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Date: 8/7/2023
SPRINGFIELD — With the National Basketball Hall of Fame’s 2023 Enshrinement Ceremony and weekend festivities nearing, the city is gearing up for a slam dunk of a weekend filled with drink, food and family fun.
Friday Aug. 11 and Saturday Aug. 12 are set to be filled with activities in the city — and at the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut — relating to enshrinement weekend as basketball legends Dirk Nowitzki, Dwyane Wade, Pau Gasol, Tony Parker and Gregg Popovich highlight inductees.
Starting on Aug. 11 for Hall of Fame activities is a day packed with celebration at Mohegan Sun. Tickets are already sold out for the main events for the day but the following day, on Aug. 12, action picks back up in Springfield and at the Hall of Fame.
Tickets for an autograph session at the Basketball Hall of Fame From 12-1:30 p.m. on Aug. 12 are still available at https://www.hoophall.com/events/enshrinement-2023/tickets/. The autograph session will feature five Hall of Famers: Artis Gilmore (class of 2011), Alonzo Mourning (2014), Gary Payton (2013), Sheryl Swoopes (2016) and Bill Walton (1993). Only 200 tickets are available in total and there is a maximum of one signed item per Hall of Famer.
The Enshrinement Ceremony itself comes later that night from 8-11 p.m. when the Hall of Fame class of 2023 will formally be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Limited tiered seating remains available and balcony seats have been sold out.
Coinciding with the slam dunk of a weekend are different Hall of Fame adjacent activities in the city over the weekend. One headliner for the weekend will be White Lion Brewing Company’s third annual Enshrinement Block Party at 1550 Main Street Plaza.
Special guest and arguably the greatest of all time of Western Massachusetts basketball player, Travis Best, will be on scene for the block party celebrating the weekend of hoops. Best was a Central High School graduate and was drafted into the NBA by the Indiana Pacers in 1995, which led to a 10 year career in the league.
The block party is divided into two days with Friday Aug. 11 from 6-9 p.m. being called “Pre-game” and Saturday Aug. 12 from 6-11 p.m. called “Tip-off.” Friday night will feature a tribute to 50 years of hip hop music by Pzo Pete, while Saturday will feature Springfield native and singer/songwriter Brandon Serafino, a spoken word from Aaron Joseph, salsa by Nector Garcia and Malado closing out the night with “R&B vibes.” Both days of the event are free to the public and in the event of inclement weather, Tower Square’s Center Court and White Lion Brewing space will be used.
White Lion President Ray Berry told Reminder Publishing the enshrinement centered block party event started in conversation with local NBA legend Best, who in the years prior to the coronavirus pandemic would host an annual event for people to be a part of enshrinement weekend festivities.
When the coronavirus pandemic started, it paused Best’s 10-year run, but moving out of the brief hiatus Best looked to White Lion for a new partnership in the same spirit of celebrating enshrinement weekend.
“At that time, we were just new to the downtown footprint, and he wanted to showcase what we were doing and felt there was no better way than to bring his annual event into the fold and fabric of White Lion,” Berry said. “He is the local greatest of all time basketball legend; he is the GOAT.”
Berry said that Best is an ambassador for the city of Springfield and the Western Massachusetts region and for years has been consistent in giving back to the city through his nonprofit, basketball camps and staying involved with the Greater Springfield area. He added the partnership was a win-win as Best and White Lion are both woven into the fabric of the community.
“The enshrinement Hall of Fame weekend highlights the city of Springfield, highlights the birthplace of basketball. He is a local basketball legend, so this is just an extension of what he does,” Berry said. “I think that the community recognizes Hall of Fame weekend and Travis is part of that Hall of Fame weekend fabric, and now White Lion is also part of that fabric.”
Berry called the economic boost the city sees from enshrinement weekend “incredible” and said with so much attention from around the globe on the weekend, Springfield is on full display.
“We have a lot of people traveling from outside in and when you have a groundswell of people like that they like to branch out and visit the local establishments so it’s a win-win for the city, it’s an economic win for small business, and we’re just happy to be one of the many businesses in the downtown fabric and the fabric throughout Springfield that will benefit from all the attention and great work the Hall of Fame does, the city of Springfield does to highlight this weekend occasion,” Berry said.
Springfield BID interim Director Michelle Grout spoke with Reminder Publishing about the financial boost the weekend brings into the city and some of the other events and activities going on during the weekend.
On Thursday, Aug. 10 at the Duryea Way Beer Garden an NBA photography exhibit with local photographer Chris Marion is slated from 4-7 p.m. Marion will be bringing his full display of NBA photography that he’s taken over the years. Marion will also feature images from the NBA’s 75th anniversary reunion.
Grout said this event will serve as a kick off for events and activities going on during enshrinement weekend. She added the Student Prince will be offering live music all weekend as well as its famed German cuisine. MGM will also be hosting another edition of free music Friday.
“Around the enshrinement there are lots of other activities for our guest and visitors to participate in beginning on Thursday rolling through,” Grout said.
Grout did add that while not advertised as involved with enshrinement weekend, comedy star Bill Burr is set to perform at the MassMutual Center on Aug. 12, the same night as the enshrinement ceremony. She also added there would be softer programming happened at different bars and clubs in the city.
When talking about the economic impact the enshrinement ceremony brings to the city, Grout said there are already more than 1,000 hotel rooms booked for the weekend bringing in upwards of 2,500-3,000 people to visit, participate and observe the enshrinement ceremony itself.
The star attraction will impact the audience draw, Grout said, and she added there will be a red-carpet event that is “of the caliber of the event” that will run down East Columbus Avenue all the way to Symphony Hall.
Grout said with the combination of enshrinement activities and Bill Burr, the city is gearing up for another big weekend of economic impact.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if this weekend brings in close to $1.5-$2 million,” Grout said. “Downtowns are destinations themselves and that’s what we’re built for. We have over 9,600 parking spaces, we are ready.”
Grout added she hopes when people visit downtown Springfield over the weekend they are “pleasantly surprised.”
“I hope they walk away saying, ‘wow, why haven’t I been here sooner. What can I do next?” Grout said. “If you’re coming for one thing, please stay and enjoy two, three other things. There’s so much to offer down here and I think when we do see a lot of new faces and get a lot of positive feedback, I really hope to reach a lot of the local community as well. Come down take a look, see what’s happening. It’s beautiful down here.”