Wisconsin inducted an entirely new Hall of Fame class for 2025, and as you would expect, it was full of notable names. Maybe none more known than Frank Kaminsky III, one of the best basketball stars in Wisconsin history. He went on to the NBA, where he has been bouncing around ever since.
Kaminsky played a star role in Wisconsin's deepest run in basketball history, making it to the National Championship game. That year, he won the Wooden Award, which is presented annually to the outstanding collegiate basketball player of the year. Kaminsky also won the Naismith College Player of the Year award the same year.
He is well-deserving of the huge honor of being in the Wisconsin Hall of Fame, and he included some incredible quotes in his speech and subsequent interviews.
Frank Kaminsky III is now in the Wisconsin Athletics Hall of Fame
The quote in the social media post above is so good in its own right, but Frank continues, "Being a Badger meant showing up every day and grinding no matter how you felt, what the scoreboard said, or whether anyone was watching. And let's be honest, early on, not many people were watching me. I was tall and skinny, trying to find my footing. I was not exactly the handsome man you see here tonight...When you wore that Wisconsin jersey, you represented something real.”
Kaminsky represented and still represents Wisconsin incredibly well. He is a spokesperson and a champion for the university, and his words ring out to the Wisconsin fanbase and the recruiting world, as others consider the opportunity to step onto the University of Wisconsin campus as a student-athlete.
In an interview with Karley Marotta, Kaminsky was emotional as he described Wisconsin and the opportunity to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. He said that while I knew this honor was going to come eventually, it didn't make it any less special.
Congrats to big Frank. On Wisconsin!