be introduced on the floor at halftime of the Timberwolves game.

The Class of 2019 includes (you can get more information about the inductees and all the other festivities at mnhsbasketballhall.com.).

Bob Brink...Bob Bruggers...Mike Dreier...Norm Grow...Hal Haskins...Ronnie Henderson...Tracy Henderson...Kris Humphries...Aileen Just (Luther)...Coco Miller...Kelly Miller...Ken Novak, Jr....Ed Prohofsky...Kelly Skalicky...Bob Zender.

The Class of 2018 was Randy Breuer...Edgerton 1960...Khalid El-Amin...Myron Glass...Grand Meadow Girls 1929-1939...Ron Johnson...Janet Karvonen...Bob McDonald...Kevin McHale...Dorothy McIntyre...Jim McIntyre...Mark Olberding...Faith Johnson Patterson...Lindsay Whalen.

The Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization. In addition to an annual induction, the Hall also operates 3 basketball events: an AAU club tournament in April...a summer high school invitational in July... and a winter high school basketball classic in January. Next January 18, 2020, they will hold 6 games at Anoka-Ramsey CC, 3 boys and 3 girls, including (Boys) East Ridge, Eden Prairie, Hibbing, Hopkins, Park Center and Rochester Mayo and (Girls) Hopkins, Lakeville North, Mountain Iron-Buhl, Sauk Centre, St. Michael-Albertville and Stillwater. Again, there's more information on the Web site.