Lenny Wilkens, known as the godfather of Seattle basketball, died at his home on Sunday, Nov. 9, at age 88. The cause of death was not disclosed.
Wilkens is one of five people inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player (1989) and a coach (1998).
‘Lenny Wilkens represented the very best of the NBA – as a Hall of Fame player, Hall of Fame coach, and one of the game’s most respected ambassadors,’ NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. ‘Four years ago, Lenny received the unique distinction of being named one of the league’s 75 greatest players and 15 greatest coaches of all time.’
He spent 32 years as a coach, including 11 with the Seattle Supersonics from 1969 to 1985. He won an NBA Championship with the Supersonics during the 1978-79 season.
A statue of Wilkens was unveiled outside Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle in June.
‘He was an unbelievable man. Just an incredible man,’ Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters on Sunday upon hearing the news. Kerr played for Wilkens in Cleveland early in his career.
Sacramento Kings head coach Doug Christie, who was born and raised in Seattle, became emotional when talking about Wilkens prior to the Kings’ game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
‘Just want to send out a lot of love to Lenny Wilkens and his family,’ Christie said. ‘Lenny probably doesn’t even know that without him I’m not here.’
Wilkens served as head coach for the U.S. men’s basketball team, leading them to an Olympic gold medal at the 1996 Games in Atlanta. He was also an assistant coach on Chuck Daly’s staff for the 1992 ‘Dream Team’ that won the gold medal in Barcelona.
Wilkens had a 15-year career as a player, earning All-Star honors nine times and winning MVP of the 1970-71 All-Star Game. He averaged 16.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists in 1,077 career games played.
He was second in the MVP award voting with 26 first-place votes for the 1967-68 season, finishing behind Wilt Chamberlain (88 first-place votes). Wilkens averaged 20 points, 8.3 assists and 5.3 rebounds that season.
The St. Louis Hawks selected Wilkens, who played college basketball at Providence, with the No. 6 overall pick in the 1960 NBA draft.
Wilkens was an All-American at Providence in 1959 and 1960 and was named MVP of the NIT in 1960. He was inducted in the Providence College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1972 and his number 14 was hung in the rafters of the Amica Mutual Pavilion in 1996.