Friends of Basketball

Dr. Tim Nugent

Year Inducted: 2019

Category: Friends of Basketball

Schools / Organizations: The University of Illinois

Biography: Dr. Tim Nugent spent his life advocating for accessibility. Tim was the founder of The University of Illinois Wheelchair Basketball Program.  Illinois was the first college in the United States to establish a wheelchair basketball squad, known as the “Gizz Kids”.  Tim initiated the program in 1948 and the U of I team hosted the first US Wheelchair Basketball Tournament in April of 1949.  In 1970, the U of I formed the Ms. Kids, the first women’s wheelchair basketball team in the country.  Dr. Tim Nugent was inducted into the IBCA posthumously.  He passed away on November 11, 2015 at the age of 92.