Springfield, Mass. – The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced today that it will become the new host of the Nancy Lieberman Award, which was created and managed by the Rotary Club of Detroit since the award’s inception.
“The Hall of Fame is truly honored to be a part of the Nancy Lieberman Award,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. “Nancy has done remarkable things for the game of basketball and we look forward to honoring a student-athlete that epitomizes her same work ethic and dedication.”
Established in 1999 by The Rotary Club of Detroit, the award will continue to bear Nancy Lieberman’s name and carry forward The Rotary Club of Detroit’s legacy. The award recognizes the nation’s top collegiate point guard in women’s Division I basketball. The criteria for the award are the floor leadership, play-making and ball-handling skills that personified Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman during her career. The award is entering its 15th year.
“From day one, we have seen ourselves as caretakers of this award, nurturing, protecting and developing it so that it can provide proper honor to the leaders of the women’s game on a national scale,” said The Nancy Lieberman Award co-chair Chris Flynn. “The time has come to see the award go to the next level. We recognize that the most appropriate place for The Nancy Lieberman Award is with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. We thank Nancy for lending her name for the award and setting the bar of excellence for others to strive for in the point guard role. A special thank you also goes to Maggie Allesee and Devin Scillian for their generosity and commitment to the award since the very beginning.”
“I'm so grateful for The Rotary Club of Detroit’s vision and passion to create and nurture The Nancy Lieberman Award since its inception,” said Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman. “It has been my honor to work shoulder to shoulder with my friend Chris Flynn and thank him for all his hard work and love for the growth of the award. I am honored that it will be in the greatest home of all, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame."
Previous winners of the Nancy Lieberman Award include last year’s recipient Skylar Diggins (Notre Dame), Courtney Vandersloot (Gonzaga), Andrea Riley (Oklahoma State), Renee Montgomery (Connecticut), Kristi Toliver (Maryland), Lindsey Harding (Duke), Ivory Latta (North Carolina), Temeka Johnson (LSU), Diana Taurasi (Connecticut) and Sue Bird (Connecticut).
About the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame:
Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was invented, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame promotes and preserves the game of basketball at every level – professional, collegiate and high school, for both men and women on the global stage.
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