Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame induction 'long time coming' for Purdue's Gene Keady

Purdue basketball legends “The Three Amigos” wouldn’t miss Saturday’s event in Springfield, Mass.

Troy Lewis, Todd Mitchell and Everette Stephens – three cornerstones of Gene Keady’s tenure in guiding Purdue’s program to tremendous success – are expected to watch their college coach inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

“It’s going to be awesome,” Mitchell said. “It’s going to be emotional. It’s going to be all that. I wouldn’t miss it for the world to see that. It’s a long time coming. I’ll be there cheering him on.”

Overdue is a common theme in discussing Keady’s journey to enshrinement in the prestigious Hall of Fame. Keady’s teams won six Big Ten championships and the 87-year-old native from Larnard, Kansas earned the league’s Coach of the Year honor seven times and was named National Coach of the Year on six occasions.

LONG WAIT

But Keady never took the Boilermakers to the Final Four. It’s probably one reason why his path to Springfield took so long since committee members opted to recognize those coaches who reached those accomplishments.

“I think it should’ve happened a long time ago,” said Lewis, who along with Mitchell and Stephens led the Boilermakers to Big Ten titles in 1987 and 1988. “All those things are predicated on making a Final Four and stuff like that, but like I tell people, it’s up to us players to make plays and get us there. We were well prepared. I’m happy to have a small part in him getting there.”

Lewis described Keady as hard-nosed, disciplined, funny and fair. A combination that led to a lot of victories.

“He knew how to get us ready to play,” the Anderson native said. “As a basketball player, that’s all you want – is to have someone to teach you the right way and you have a chance to win games and that’s exactly what happened.”

While Keady never reached the pinnacle of college coaching by reaching the Final Four and winning a national championship, his credentials are more than Hall of Fame worthy with 550 wins at Purdue and Western Kentucky and 17 NCAA tournament appearances with the Boilermakers.

However, the momentum for Keady to reach the Hall of Fame has been building during the last decade.  

“If somebody has those credentials, they are more apt to get in a lot sooner,” said Jerry Colangelo, chairman of the Naismith Hall of Fame since 2009 and former owner, head coach and executive in the NBA. “Even though the committee people turn over, it’s the same discussion in some ways – what is the criteria?

“We do not have criteria that says if you do this or if you do that, you’re qualified. If you don’t have it, you’re not qualified. We’re talking about the body of work and in his case, the body of work offset the fact that he didn’t have those credentials.”

Colangelo and Michigan State coach Tom Izzo will present Keady during this weekend’s ceremonies. Only previous Hall of Fame inductees are eligible to be presenters.

‘ON THE CUSP’

Colangelo, who was instrumental in USA Basketball’s return to world prominence, isn’t sure how many times Keady was up for nomination but acknowledged “he’s always been on the cusp.”

Keady finally earned enough support to join this year’s class, which features NBA greats Paul Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Dwayne Wade and five-time NBA championship coach Greg Popovich.

“He failed to get to the finish line in the last 10 years, but when he went through the first committee, there was more support this time than there had been in a long time,” said Colangelo, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2004.  

“He’s been close but no cigar until now. You can say better late than never. I’m just happy for him. You can say it’s overdue and it may be overdue but I’m thankful he’s getting this opportunity to be here and see it and be part of it.”

When Keady arrived in West Lafayette from Western Kentucky, the Boilermakers were coming off a Final Four appearance in 1980. But Indiana and coach Bob Knight still ruled the state and cast a shadow on Purdue and other Big Ten programs.

Keady wasn’t intimidated by Knight’s presence.

“I had been with Bobby on some other occasions, and I liked what he stood for,” Keady said. “He didn’t cheat. He coached hard. He was in a great league, and I wanted to be like that. I tried to copy it, but I didn’t quite get there.”

Keady’s style meshed well with the players he recruited. His roster wasn’t usually decorated with McDonald’s All-Americans but signed players who reflected his demeanor and philosophy.

“That’s a big testament to him as a coach making guys play together in a system, putting team first,” Mitchell said. “That was big and that’s how a lot of us operate today. So many of these guys are successful individuals because of the things they’ve learned from coach Keady.”

Izzo to present Keady at Hall of Fame