Chuck Daly (1930-2009)
Teams coached: Boston College Eagles, Penn Quakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, New Jersey Nets, Orlando Magic
Boston College record: 26-24 (.520)
Penn record: 125-38 (.767)
Overall record^: 151-62 (.709)
Career Accomplishments:
- NCAA National Championships: 0
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 4 (1972, 1973, 1974, 1975)
- NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen: 2 (1972, 1973)
- NCAA Tournament Final Four: 0
- NIT Championships: 0
- NIT Appearances: 0
- Ivy League Regular Season Champion: 4 (1972, 1973, 1974, 1975)
Awards:
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (inducted 1994 as a coach and 2010 with the Dream Team)
- National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (inducted 2006)
Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):
| 1997-1999 | Orlando Magic |
| 1992-1994 | New Jersey Nets |
| 1983-1992 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1981-1982 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 1978-1981 | Philadelphia 76ers (asst) |
| 1971-1977 | Penn |
| 1969-1971 | Boston College |
| 1963-1969 | Duke (asst) |
Chuck Daly Facts
- Charles Jerome Daly
- Born July 20, 1930
- Died May 9, 2009
- Hometown: Kane, Pennsylvania
- Alma Mater: Bloomsburg University (BA, 1953)
- Graduated from Bloomsburg University (PA) and then served two years in the military
- Started his coaching career in 1955, becoming the head basketball coach at Punxsutawney Area HS (PA)
- Went 111-70 during his eight-year tenure there
- Joined Vic Bubas‘ staff at Duke in 1963; worked there for six seasons and was a part of two Final Fours
- Became the head coach at Boston College in 1969, leading the Eagles to a 26-24 record over two seasons
- Returned to his home state in 1971 to be the head coach of the Penn Quakers
- Went 125-38 in six seasons, winning Ivy League titles and reaching the NCAA Tournament in each of his first four years
- Advanced to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen in both 1972 and 1973
- Moved on to the pro ranks in 1978, coaching in the NBA for the rest of his career
- Spent three seasons as an assistant on Billy Cunningham’s staff with the Philadelphia 76ers
- Was the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers for part of the 1981-82 season, going 9-32
- Best remembered for his nine-year tenure as the head coach of the Detroit Pistons
- Went 467-271 during that time, winning two NBA Championships (1989 & 1990) and going 71-42 in the Playoffs
- At the helm for what is known as the “Bad Boys” Era, featuring Isiah Thomas, Bill Laimbeer, Dennis Rodman, John Salley and others
- Was selected to coach the US Olympic team in 1992, known as the “Dream Team”
- The team, stacked with Hall of Famers like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing, and others, cruised through the Barcelona Olympics to easily win gold
- Daly’s assistants for the summer were Mike Krzyzewski, Lenny Wilkens and P.J. Carlesimo
- Coached the New Jersey Nets and Orlando Magic for two seasons each before retiring in 1999
- In between coaching jobs, Daly worked in television broadcasting for TNT, TBS and a local Philadelphia station
- Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in March 2009 and died two months later, aged 78, at his home in Jupiter, FL
- Survived by his wife, Terry, his daughter, Cydney, and two grandchildren
Chuck Daly Coaching Tree
- Rick Carlisle (Indiana Pacers, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons)
- Mike Evans (Denver Nuggets)
- Armen Gilliam (Penn State Altoona, Penn State McKeesport)
- Sidney Green (Florida Atlantic, North Florida, Southampton)
- Bill Laimbeer (Las Vegas Aces, New York Liberty, Detroit Shock)
- Craig Littlepage (Rutgers, Penn)
- Brendan Malone (Cleveland Cavaliers, Toronto Raptors)
- Rollie Massimino (Northwood/Keiser, Cleveland State, UNLV, Villanova)
- Eric Musselman (Arkansas, Nevada, LA D-Fenders, Reno Bighorns, Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors)
- Jim O’Brien (Emerson, Ohio State, Boston College, St. Bonaventure)
- Kevin Ollie (Connecticut)
- Mark Price (Charlotte)
- Tree Rollins (Washington Mystics, Greenville Groove)
- Ron Rothstein (Miami Sol, Detroit Pistons, Miami Heat)
- Paul Silas (Charlotte Bobcats, Cleveland Cavaliers, New Orleans/Charlotte Hornets)
- Bob Staak (Wake Forest, Xavier)
- Isiah Thomas (FIU, New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers)
- Terry Tyler (Eastern New Mexico)
- Dick Versace (Indiana Pacers)
- Darrell Walker (Little Rock, Clark Atlanta, Washington Wizards, Toronto Raptors)
- Rex Walters (San Francisco, Florida Atlantic)
- Bob Weinhauer (Arizona State, Penn)
- Bob Zuffelato (Marshall, Boston College)
^ overall record includes head coaching positions at the NCAA Division I level only
