Jim Valvano, former Rutgers guard, elected to Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame

Jerry Carino, Asbury Park Press
·2 min read
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Jim Valvano, who played point guard at Rutgers and later rose to fame as a coach and cancer crusader, has been elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Valvano will be enshrined as a contributor, the Hall of Fame announced Saturday. Enshrinement will take place Aug. 12 in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Born in Queens and raised on Long Island, Valvano played guard at Rutgers from 1964-67 and made his presence felt with his defensive savvy and his outsized personality, leading the team in song on every bus trip. As a senior in 1967 he paired with All-America guard Bob Lloyd to lead the Scarlet Knights to the NIT semifinals – at a time when the NIT was still a big deal and loaded with quality teams.

Back then, only 37 teams got into the postseason (23 in the NCAAs, 14 in the NIT). Rutgers lost that NIT semi to Southern Illinois and a guard by the name of Walt Frazier (Valvano scored 24 points on 11 of 16 shooting). For the 1966-67 season, Valvano averaged 18 points and shot 52 percent from the field. He graduated that spring with a degree in English.

Head coach Jim Valvano of the North Carolina State Wolfpack celebrates with his team after the Wolfpack defeated the Houston Cougars 54-52 in the NCAA men''s basketball championship game at University Arena in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Head coach Jim Valvano of the North Carolina State Wolfpack celebrates with his team after the Wolfpack defeated the Houston Cougars 54-52 in the NCAA men''s basketball championship game at University Arena in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Of course, Valvano is widely known for coaching N.C. State to the 1983 NCAA Tournament title, which ended with a stunning upset of Houston on a buzzer-beating dunk. After winning four ACC titles at N.C. State and 346 games overall (including stints at Johns Hopkins, Bucknell and Iona), Valvano became a commentator on ESPN.

His iconic “Don't Ever Give Up” speech shortly before his 1993 death of glandular cancer at age 47 sparked a movement that has raised hundreds of millions of dollars for the V Foundation for cancer research, which was chaired for many years by Lloyd.

In 2017 Rutgers named the floor at College Avenue Gym “Jimmy V. Court," and there is a mural featuring him at Jersey Mike's Arena.

Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996 and the college basketball beat since 2003. He is an Associated Press Top 25 voter. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Rutgers grad Jim Valvano elected to Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame