HOF Players

Name: Isiah Thomas

Year Inducted: 1985

Category: Players

Schools / Organizations:
(Westchester) St. Joseph High School
Indiana University
NBA:  Detroit Pistons

Biography:  Isiah Thomas led (Westchester) St. Joseph High School to the Class AA state finals in 1978. He was an all-state selection in 1978-79, an all-America prep selection in 1979 and a member of the U.S. Pan-American gold medal winning team. A three-year all-conference selection Thomas was the Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year in 1979. Thomas continued his tremendous play for coach Bobby Knight at Indiana, leading the Hoosiers to Big Ten titles in 1980 and 1981. In 1981 Thomas led Indiana to the NCAA championship and he was chosen the most valuable player in the NCAA tournament. He was named to the 1980 United States Olympic team in 1980 – the boycott year. Drafted by the Detroit Pistons in 1981 he is the only player in NBA history to be named an All-star in his first four years. In 1984 he was the most valuable player in the All-Star game. He was an all-NBA first team selection in 1984 as he led the Pistons to a playoff berth.  Isiah continued to play through the end of the 1993-94 season.  For his career, he scored 18,822 points (best in Pistons history), gave out 9,061 assists (3rd in NBA history at the time of his retirement), and grabbed 1,861 steals (5^th in NBA history at the time of his retirement).  After playing, he has been a coach in the NBA and collegiate ranks, an announcer, a entrepreneur, and a philanthropist.  He was inducted into the Indiana University Hall of Fame in 1993.  In 1999, Isiah became the first African American selected for a seat on the Chicago Board of Trade, which he held until 2002.   In 2000, his first year of eligibility, he was selected for the Naismith Hall of Fame.  In 2006, he entered the Collegiate Hall of Fame.  His generosity and community service earned a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Legacy Award in 2012. 

Name: Thomas Payne

Year Inducted: 1985

Category: Players

Schools / Organizations:
Quincy High School
The University of Iowa

Biography:  Tom Payne was a three-year player for Quincy High School and as a sophomore, was a member of the 1952 Blue Devil team which took the fabled Hebron team into overtime before the Green Giants took a 64-59 championship win. Payne led Quincy in scoring and rebounding as both a junior and a senior. The Blue Devils lost in 1953 quarterfinals to the second-place Chicago DuSable 80-66. Payne scored 52 points in two state tourney games. Payne was an all-state selection by the Chicago Daily News, Chicago American and the Champaign News-Gazette. Payne played three seasons at the University of Iowa for Bucky O’Connor. Tom Payne averaged 20 points and 14.5 rebounds. Payne’s son Michael was an all-American high school player at Quincy and played on the second-place team of 1979 and championship team of 1981, before attending Iowa and playing four seasons and entering the IBCA Hall of Fame in 1986. Tom Payne died of cancer in June of 1984.

Name: Bob Schaulat

Year Inducted: 1985

Category: Players

Schools / Organizations:
Collinsville High School
Washington University (St. Louis)

Biography:  Bob Schaulat had a great career as a high school basketball player at Collinsville. Schaulat set the scoring record for a single game in the Kahoks’ old gymnasium of 41 points. Schaulat was named to the Chicago Daily News all-state first team. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch named Schaulat the St. Louis area player of the year. Schaulat owns the second highest per game average in Kahoks history. Schaulat continued his basketball career at Washington University where he captained the squad.  Bob passed away on September 17, 2009.

Name: Joe Nehls

Year Inducted: 1985

Category: Players

Schools / Organizations:
(Hinsdale) Central High School
University of Arizona

Biography:  Joe Nehls is one of the greatest basketball players produced at Hinsdale Central. Nehls warmed up for his senior year by being named to the DeKalb Holiday all-tourney team and gaining honorable mention in West Suburban Conference balloting as a junior. Nehls established an all-time Hinsdale Central single season scoring record as a senior with 607 points and led the West Suburban scoring parade. He was a unanimous all-conference selection and was named Suburban Life’s all-area Player of the Year, the Chicago Daily News’ all-state team and was accord all-area honors by the Suburban Trib and the Chicago Tribune. He graduated in 1976 as an honor student.

Nehls received a basketball scholarship to the University of Arizona where as a sophomore was the Western Athletic Conference’s sixth-leading scorer with a 14.5 average. In his junior season at Arizona his average climbed to 19.3 and he was the third leading scorer, now in the Pac-10. He hit 46 percent from the field and 89 percent from the free throw line and was named all-Pac-10. He was also cited for his academic and athletic achievements by the University of Arizona. As a senior Nehls was again all-Pac-10, the third leading scorer at 19.5 (.500FG and .890 FT). He won the Pac-10 Citizen Athlete award, was named Arizona’s senior athlete of the year, was honorable mention all-America. And again, Nehls was singled out for his academic and athletic achievement by Arizona. Nehls was drafted by the Houston Rockets.