Gordon Chiesa

Teams coached: Manhattan Jaspers, Providence Friars
Manhattan record: 54-85 (.387)
Providence record: 11-17 (.393)
Overall record: 54-85 (.388)

Gordon Chiesa
Hometown: Union City, New Jersey
Alma Mater: St. Thomas Aquinas College (BA, 1973)
Played basketball at D-II St. Thomas Aquinas in Sparkill, NY; graduated in 1973 with the program’s all-time assists record
Started his coaching career at his alma mater, where he was head coach in the 1970s before moving up to the D-I level
Was an assistant coach at Dartmouth for two seasons, working under head coach Tim Cohane
Hired in 1981 to be the head coach at Manhattan, going 54-85 in four seasons at the helm
- Taking over a team that won just 6 games in 1980-81, Chiesa earned MAAC COY honors in 1983 after the Jaspers went 15-13
Spent two years as an assistant to Rick Pitino at Providence; was part of the Friars team that went to 1987 NCAA Final Four
- Elevated to head coach in 1987 when Pitino left for the NBA; went 11-17 in his lone season at the helm
Made the jump to the NBA himself in 1989, spending the next 16 seasons on Jerry Sloan’s staff with the Utah Jazz
- The Jazz went to Playoffs 14 times during that span, including back-to-back NBA Finals appearances in 1997 and 1998
Other NBA coaching jobs include one season each in Seattle (under Bob Hill) and Memphis (under Marc Iavaroni)
- Also served as a consultant for the NBA D-League and was a special consultant for Jacque Vaughn and the Orlando Magic
Inducted into the Hudson County (NJ) Sports HOF in 2001 and the New England Basketball HOF in 2009