Lansing Hall induction has extra meaning to Izzo: 'The city has embraced me'

Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo's resume certainly speaks for itself.

Eight Final Fours. Multiple Big Ten championships. Numerous NBA players developed. National champion.

But the impact Izzo has had on the Greater Lansing community as a whole may be his most lasting legacy. And that impact will be honored when Izzo enters the Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame as part of the 2026 class.

Izzo will be one of seven individuals and one team inducted on Thursday, Aug. 20, at the Lansing Center.

"That's what means the most. It's amazing that I was an outsider coming in here and the city has embraced me," Izzo said. "It isn't just your school, it's the people and the community you live in, so it really does mean a lot more to me in a lot of ways, and I'm honored and excited to be a part of it."

When Izzo and his Spartans captured the 2000 national championship, he made sure that the ensuing parade went through all of Lansing to allow everyone in the surrounding area the chance to celebrate the accomplishment.

At many levels, whether it be the annual preseason Midnight Madness event at the Breslin Center, the Spartans participating every summer in the Moneyball Pro-Am or the popular annual Izzo 5K event that he runs with his wife, Lupe, Izzo has always made the Greater Lansing community a priority.

"I've always been big on telling our players to represent your community, and that's what I think the obligation of a player is," Izzo said. "It's for the little kids who get the chance to interact with our players, and for us it's about signing autographs, taking pictures and giving back to the community. If I can give a 20-something year-old that lesson at that age, chances are very good that he'll maintain that way the rest of his life."

Izzo is no stranger to hall of fame ceremonies — he was inducted into the prestigious Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016 — but this particular induction is special. The 2026 Greater Lansing Hall class also includes one of his former standout players in Denzel Valentine, and his brother, Drew Valentine, who was a graduate assistant coach with Izzo for two seasons.

And to take it even further, the Valentines' father, Carlton, who was inducted last year, was the first recruit that Izzo helped secure when he started as a graduate assistant at MSU under Jud Heathcote in the early 1980s. Izzo and the entire Valentine family have remained close, and now their relationship will add another unique element.

"It's hard to talk about myself, but to look at some of the people who have been in it, and with Denzel and Drew being part of the group going in, I think it's incredible," Izzo said. "I don't know how many people will be there, but with Denzel and the whole Valentine family being there and for what the whole family has meant to me, it's going to be a pretty exciting night."

Contact Nathaniel Bott at nbott@lsj.com and follow him on X @Nathaniel_Bott

50th Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Famecelebration

When: 4:30 p.m., Aug. 20

Where: Lansing Center

Tickets: Call (517) 484-0677 or email everyb21@gmail.com for information.

2026 inductees:  Dave Allen, John Holms, Tom Izzo, Debbie Kent, Cortney Scott, Denzel Valentine, Drew Valentine, 1999 Okemos softball

Sponsors: Dean Transportation, Shaheen Chevrolet/Cadillac, Dan Henry Distributing, One North Kitchen & Bar, ASAP Printing, Applegate Home Comfort, Magic Johnson Enterprises, Edward Jones Investments, Gregory Eaton Associates,  Roland Carter Enterprise, The Bleacher Denizen 

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Lansing Hall induction has extra meaning to Izzo: 'The city has embraced me'