Former University of Houston Coach Guy V. Lewis was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Sunday.
NBA and college basketball royalty made their way inside the 100-year-old Symphony Hall in Springfield, Massachusetts, to witness the 2013 Hall of Fame class become enshrined.
Houston basketball icons Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and Elvin Hayes were there to witness the coach who helped develop them into hall-of-famers.
Lewis' reign over UH basketball lasted three decades, from 1956 to 1986. He produced nearly 600 wins and 27 consecutive winning seasons, including five NCAA Final Four appearances.
He's also credited with recruiting African American players to Houston well before the Civil Rights era, one being Elvin Hayes, who spoke on his behalf.
"This is a great class tonight, and I just want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart," Hayes said. "And I know Coach will say, from the bottom of his heart, will say, 'Thank you.'"
"Yes," Lewis said.
One thing echoed by Olajuwon, Drexler and Hayes is that Coach Lewis should have been inducted decades ago. But he is there now, and he will remain there forever.
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