PRINTER'S NO. 3967
No. 791 Session of 2008
INTRODUCED BY CONKLIN, DONATUCCI, JAMES, PYLE, WANSACZ, BRENNAN,
GEORGE, MENSCH, BAKER, DALEY, SOLOBAY, RUBLEY, HESS, MAHONEY,
SWANGER, CLYMER, SEIP, CALTAGIRONE, BEAR, KULA, HANNA,
MILLARD, PARKER, GOODMAN, KORTZ, VULAKOVICH, YOUNGBLOOD,
HERSHEY, SIPTROTH, K. SMITH, THOMAS, SAINATO, GIBBONS,
WOJNAROSKI, SANTONI, GRUCELA, KIRKLAND, SAYLOR, QUINN,
SCAVELLO, PALLONE, READSHAW, MOYER, O'NEILL AND PHILLIPS,
JUNE 18, 2008
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
JUNE 18, 2008
A RESOLUTION
1 Memorializing Dr. James Naismith.
2 WHEREAS, Dr. James Naismith, who wanted to create a game of
3 skill instead of one that relied solely on strength, invented
4 the Game of Basketball at the Young Men's Christian Association
5 (YMCA) in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1891; and
6 WHEREAS, Prior to inventing the game, he was both an athlete
7 and a scholar, excelling in lacrosse, rugby and gymnastics,
8 while earning a medical degree with a primary interest in sports
9 physiology and becoming a Presbyterian minister with a keen
10 interest in philosophy and healthy living; and
11 WHEREAS, To the dismay of his instructors and colleagues, Dr.
12 Naismith continued his involvement with sports after graduation
13 and ignored their advice that he leave the athletic life behind
14 to devote himself to books and other Christian pursuits; and
1 WHEREAS, This fresh perspective on the role of athletics in
2 life led him to the YMCA in 1890; and
3 WHEREAS, Not long after inventing the game of basketball, Dr.
4 Naismith moved to the University of Kansas in 1898, where he
5 became a professor of physical education and an athletic
6 director and introduced the game of basketball and became the
7 school's first head basketball coach; and
8 WHEREAS, The Canadian-born doctor later served twice in
9 military conflict, including in France during World War I, and
10 eventually became a United States citizen in 1925; and
11 WHEREAS, Dr. Naismith's gift of the game of basketball was
12 then added as an Olympic sport at the 1936 Berlin games, during
13 which, as a tribute to him, he tossed the first ball for the
14 first game; and
15 WHEREAS, Only three years after this crowning achievement,
16 Dr. Naismith died from a heart attack, leaving behind five
17 children and many grandchildren; and
18 WHEREAS, Dr. Naismith is a member of the Naismith Memorial
19 Basketball Hall of Fame, the International Basketball Hall of
20 Fame, the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame, the Canadian Olympic
21 Hall of Fame, the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, the Ontario
22 Sports Legends Hall of Fame, the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame, the
23 McGill University Sports Hall of Fame and the Kansas Sports Hall
24 of Fame; and
25 WHEREAS, The communities of Springfield, Massachusetts, and
26 Lawrence, Kansas, honor the memory of Dr. Naismith with streets
27 and buildings that bear his name; and
28 WHEREAS, Most individuals involved in basketball acknowledge
29 that his is the greatest coaching legacy in basketball history,
30 one that continues to grow and influence the sport today; and
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1 WHEREAS, Dr. Naismith coached Forrest "Phog" Allen, his
2 successor at the University of Kansas, who went on to become one
3 of the most successful coaches in college basketball history,
4 and he coached Adolph Rupp and Dean Smith, two more of the most
5 successful college basketball coaches, who won a combined total
6 of six National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) national
7 championships; and
8 WHEREAS, Adolph Rupp coached Pat Riley, one of the greatest
9 coaches in National Basketball Association (NBA) history, who
10 coached five NBA championship teams; and
11 WHEREAS, Dean Smith coach Larry Brown, who won an NCAA
12 national championship with the University of Kansas in 1988 and
13 an NBA championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004, Roy
14 Williams, who won an NCAA national championship with the
15 University of North Carolina in 2005, and Michael Jordan,
16 arguably the greatest basketball player in history; and
17 WHEREAS, The countless number of basketball hoops and nets
18 affixed to garages, barns and poles in driveways, yards and
19 streets and affixed in playgrounds, gymnasiums and stadiums
20 around the world will serve as a constant reminder to future
21 generations of the great legacy of Dr. Naismith; therefore be it
22 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives memorialize Dr.
23 James Naismith, the inventor of the Game of Basketball, a
24 successful scholar and athlete and the owner of the greatest
25 coaching legacy in the sport's history; and be it further
26 RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to
27 Stewart Naismith, grandson of Dr. James Naismith, at 23
28 Riverview Road, Binghamton, New York 13901.
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