Hal Wissel
Hal Wissel (born February 8, 1939)
Teams coached: Trenton State Lions, Lafayette Leopards, Fordham Rams, Florida Southern Moccasins, Charlotte 49ers, Springfield Pride
Trenton State record^: ##-## (.###)
Lafayette record: 43-59 (.422)
Fordham record: 57-74 (.435)
Florida Southern record^: 105-49 (.682)
Charlotte record: 22-62 (.262)
Springfield (MA) record^: 31-77 (.287)
Overall record^: 158-321 (.330)
Career Accomplishments:
- NCAA National Championships: 0
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 0
- NIT Championships: 0
- NIT Appearances: 1 (1972)
- Middle Atlantic Regular Season Champion: 2 (1970, 1971)
- Sunshine State (Div II) Regular Season Champion: 4 (1979, 1980, 1981, 1982)
- Sunshine State (Div II) Tournament Champion: 3 (1979, 1980, 1981)
- NCAA Division II National Championships: 1 (1981)
- NCAA Division II Tournament Appearances: 4 (1979, 1980, 1981, 1982)
- NAIA Tournament Appearances: 1 (1967)
Awards:
- NABC Div II Coach of the Year: 1 (1980)
- Sunshine State (Div II) Coach of the Year: 3 (1979, 1980, 1982)
Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):
| 2006-2007 | Golden State Warriors (asst) |
| 2002-2005 | Memphis Grizzlies (asst) |
| 2001-2002 | Dallas Mavericks (scout) |
| 1996-1999 | New Jersey Nets (asst) |
| 1995-1996 | New Jersey Nets (DPP) |
| 1990-1995 | Milwaukee Bucks (asst/scout) |
| 1986-1990 | Springfield (MA) |
| 1982-1985 | Charlotte |
| 1977-1982 | Florida Southern |
| 1976-1977 | Atlanta Hawks (asst) |
| 1971-1976 | Fordham |
| 1967-1971 | Lafayette |
| 1964-1967 | Trenton State |
Hal Wissel Facts
- Harold R. Wissel
- Born February 8, 1939
- Hometown: New Rochelle, New York
- Alma Mater: Springfield College (BS, 1960 & PhD, 1970) / Indiana University (MS, 1961)
- First job was at NAIA Trenton State (now D-III College of New Jersey), where he built up a losing program to a 1967 NAIA Tournament bid
- Spent four seasons as the head coach at Lafayette, going 43-59 overall and improving up to two-straight Middle Atlantic titles
- Left for Fordham in 1971 and went 57-74 in five seasons as head coach; went 18-9 in his first year but under .500 in the next four
- After one season on Hubie Brown’s staff with the Atlanta Hawks, Wissel returned to the college ranks as the head coach at D-II Florida Southern
- Went to four-straight NCAA D-II NCAA Tournaments, including three-straight Final Fours (1980-82) and the 1981 championship
- Left in 1982 with an overall record of 105-49 and three 22+ win seasons in a row
- Inducted into both the Florida Southern Athletic HOF and Sunshine State Conference HOF
- Was named the Sunshine State Conference Silver Anniversary Coach in 1998
- Hired by D-I UNC Charlotte in 1982, but was just 22-62 in three seasons and finished with less than 10 wins each year
- Coached the Westchester Golden Apples (NY) of the now-defunct World Basketball League in 1986 (played in his hometown of New Rochelle)
- Returned to alma mater Springfield (MA) in 1986, going 31-77 in four seasons as the head coach
- Spent the rest of his career as an assistant coach and/or player scout in the NBA
- Worked with the Milwaukee Bucks (under Del Harris, Frank Hamblen and Mike Dunleavy), New Jersey Nets (under Butch Beard and John Calipari), Dallas Mavericks (under Don Nelson), Memphis Grizzlies (under Brown and Mike Fratello), and Golden State Warriors (under Nelson)
- Founded Basketball World in 1972, coaching basketball and running youth basketball camps
- Wissel has authored two books on basketball and created a number of instructional DVDs
- Coached the Dominican Republic National Team in 1975
- Along with his wife, Trudy, has five grown children
Hal Wissel Coaching Tree
- P. J. Carlesimo (Brooklyn Nets, Seattle SuperSonics/OKC Thunder, Golden State Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers, Seton Hall, Wagner, Southern New Hampshire)
- Tom Sullivan (UMBC, Manhattan, New Hampshire College)
- Melvin Watkins (Missouri, Texas A&M, Charlotte)
^ overall record includes head coaching positions at the NCAA Division I, Division II and Division III levels only; ## records from Wissel’s stint at NAIA Trenton State (now D-III The College of New Jersey) are not available
