The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, honors players who have shown exceptional skill at basketball, all-time great coaches, referees, and other major contributors to the sport. It is named after James Naismith, who conceived the sport in 1891; he was inducted into the Hall as a contributor in 1959. To be considered for induction, nominees must meet certain prerequisites. Players must have been retired for at least three years before becoming eligible. Referees must have either been retired for at least three years, or, if they are still active, have officiated for at least 25 years at high-school-level programs or higher. Coaches must have either been retired for at least three years, or, if they are still active, have coached for at least 25 years at high-school-level programs or higher and from 2020 on must have coached for at least 25 years and reached the age of sixty years. Those being considered for induction as contributors may be inducted at any time; the Hall of Fame and its committees evaluate whether contributions are significant enough for the nominee to be inducted as a contributor. Teams are also inducted at the committees' discretion. Members Coaches As part of the inaugural class of 1959, three coaches were inducted (Forrest C. "Phog" Allen, Henry Clifford Carlson and Walter E. Meanwell); in total, 100 coaches have been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Ten of the inducted coaches were born outside the United States: Cesare Rubini (Italy, 1994), Alexander Gomelsky (Soviet Union, now Russia, 1995), Antonio Díaz-Miguel (Spain, 1997), Aleksandar "Aca" Nikolić (Yugoslavia, now Serbia, 1998), Geno Auriemma (Italy, 2006), Alessandro "Sandro" Gamba (Italy, 2006), Mirko Novosel (Yugoslavia, now Croatia, 2007), Pedro Ferrándiz (Spain, 2007), Lidia Alexeeva (Soviet Union, now Russia, 2012), and Lindsay Gaze (Australia, 2015). Six of them have won championships in the EuroLeague or its historic predecessor, the FIBA European Champions Cup. Ten of the inducted coaches are women: L. Margaret Wade (1985), Jody Conradt (1998), Pat Head Summitt (2000), Sandra Kay Yow (2002), Sue Gunter (2005), Cathy Rush (2008), C. Vivian Stringer (2009), Tara VanDerveer (2011), Alexeeva (2012), and Sylvia Hatchell (2013). Five coaches have also been inducted as players: John Wooden, Bill Sharman, Lenny Wilkens, Tom Heinsohn, and Bill Russell. The most recent coaches to be inducted are Tom Izzo and John McLendon; the latter, inducted as a contributor in 1979, is the first