SEC. 2. Findings.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) On December 21, 1891, a young physical education instructor named James Naismith, introduced the game of “basket ball” to his physical education class, in Springfield, Massachusetts.
(2) In 1959, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame was founded and dedicated to the game’s creator Dr. James Naismith, in Springfield, MA, “The Birthplace of Basketball” and became the first and only museum to honor the game at all levels around the world.
(3) The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame honors players who have achieved greatness, exemplary coaches, referees and other major contributors to the sport of basketball. The Inaugural Hall of Fame Class of 1959 had seventeen honorees who were inducted, including Dr. James Naismith, George Mikan, Forrest C. Allen, Angelo Luisetti, Original Celtics and First Team.
(4) The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is recognized throughout the world as the premier institution entrusted with recording and disseminating the history of the game of basketball and recognizing and honoring the achievements of its greatest players, coaches, and contributors.
(5) The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame provides an entertaining, enriching experience and is known for its educational outreach programs and celebrates and promotes positive core values demonstrated by basketball’s hallowed heroes and its founder.
(6) Basketball is one of America’s national treasures, with its fast pace which reflects the freedom of expression and the modern experience of life in the 21st century.
(7) Since its opening in 1959, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is home to the largest collection of basketball memorabilia in the world, including more than 30,000 three-dimensional objects, 800,000 photographs, and 1.5 million documents.
(8) The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame welcomes more than 6 million visitors interested in discovering the rich history of the game through its stories, its personalities, and its most celebrated moments.
(9) The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame reaches over 7 million Americans through its educational programs, events, exhibits, social media, and its interactive website.
(10) The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s customized educational programs use basketball to teach young students around the world the important lessons on a variety of topics including: financial literacy, mathematics, civil rights, leadership of character, women’s and men’s history, and geography.
(11) The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame will lead the celebration of the 60th Anniversary of Basketball and will partner with a select group of constituents including the National Basketball Association, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and USA Basketball in commemorating the game throughout the 2019–2020 basketball season.