Basketball Hall of Fame Back From Brink

Content originally posted by Sports Collectors Daily on March 30th, 2009.

Five years ago, the Basketball Hall of Fame's collection of memorabilia was valued at over $10 million.

Considering that much of what's inside the Springfield, MA facility was donated, It was never supposed to be sold. That was on the table, though, as late as February of this year. The Hall's income wasn't what it needed to be to remain successful and officials were scrambling to pay mounting bills.

Since then, staff has been eliminated. Pay for executives has been trimmed. At least one well-known donor came through with a check. They've now got enough working capital to stay open through the busy summer months and with an impressive class of 2009 Hall inductees expected to be announced Monday including Michael Jordan, David Robinson and John Stockton, things are looking up.

According to newspaper reports in Massachusetts, they hope that by the September induction ceremony, a long-term financial plan will be in place.

Still, there are plenty of obstacles for the Hall to overcome. Watch the story from WWLP-TV: