JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville University announced Wednesday that it is commissioning a permanent statue of basketball legend and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Artis Gilmore.
The gift will support a range of campaign initiatives and continues a long history of Nimnicht family philanthropy at the university, including namesakes on campus and family-funded scholarships.
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Gilmore, known as the “A-Train,” was the driving force behind JU’s run to the 1970 NCAA championship game and helped the Dolphins finish 27-2 that season. His college rebounding average of 22.7 per game remains the highest in NCAA Division I history. After leaving JU, Gilmore played 17 seasons in the ABA and NBA and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011.
“Jacksonville University has given me so much — a place to grow, a team to believe in, and a community that never stopped believing in me,” Gilmore said. “Those years as a Dolphin shaped everything that came after. This is where my heart is. To know that a piece of that will live on permanently on this campus is something I never could have imagined, and I am truly humbled by it.”
Gilmore has remained closely connected to the university, serving as special assistant to the president and as an ambassador for the school and the city of Jacksonville.
“In 92 years, Jacksonville University has honored only one person with a permanent statue on this campus, our matriarch Dr. Frances Bartlett Kinne, and now we are proud to add a second, the greatest JU student‑athlete ever, Artis Gilmore,” Jacksonville University President Tim Cost said. “He elevated this university onto the national stage as a student‑athlete and has remained a treasured ambassador for our institution for more than five decades. Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of Lee and Becky Nimnicht, future generations of Dolphins will always know his legacy.”
Lee Nimnicht, a 1990 Jacksonville University graduate, has been a longtime supporter of the school. The Nimnicht name appears across campus, including the Billy Nimnicht Jr. Court inside Swisher Gymnasium and the Nimnicht Fitness Center, and the family has established scholarships that have benefited many students. Nimnicht’s son, Lee Nimnicht Jr., is currently a JU student and a graduate assistant in the athletics department.
“Jacksonville University has been a part of my family for as long as I can remember, and that connection only deepens with time,” Lee Nimnicht said. “Artis Gilmore is the reason so many people first heard the name Jacksonville University. He helped put Jacksonville on the map, and we are proud to play a role in honoring his legacy in this way.”
The bronze sculpture will be created by Hanlon Sculpture Studio, led by master sculptor Brian Hanlon. Based in Toms River, New Jersey, Hanlon is the official sculptor of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and has completed more than 550 permanent installations worldwide, including tributes to Shaquille O’Neal, Dominique Wilkins and Charles Barkley.