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Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Rick Adelman passes away at 79

Tragic news for the NBA world as it was announced this evening that former coach and Basketball Hall of Famer Rick Adelman was pronounced dead on Monday.

At just 79, Adelman’s cause of death is unknown, but he is remembered by his spouse, Mark Kay Adelman, and their six children, including Denver Nuggets coach David Adelman.

Adelman was a seventh-round draft pick in 1968, going 79th overall to the then-San Diego Rockets, and went on to a seven-year career with stops in Portland, Chicago, New Orleans, and Kansas City.

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He began coaching just two years after ending his NBA career, starting at Chemeketa Community College in 1977. As Adelman became more keen on the coaching side of the game, he was given an opportunity on Jack Ramsay’s staff in Portland, ultimately opening the NBA door once again.

Being an assistant to Ramsay and Mike Schuler in Portland through the 80s, Adelman soaked up plenty of knowledge, enough to land him a head coaching gig in 1989 after stepping up as the interim coach midway through the year.

Adelman would find success early on as the Blazers head coach, taking Portland to the finals twice, but would face defeat at the hands of the 1990 Detroit Pistons and the 1992 Chicago Bulls.

Following the 94′ season, Adelman served as head coach to the Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets, and Minnesota Timberwolves.

Most famously, Adelman led the Kings to multiple consecutive playoff runs during his tenure, becoming the only coach in the modern era to guide the team to the playoffs.

He would also coach three NBA All-Star games in 1991, 2001, and 2003, further solidifying his case as one of the best coaches of all time.

By 2013, Adelman was cementing his legacy, collecting his 1,000th win, becoming the eighth coach to do so at the time, and finishing with 1,042 games coached, the 10th most in league history.

He’ll be remembered as one of the game’s most winningest and respected coaches of all time.

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