Happy 85th Birthday, Don Nelson

Photo credit: Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle.

An NBA legend celebrates a birthday on May 15 as Don Nelson turns 85. 

Born in Muskegon, Mich., “Nellie” starred at Rock Island High School (Rock Island, Ill.) before earning a scholarship to the University of Iowa. In three years as a Hawkeye, the 6 foot, 6 inch forward was twice named to the All-Big Ten team, and averaged over his college career 21.1 points and 10.9 rebounds on 50.7% shooting in 72 NCAA games. He averaged 23.8 points per game in both his junior and senior seasons, averaging 10.8 rebounds as a junior and 11.9 rebounds in his senior season of 1961-62.

In the 1962 Draft, Nelson was selected 19th by the Chicago Zephyrs. The top two selections of the draft were Hall of Famers Dave DeBusschere and Jerry Lucas, with Hall of Famer John Havlicek drafted ninth and another Hall of Famer, Chet Walker, drafted 14th. 

Nelson played his rookie season in Chicago and his second and third seasons in Los Angeles with the Lakers, but it was not until Boston that he saw adequate playing time. 

In his fourth season, 1965-66, Nelson averaged 23.5 minutes per game and averaged 10.2 points and 5.2 rebounds in 75 games. He averaged 10.0 points and 5.3 rebounds in 18.3 minutes in 1967-68, playing in all 82 games. He went on to average double-figures in scoring for the next seven seasons, including a career-high 15.4 points and 7.3 rebounds in 1969-70 when he shot 50% from the field in 27 minutes. In his next to last season of 1974-75, Nelson averaged 14.0 points and 5.9 rebounds on a career-best 53.9% shooting in 26 minutes, 79 games. He capped his playing career by winning his fifth championship, as a member of the 1975-76 Celtic team that defeated the Phoenix Suns in six games in the NBA Finals.

Over 14 seasons, Nelson averaged 10.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, averaging 20.6 minutes and shooting 48.0% from the field. He played in 1,053 NBA games. The Celtics retired his No. 19 in 1978. His jump shot in 1969’s Game 7 of the NBA Finals, one that took one bounce and lofted seemingly towards the top of the Forum before falling through the net, helped secure the ‘69 championship for the Celtics. 

Nelson began what would become one of the greatest coaching careers in NBA history in 1976-77, at age 37 as an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks. Nelson took over the head job 18 games into that season, and went 27-47. The following season, he quickly turned the Bucks into a winner, a 44-win team led by Marques Johnson (who was Nelson’s “point-forward”, a term used widely in today’s game) and Brian Winters. The Bucks made the '78 postseason, losing in the Western Conference Semifinals to the Denver Nuggets 4-3. 

After going 38-44 in 1978-79, Nelson led his teams to nine consecutive seasons over the .500 mark. He led the Bucks to 60 wins in 1980-81, a season in which they lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in seven games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. 

In 1986-87, in what would be his final season in Milwaukee, Nelson guided the Bucks to 50 wins. In 1988-89, he took the head job in Golden State, leading the Warriors to 43 wins, a 23-game improvement from the previous season. In 1991-92, the Warriors won 55 games with their famed “Run TMC” trio of Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond, and Chris Mullin. Nelson employed an up-and-down style with the group that encouraged 3-point shooting. That squad lost 3-1 in the first round to the Seattle SuperSonics. 

Nelson coached two more full seasons with the Warriors, with the team winning 50 games in 1993-94 after 34 wins the prior season. In the 1994 playoffs, the Warriors met the Phoenix Suns in the first round, losing 3-0. 

In 1995-96, Nelson coached the New York Knicks to a 34-25 record in 59 games before, after one season away (1996-97), taking over the head coaching position in Dallas during the 1997-98 season. The Mavericks went 16-50 in that first season under Nelson, went 19-31 in the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season and won 40 games in 1999-00 before Nelson turned their organization around. 

With a nucleus of all-star caliber guys Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, and Michael Finley, the 2000-01 Mavericks won 53 games and made the second round. In that round, they lost to the San Antonio Spurs 4-1. 

The Mavericks won 57, 60, and 52 games over the next three seasons, a stretch that included a Western Conference Finals’ appearance in 2002-03. Their 60 wins that season were the most across the Association, and they also had the No. 1 offense, 103.0 points per game and another top ranking in offensive rating (110.7). 

In 2004-05, Nelson led the Mavericks to a 42-22 record before stepping away in March of 2005. Former NBA point guard Avery Johnson took over the team. 

Nelson was hired in 2006 by the Warriors, heading back to the Bay Area where he had enjoyed success years earlier. This time, with another fast roster that put a premium on shooting, perimeter defense, and versatility, he led the Warriors to 42 wins. His former player Mullin was Executive Vice President and General Manager, and the 2006-07 team morphed into one of the league’s biggest surprises and best stories. With an offense that scored 106.5 points per game (second across the league) and a roster that loved to get out and run and had perimeter defenders all over, Nelson’s squad shocked his old Mavericks - a 67-win team led by MVP Nowitzki - 4-2 in the first round. In the second round, the team lost to the Utah Jazz 4-1, but their place in history was stamped, their impact on the Bay and in Warrior lore forever felt. The 2007-08 Warriors won 48 games but did not make the playoffs in a loaded Western Conference that had every playoff team one through eight finish with at least 50 wins. Still, the 2007-08 team led the NBA in points per game with 111. A 2008-09 Warrior team that was now without We Believe linchpins Baron Davis, Matt Barnes, and Jason Richardson won 29 games, and in Nelson’s last season coaching, 2009-10, the team won 26 games. 

Nelson was replaced in Golden State by Keith Smart. As head coach of the Warriors, the Hall of Famer amassed 422 wins in 11 seasons. His biggest success happened in Dallas, where he won 339 of 590 games. His 884 games as head coach of the Bucks saw him win 540 contests. 

A three-time Coach of the Year (1983, 1985, 1992), Nelson became the NBA’s all-time winningest coach in his final season coaching. His 1,335 wins have been since surpassed by Gregg Popovich’s 1,388. Popovich worked as an assistant coach under Nelson from 1992-94. Nelson was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012. 

A pioneering head coach who brought a unique style of play and won everywhere he went. 

Happy 85th, Don Nelson.