The Minnesota Basketball Coaches Association has named five men who will be inducted into the MBCA Hall of Fame on October 26. The purpose of the MBCA Hall of Fame is to give special recognition to the people of Minnesota who have made significant contributions to promote high school basketball in the state via their achievements and service.
The 2024 inductees are:
- Kris Fadness – Austin, Caledonia
- Jay Frydenlund – East Grand Forks
- Wade Grinde – Spring Grove
- Tom McDonald – Ely
- Neil Steffes – Fertile-Beltrami
The induction ceremonies will be held at the MBCA Hall of Fame Ceremony on Saturday, October 26, 2024, 2:00 p.m., at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Minneapolis. Ticket information will be available on the MBCA website: http://www.mshsca.org/boysbasketball.
Neil Steffes became the Head Boys Basketball coach at Fertile-Beltrami in 1993, and the 2024-25 season will be his 32nd season at the helm of the Falcons program. During his 31-year tenure at Fertile-Beltrami, the Falcons have won six Conference titles and Section Championships in 1995, 1996, 2001, and 2024. The 1996 squad finished runners-up to Mpls. North in the Sweet 16 tournament format, and the 2024 squad earned a Class A State tournament runners-up finish. Neil is a member of the 500 wins club with an overall record of 526-313. Coach Steffes has been named Conference Coach of the Year six times and Section 8A Coach of the Year four times. He is a past president, 2021-22, of the MBCA and has and continues to serve as 8A representative on the MBCA Executive Board. In addition to his leadership on the basketball court, Neil has also served as a football and track and field Coach for 30-plus years. He is a recipient of the Minnesota Football Coaches Association Butch Nash Outstanding Assistant Award.
Jay Frydenlund spent the first seven years of his 37 year coaching career as the Head Basketball Coach at Leeds, ND high school where he led the Wildcats to three Class B State Tournament appearances including a runner-up finish. In 1992, he accepted a teaching/coaching position at East Grand Forks Senior High where he served as Head Boys Basketball Coach for the next 20 years. After three years off the bench, he returned to lead the Green Wave Girls’ basketball program for five years before retiring after the 2020 season. Under Coach Frydenlund’s leadership Green Wave cagers won four Northwest Conference championships and earned six runner-up finishes in Section 8 tournament play. Coach Frydenlund is a member of the 500 Wins Club with an overall 552-272 career mark. Jay also served as a Golf Coach where he earned Section Coach of the Year honors while leading the EGF Boys Golf squad to the State Tournament and coaching an individual State Golf Champion.
Wade Grinde’s coaching career began as an Assistant Coach at Spring Grove in 1994. After a one-year stint as an assistant coach, Wade assumed the reins of the Lions boy’s basketball program in 1995 and led it for the next 29 years, retiring at the conclusion of the 2023-24 season. Under his tutelage and leadership, the Spring Grove hoopsters won 18 conference titles and Section championships with State Tournament berths in 2019 and 2023 with both squads earning third place honors. He is a member of the 500 wins club with an overall record of 566-197, a 74.2% winning percentage including 14 twenty plus win seasons. Coach Grinde has been recognized by his peers being named Section 1A Coach of the Year five times and 2019 Minnesota State Class A Coach of the Year. In addition to coaching basketball, Coach Grinde also served as an assistant football coach. Wade is a lifetime member of the MSHSCA and participated as a coach in the MBCA All-Star Series.
Tom McDonald’s coaching career has spanned 37 years, beginning in 1988 at Lyman, SD where he led the Raiders to a 1990 South Dakota Class B State Championship. In 1991 Tom moved back across the border and began his Minnesota coaching career as the Head Basketball Coach at Ely High School. Timberwolves cagers have won three Arrowhead Conference titles and earned a 2001 State Tournament appearance with a Section Championship with Coach McDonald at the helm. The 2014 squad finished the year with a 27-2 mark. McDonald has been recognized by his peers as a Section Coach of the Year honoree in 2001 and 2018. Tom is a member of the 500 wins club with an overall mark of 581-348. Coach McDonald continues to serve as Head Basketball Coach at Ely and will be entering his 35th campaign leading the Timberwolves with the start of the 2024-25 season.
Kris Fadness started his basketball coaching journey by serving three years as an Assistant Coach at Luther College, four years as an Assistant Coach at Hamline University, and one year coaching in the Icelandic League in Njardvik, Iceland. His high school basketball coaching career began at Caledonia in 1993 where he spent four years leading the Warriors to four Conference championships, three Section championships, and a 1997 Class AA State title. In 1997, he moved to Austin where he led the Packers program for the next 25 seasons, retiring after the 2021 season. Under Coach Fadness’ tutelage and leadership the Packers earned six Big Nine Conference titles and seven Section 1AAA crowns resulting in three State runner-up and one State third place finish. Kris was recognized by his peers as Section Coach of the Year eight times, 1997 Minnesota State Class AA Coach of the Year, and 2014 Minnesota Class AAA Coach of the Year. Coach Fadness is a member of the 500 Wins Club and finished his career with an overall mark of 504-266. He served on the MBCA Executive Board as a Section rep, 2007-08 MBCA President and coached in the MBCA All Star Series.
