The place to be in Philadelphia tonight won't be Citizens Bank Park, as the Phillies are in St. Louis for a weekend series.
It won't even be the Wachovia Center, where the Sixers are fighting for a playoff spot against the Cavaliers tonight.
The place to be is actually the Sheraton Society Hill, where the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame will honor its second class of inductees.
Nineteen players, coaches, contributers and even a team will have their places among the sports elite of Philadelphia confirmed.
The list of honorees is highlighted by Temple basketball coach John Chaney, Flyers founder and part-owner Ed Snider and the 1954 La Salle basketball team, which won the national championship.
Former NBA All-Star Charles Barkley and gold-medal sprinter Carl Lewis will be inducted as well.
For the first time, the Hall of Fame will award its Pride of Philadelphia Award, honoring local boxer Bernard Hopkins, Team Smarty Jones and the Saint Joseph's basketball team that made the Elite Eight last season.
The Hall of Fame -- which is still without a building -- began with its charter class in 2004.
Even though this will be just the second class of inductees, it already includes quite a list of names, including Mike Schmidt, Julius Erving and Joe Frazier, just to name a few.
And many of the previous honorees will be in attendance tonight.
"It's basically a who's who of Philadelphia sports," said Brian Hester, who serves as the Hall's director of business development and sits on the board of trustees.
"Ed Snider, John Chaney -- you're talking about giants in their respective fields that are going to be on hand."
"It's just something where you don't get these guys in one room very often," Hester added. "To have that is pretty astounding."
Five hundred people are expected to come out for tonight's sold-out event, which gives the average sports fan an unparalleled opportunity, according to Hall of Fame founder and president Ken Avallon.
"It's an event for fans, and the fans are going to get to be there and meet and greet some of the sports legends," he said.
While the event is centered around the fans and the appreciation of the city's athletic history, much of the focus tonight will be on one of the inductees.
Chaney, who has been in the public eye lately for all the wrong reasons, will be recognized for all the good he has provided to the Temple program during the past 23 years -- and the good that he is still providing.
"If you think of Philadelphia basketball, especially over the past 20-25 years, I think John Chaney's probably at the forefront of that," Avallon said.
"Not just for his accomplishments on the court, but also for the influence he's had on the lives of all the young men."
However, before 2003, there was no way for achievements like these in the city to be recognized.
According to Hester, the concept of the Hall of Fame just dawned on Avallon and his friends after considering the magnitude of their city's sports history.
The idea was prompted by, "just growing up a lifelong Philadelphia fan and knowing the rich sports tradition and history of Philadelphia and knowing that other lesser sports cities ... have Hall of Fames," Hester said.
Anyone can be nominated, but unofficially, the person should be a Philadelphia native or have played a majority of his or her career in the area.
Once players are nominated, a ballot is sent out to sportswriters, and any player, coach, team or other notable who receives a yes on three quarters percent of the ballots is given entry into the Hall of Fame.
For those who aren't, it's on to "Selection Sunday," on which members convene and discuss the year's nominations. Only a majority is then needed for an inductee to enter the Hall.
With these procedures set, the next challenge for the young institution is to come up with a building.
A six-month feasibility study is currently underway to decide the future location of the museum.
"It's just a matter of determining where they feel a prime location would be -- taking over an existing building versus actually building it ourselves," Hester said.
In the meantime, the Hall of Fame is seeking a temporary location, before moving into a permanent site.
"We're probably legitimately three to four years away from having an actual museum."
When they do, it should already be packed with big names, from former Phillies great Mike Schmidt to Wilt Chamberlain, who played at Overbrook High School as well as for the Philadelphia Warriors and Sixers.
There are also a couple of names that Penn fans should recognize.
Chuck Bednarik, who was inducted in the charter class last year, played football for the Quakers from 1945-1948 before going on to a sensational career as a linebacker for the Eagles.
Robert Levy -- after whom the Levy Tennis Pavilion is named -- is also a member of the Penn Tennis Hall of Fame. He will be inducted into the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame tonight for his success in thoroughbred ownership and his community involvement.
And tonight, Levy will join a list of Philadelphia Sports Hall-of-Famers that stands at 40 and will need plenty of room to expand.
