First of two parts
Kansas City, Mo. – Three of the six members of the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2026 are Black: Glen Rice, Tubby Smith and the late Walt Hazzard.
The Hall of Fame was founded in 2006 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Foundation. “The country needs to understand that there is no other Hall of Fame in the country for men’s collegiate basketball,” The College Basketball Experience CEO Kevin Henderson told the MSR, the only Minnesota media outlet in attendance at the Oct. 22 induction celebration. “We don’t discriminate here: Division I, II, III, NAIA. If you fit the bill and if you have the career, you will get that consideration to go in if you’re nominated.”
At last Thursday’s press conference, MSR talked with Rice, Smith and Hazzard’s son in separate interviews.
Walt Hazzard, who passed away in 2011, was “a foundational figure in UCLA’s early dynasty.” He led the Bruins to a 30-0 season and the program’s first national championship under legendary Coach John Wooden, and he won Final Four Most Outstanding Player and National Player of the Year honors in 1964, capping his three seasons in Westwood (1961-64).
“He will be extremely proud because his time at UCLA is the greatest time of his life,” said Hazzard’s son, Rasheed. He and his mother, Walt’s widow Jalessa, accepted the HOF induction. “I like that he is going in as a player today, but he was a remarkable coach,” stressed Rasheed of his father, who later coached at UCLA (1984-88).
Tubby Smith “built a remarkable career spanning more than three decades and seven Division I programs.” He led five different programs, including Minnesota, to the NCAA Tournament and is on the very short list of Black head coaches to win a national title, which he did when he led Kentucky to the 1998 national championship in his first season at the school.
Ironically, Smith and former Minnesota Coach Clem Haskins both won national titles in the same season. Haskins won the first of Minnesota’s two NIT titles in 1998.
Smith was fired at Minnesota in 2013 after six seasons, the day after the team lost to Florida in the NCAA Tournament. He first learned his fate on ESPN’s Bottom Line the night before he was canned. He went on to coach at three more schools.
“I know it’d be a challenge” coming to Dinkytown, Smith pointed out, but he bought then-Minnesota AD Joel Maturi’s sales pitch to leave Kentucky. Maturi, by the way, didn’t fire the HOF coach. “I think people don’t realize that we won 24 games my last year, beat UCLA and lost to Florida.”
But we never heard a negative word from Smith in the aftermath of his disingenuous firing.
“Being a Black coach … he’s always trying to be presentable, trying to make sure he was a great example, especially for people of color,” stressed Saul Smith, one of Tubby’s three sons. Smith also has a daughter. “For the younger generations to see that someone of color that can make it this far and achieve the achievement, being inducted to the Hall of Fame, it gives kids hope, just something to look forward to. He made it from a small town in Maryland, and now he’s a national champion, he’s a Hall of Famer.”
Smith told me that he heard from several former Gophers who played for him such as Andre Hollins and Austin Hollins (no relation) in the days leading up to last week’s induction. Minnesota also placed a congratulatory ad in the induction ceremony program.
Coach Smith told this longtime Gopher beat writer, “Do let the people back in Minneapolis, back in Minnesota, we loved it there. We really appreciate you being here covering this great honor, this celebration, and this induction.”
Glen Rice “is one of the greatest scorers in college basketball history.” He led the University of Michigan to the 1989 national championship, one of the most improbable runs in college hoops history. The Flint native scored a tournament-record 184 points in six NCAA games, including 31 points in the overtime title game against Seton Hall, and won Most Outstanding Player.
“We realized that we had all the tools to win the national championship. We just had to go out there and play much harder than we did in the regular season,” recalled Rice. He earlier said at the press conference, “I give a lot of the credit to my coaches and teammates” who put their trust in him that he indeed could lead the Wolverines to cut down the nets after the title game.
The other three inductees were Ted Owens, 97, who coached at Kansas for 19 years; Jay Wright, who won two NCAA titles as Villanova coach in 2016 and 2018; and Danny Ainge, who scored at least 2,500 points at BYU before there was a three-point line.
The National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame is housed within the College Basketball Experience, an interactive fan destination where visitors can explore hands-on exhibits and learn about the college game’s history and traditions. Our first time there last week was a memorable one. More on our time in Kansas City in next week’s MSR.
Charles Hallman welcomes reader responses at challman@spokesman-recorder.com.
Copyright © Charles Hallman