OSG has learned of the death of former NBA and Olympic head coach Chuck Daly, he was 78. Daly had been battling pancreatic cancer and was undergoing treatment. He passed away Saturday morning.What set Chuck Daly apart from most of his coaching peers was that he got it. Daly knew the NBA was a players league and that "they allow you to coach them or they don't, once they stop allowing you to coach, you're on your way out." Daly was quoted some years back.
How else can you explain how Daly coached the Detroit Pistons of the late 1980's and early 1990's to a pair of NBA Championships with the group of characters on those teams. Guys like Bill Laimbeer and Rick Mahorn who would just beat the hell out of you, Dennis Rodman who was just out there and one of the best guard combos in NBA history with Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars.
Perhaps Daly's finest moment was coaching the Dream Team to the gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. Daly's coaching reputation was making the right moves and perhaps his best was in preparation for the 1992 Olympics. That's when a group of college players Daly coached defeated the Dream Team in a controlled scrimmage. The humbled NBA superstars like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and the rest got the point.
Chuck Daly became the only head coach to win an NBA championship and an Olympic gold medal.
What's crazy is that with all his success Daly was never named NBA coach of the year. That's too bad, he was one of the best.
"The Daly family and the entire Detroit Pistons and Palace Sports and Entertainment family is mourning the loss of Chuck Daly," family and team spokesman Matt Dobek said. "Chuck left a lasting impression with everyone he met both personally and professionally and his spirit will live with all of us forever."
Photo Courtesy: Getty Images
1 comment:
Chuck Daly did a great job of using the skill that his players already had, a helluva great basketball coach
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