BEDFORD PARK, IL (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - For years, Illinois' basketball greats were honored in name only, but now the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association is partnering with the Wintrust Sports Complex and the Village of Bedford Park to house the Basketball Museum of Illinois.
“We are privileged to enter into a partnership with the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association that makes the Wintrust Sports Complex the “Official Home of the Basketball Museum of Illinois” and “Home to the Best Basketball Experience in Illinois,” said David R. Brady, Village of Bedford Park President, in a statement.
This partnership is a milestone achievement for the museum and its board members who have been searching for a physical location after attempts in Danville and Pontiac fell through.
The addition to Wintrust Sports Complex will honor the state's rich basketball history with a Hall of Fame for roughly 3,700 inductees and serve not only as a museum, but as an event center featuring a theater, basketball courts and interactive galleries.
Although there's no timeline for the addition's completion, organizers say some items will be put up in the coming weeks at the southwest suburban sports complex.
To help the project move forward, the IBCA tweeted a request for jerseys, letter jackets, shoes and game programs from previous decades.
Items can be donated by contacting Museum Board President Bruce Firchau at (312) 501-5174 or at Firchau@sbcglobal.net