The History of Naismith Awards
Each year, the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s board of selectors narrows the pre-season watch list comprised of 50 players to 30 then chooses the four finalists who will make up the final ballot. The board, comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country, base its criteria on player performance for the season.
| The Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T is awarded annually to the Men’s and Women’s college players of the year. |
| Named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, founder of the game of basketball, the first Trophy was awarded to UCLA’s Lew Alcindor, later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, in 1969. |
| The women’s player of the year award was first given to Anne Donovan of Old Dominion University in 1983. |
| The Atlanta Tipoff Club established the Outstanding Contribution Award in 1982 to honor those individuals who have had a positive impact on the game of basketball. |
| Established in 1987, the Naismith Men’s College Coach of the Year Award and the Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year Award were originally given to the coaches of the men’s and women’s NCAA Division I Tournament champions. In 1989, the governing board changed the selection criteria to the voting process used today. |
| Each year, the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s board of selectors first votes to compile a top-25 list of coaches for each award. Then, through additional votes, the list is narrowed down to four and finally to the national winner. |
Also in 1987, to honor the nation’s best male and female high school basketball players, the Naismith Trophy Male High School Player of the Year and the Naismith Trophy Female High School Player of the Year were established.
- Each honor is selected annually by the Atlanta Tipoff Club board of selectors. The board votes to compile a top-10 list of players from across the country for both awards. The winners are then selected by a board vote.
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The national Naismith awards recognizes the top national, regional and local players, coaches, officials and administrators who have displayed excellence and outstanding achievement in basketball. Winners are honored for the following awards:
- Men’s and Women’s College Player of the Year
- Men’s and Women’s College Coach of the Year
- Men’s and Women’s College Official of the Year
- Men’s and Women’s Outstanding Contributor to Basketball
- National Male and Female High School Player of the Year
- National Male and Female High School Coach of the Year
- Miss Georgia and Mr. Georgia Basketball
- Metro Atlanta High School Boy’s and Girl’s Player of the Year
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Fan Voting
The Naismith Awards have the most fan interaction.
- Fan voting, through the power and ease of text messaging, will account for 25 percent of the selection process. This program sets the standard in college athletics for integrating fans into the voting process and providing them with more input than with any other major collegiate sports award.
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