NIU Athletics will pay homage to the late Jim Bradley, legendary men’s basketball star, this Saturday in honor of his Sports Illustrated feature in 1971.

NIU plans to unveil more images taken in the photoshoot in a multi-layered display. The photos were taken by well-known photographer Heinz Kluetmeier, who had more photos from the shoot that were never used and is allowing NIU to use them for the display. The photos, taken in DeKalb corn fields, were a big boost for the basketball program — the team had only been a division level team for five years. The ceremony will be a part of NIU’s Spring Homecoming.

The Huskies won 38 of 50 games in Bradley’s tenure, going 21-4 in 1971 and 17-8 in 1972 under head coach Tom Jorgensen, giving Bradley the nickname of “The Franchise.”

Bradley’s success at NIU led to him being drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in the third round of the 1974 NBA Draft. He played for the Kentucky Colonels and the Denver Nuggets for the American Basketball Association and the Rochester Zeniths for the Continental Basketball Association. He averaged 7 points and 5.4 rebounds for his career.

Bradley’s career and life came to an unfortunate end in 1982 as he was found dead after being shot in a Portland alley. He was only 29 years old.

Bradley was inducted into the NIU Athletics Hall of Fame in 1983 and was named men’s basketball’s “Player of the Century” in 2000, nearly 20 years after his death. It’s been nearly 46 years since his feature in Sports Illustrated.

The ceremony and unveiling will take place at noon Saturday in the south lobby of the Convocation Center before both women’s and men’s basketball games take place.