The National Federation of High Schools recently inducted the newest class to the National High School Hall of Fame. Among the inductees were NFL Hall of Fame members Walter Payton and Thurman Thomas.
The National High School Hall of Fame is the greatest individual honor a high school athlete can receive, according to Bruce Howard, the NFHS Director of the Hall of Fame. The Hall has been selecting honorees since 1982 and has honored nearly 500 athletes, coaches, referees, administrators, contributors and artists.
Among the members include MLB legend Jackie Robinson, NBA Hall of Fame forward Larry Bird and current Memphis State coach Anfernee Hardaway.
However, while the Hall of Fame members are certainly worthy, it's interesting to note the many outstanding athletes who are not members of the Hall of Fame.
First, it should be noted that the NFHS has a panel that selects the inductees from a list of nominees. The nominees are produced by the state association, coaches, high schools and anyone who might be associated with high school sports. So the selection process sort of works like the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Celebrities only get their star on the walk of fame after they have been nominated by someone. Likewise, the NFHS cannot vote to induct someone into the National High School Hall of Fame if they have not been nominated.
That being said, here's our list of 12 athletes who should be in the National High School Hall of Fame.
LeBron James, cheering on son Bronny, is one of the greatest prep basketball players in history and deserving of being inducted in the National High School Hall of Fame.
File photo by Scott Reed
The idea that Jordan was cut from his high school team and that he was a relative unknown in high school is stuff of legend. In fact, Jordan was recruited by North Carolina, one of the top college programs in the nation, after his junior season and he was an All-American his senior year. He went on to score a record 30 points in the 1981 McDonald's All-American game, a record that stood for 18 years.
Emmitt Smith, Escambia (Pensacola, Fla.)
Smith was seen as the heir apparent to Ken Hall (a Hall of Fame member) as the nation's all-time leading rusher following a spectacular junior season in 1985. Although an ankle injury slowed him down his senior season, he still finished his career as the nation's second all-time leading rusher (he's currently 33rd) and earned USA Today player of the year honors. He became the NFL's all-time leading rusher, surpassing Payton, a 2022 Hall of Fame inductee.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lew Alcindor), Power Memorial (New York)
Described as even better than Wilt Chamberlain as a prep, Abdul-Jabbar (known then as Lew Alcindor) led Power Memorial to a pair of city championships, two national championships and 71 straight wins. He was the first athlete to earn Parade All-American honors for three years.
LeBron James, St. Vincent-St. Mary (Akron, Ohio)
Perhaps the most hyped basketball player since Alcindor, James was also a three-time Parade All-American and a two-time national player of the year. He led St. Vincent-St. Mary to a national championship and he went on to be the No. 1 pick in the 2003 NBA draft right out of high school.
Kobe Bryant, Lower Merion (Ardmore, Pa.)
Besides leading his team to its first state championship in 53 years, Bryant also earned multiple All-American and player of the year honors, finishing as the all-time leading scorer in Southeastern Pennsylvania ahead of Chamberlain. He went into the NBA right out of high school and was the 13th player chosen in the 1996 draft.
Alex Rodriguez, Westminster Christian (Miami)
Rodriguez hit the trifecta as a high school athlete leading the Warriors to a national championship as a junior, he was named national player of the year by USA Today as a senior and was the No. 1 pick in the Major League Baseball Draft.
Ken Griffey Jr., Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati)
As a 17-year-old senior, Griffey Jr. became the first player to be drafted No. 1 overall in the MLB Draft who was also the son of a former (or in Griffey's case "current" player). He was a Rawlings All-American as a senior and he reached the Major Leagues by the time he was 19.
Wilt Chamberlain, Overbrook (Philadelphia)
Sure Chamberlain was an All-American and once scored 90 points as a prep, but his true dominance in high school showed when the NBA changed its draft rules because of him. Eddie Gottlieb, owner of the Philadelphia Warriors, was hoping the Overbrook grad would stay close to home so he could use a
territorial draft pick to select him out of college. When Chamberlain decided to attend Kansas, Gottlieb got the NBA to extend the rules governing territorial draft picks to include high schools as well.
Peyton Manning, Newman (New Orleans)
Long before Newman's Arch Manning was earning the reputation as the top quarterback prospect in the country, his uncle was doing the same. The Gatorade National Player of the Year and considered one of the 50 greatest Parade All-Americans, Manning was selected as the greatest all-time high school player by MaxPreps in
2015.
Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Everett (Lansing, Mich.)
Johnson is one of three basketball players to win a high school state championship, an NCAA championship, an NBA title and an Olympic gold medal. The other two? Jerry Lucas and Quinn Buckner, both of whom are National High School Hall of Fame members. Johnson also won a high school, NCAA and NBA crown over the course of four seasons.
Joe Mauer, Cretin-Derham Hall (St. Paul, Minn.)
Mauer accomplished something that no other high school athlete has done. The likely future Hall of Fame catcher was named the USA Today football player of the year as a quarterback and he was the USA Today baseball player of the year.
Tiger Woods, Western (Anaheim, Calif.)
Before he went on to win 15 Majors at the professional level, Woods was dominating at the high school level. He won four Orange League titles, including one his senior year by 20 strokes. He also won three Southern Section titles and three Junior PGA championships all while in high school. He went on to Stanford where he was teammates with New Mexico's Notah Begay, who is also a 2022 Hall of Fame inductee.
