HR0570 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0570 LRB103 38869 MST 69006 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Zion Mayor Billy McKinney on becoming the first Northwestern men's basketball player to have his jersey number retired; and

WHEREAS, Mayor McKinney is considered by many to be the best player in Northwestern history; and

WHEREAS, Mayor McKinney scored 1,900 career points, a school record that stood for 35 years, and led the Wildcats in scoring each season of his collegiate career; his 768 made field goals still stand as the program's all-time record; he earned All-Big Ten recognition in all of his four seasons and garnered First Team All-Conference and All-America honors as a senior when he averaged 21.3 points per game; a Wildcat has not made 17 or more field goal attempts in a game since he posted 37 points against Notre Dame in 1974; he was named the first three-time team MVP in program history from 1975-77, under head coach Tex Winter, who would later be the long-time assistant coach of the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers; and

WHEREAS, Mayor McKinney played eight years in the NBA (1978-85) with the Kansas City Kings, Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets, San Diego Clippers, and Chicago Bulls; he was nicknamed The Crazed Hummingbird and still holds the NBA rookie record for most made field goals without a miss; and

WHEREAS, Mayor McKinney served as an executive and scout in NBA front offices for over 30 years; while working as a Bulls scout, he was the only scout to watch Scottie Pippen play in Arkadelphia, Ark., guiding the team to trade for Pippen in 1987 and form one of the NBA's greatest dynasties with Michael Jordan; he was the first African-American front office executive in franchise history; and

WHEREAS, Mayor McKinney became the first general manager of the expansion Minnesota Timberwolves in 1992 and later worked as GM for the Detroit Pistons and the WNBA's Seattle Storm; as the director of scouting for the Milwaukee Bucks, he was instrumental in drafting Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2013; and

WHEREAS, Mayor McKinney has served as the mayor of his hometown, Zion, since 2019; his family planted roots in Zion in the summer of 1962, and he attended Elmwood Elementary School, Central Middle School, and Zion-Benton Township High School, where he was a 1973 Honor Roll student and graduate; and

WHEREAS, Mayor McKinney is still heavily involved with the Northwestern men's program and is the team's radio color analyst; the Northwestern University Department of Athletics and Recreation annually presents The Billy McKinney Award to the male student-athlete who has exhibited exemplary leadership qualities; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Zion Mayor Billy McKinney on becoming the first Northwestern men's basketball player to have his jersey number retired; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Mayor McKinney as a symbol of our respect and esteem.