Lenny Wilkens facts for kids
Wilkens in 2013
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | October 28, 1937 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
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| High school | Boys (Brooklyn, New York) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 180 lb (82 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College | Providence (1957–1960) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 1960 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Selected by the St. Louis Hawks | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pro career | 1960–1975 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coaching career | 1969–2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| As player: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1960–1968 | St. Louis Hawks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1968–1972 | Seattle SuperSonics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1972–1974 | Cleveland Cavaliers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1974–1975 | Portland Trail Blazers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| As coach: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1969–1972 | Seattle SuperSonics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1974–1976 | Portland Trail Blazers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1977–1985 | Seattle SuperSonics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1986–1993 | Cleveland Cavaliers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1993–2000 | Atlanta Hawks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2003 | Toronto Raptors | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | New York Knicks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As player:
As coach:
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| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Points | 17,772 (16.5 ppg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 5,030 (4.7 rpg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assists | 7,211 (6.7 apg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Leonard Randolph Wilkens (born October 28, 1937) is a famous American former professional basketball player and coach. He spent many years in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Lenny Wilkens is truly special because he has been honored three times in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was inducted as a player in 1989, as a coach in 1998, and again in 2010. The third time was for being an assistant coach for the amazing 1992 United States Olympic "Dream Team".
Wilkens was also named to the NBA 50th Anniversary Team in 1996. Later, in 2021, he was chosen for the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. In 2022, he was also recognized as one of the 15 Greatest Coaches in NBA History. This makes him the only person to be on both the NBA's 75th-anniversary lists, as both a player and a coach. He was also inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.
Lenny Wilkens played in the NBA All-Star Game nine times as a player. He also coached in the All-Star Game four times. In 1993, he was named the NBA Coach of the Year. He led the Seattle SuperSonics to an NBA championship in 1979 as their head coach. He also won an Olympic gold medal as the head coach of the 1996 U.S. men's basketball team.
During the 1994–95 season, Wilkens set a record for the most regular season coaching wins in NBA history. He retired with 1,332 victories. As of 2022, he is third on the list of winningest coaches. Only Don Nelson and Gregg Popovich have more wins. Wilkens also coached the most games in NBA history, with 2,487 regular-season games. That's 89 more games than Don Nelson and over 400 more than any other coach! He received the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award for the 2010–11 NBA season.
Contents
- Early Life and High School Basketball
- College Basketball Career
- Professional Playing Career
- Coaching Career
- Coaching the Seattle SuperSonics (1969–1972)
- Coaching the Portland Trail Blazers (1974–1976)
- Coaching the Seattle SuperSonics Again (1977–1985)
- Coaching the Cleveland Cavaliers (1986–1993)
- Coaching the Atlanta Hawks (1993–2000)
- Coaching the Toronto Raptors (2000–2003)
- Coaching the New York Knicks (2004–2005)
- Executive Roles
- Broadcasting Work
- Personal Life
- Awards and Honors
- Famous Quotes
- Quotes
- Images for kids
- See also
Early Life and High School Basketball
Leonard Randolph Wilkens was born on October 28, 1937. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York. His father was African American, and his mother was Irish American. Wilkens was raised in the Catholic faith.
At Boys High School, Wilkens played basketball. His teammate was Major League Baseball star Tommy Davis. They played for coach Mickey Fisher.
College Basketball Career
Wilkens was a two-time All-America player at Providence College. He earned this honor in 1959 and 1960. He helped his team reach their first NIT in 1959. They even made it to the NIT finals in 1960.
When he finished college, Wilkens was the second-highest scorer in Providence Friar history. He had 1,193 points. In 1996, Providence College retired his No. 14 jersey. This was a special honor, as he was the first former student to receive it. Because of his great college achievements, Wilkens was one of the first people inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.
Professional Playing Career
Playing for the St. Louis Hawks (1960–1968)
The St. Louis Hawks picked Wilkens sixth overall in the 1960 NBA draft. He started his career with the Hawks and played there for eight seasons. In his first year, the Hawks reached the finals but lost to the Boston Celtics. The Hawks made the playoffs often with Wilkens. However, they never made it to the finals again. In his last season with the Hawks, 1967–1968, Wilkens finished second in the MVP voting. Wilt Chamberlain won the award that year.
Playing for the Seattle SuperSonics (1968–1972)
Wilkens was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics for Walt Hazzard. He played four seasons with the SuperSonics. In his first season there, he averaged 22.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 8.2 assists per game. He was an All-Star in three of his seasons with the team.
In his second season with the SuperSonics, he also became their head coach. Even though the SuperSonics did not reach the playoffs while Wilkens was both coaching and playing, their record improved each year. They won 47 games during the 1971–72 NBA season. Before the next season, Wilkens was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers. This trade was very unpopular with fans. Without his leadership, the SuperSonics' record dropped to 26–56.
Playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers (1972–1974)
Wilkens played two seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Playing for the Portland Trail Blazers (1974–1975)
Wilkens played one season with the Portland Trail Blazers.
Lenny Wilkens' Legacy as a Player
Wilkens scored 17,772 points during his regular season career. He was a nine-time NBA All-Star. In 1971, he was named the 1971 NBA All-Star Game MVP. With Seattle, he led the league in assists during the 1969–70 NBA season. When he retired, he was the NBA's second all-time leader in assists. Only Oscar Robertson had more. In 2021, The Athletic ranked him as the 75th greatest player in NBA history. This was to celebrate the NBA's 75th Anniversary.
Coaching Career
Coaching the Seattle SuperSonics (1969–1972)
Wilkens started as a player-coach for the Seattle SuperSonics. He held this role from 1969 to 1972.
Coaching the Portland Trail Blazers (1974–1976)
During his one season as a player with the Portland Trail Blazers, he was also a player-coach. He stopped playing basketball in 1975. After that, he was the full-time coach of the Trail Blazers for one more season.
Coaching the Seattle SuperSonics Again (1977–1985)
After taking a year off from coaching, Wilkens returned to the SuperSonics. He became their coach again in the 1977–78 season. He took over from Bob Hopkins, who was fired after a tough start to the season. Under Wilkens, the SuperSonics quickly improved. They won 11 of their first 12 games with him as coach.
The SuperSonics made the playoffs two years in a row. In the 1978 NBA Finals, they lost to the Washington Bullets in seven games. But they returned to the 1979 NBA Finals and beat the Washington Bullets in five games. This win gave the SuperSonics their only NBA championship. Wilkens coached in Seattle for eight seasons, from 1977 to 1985.
Coaching the Cleveland Cavaliers (1986–1993)
Wilkens then coached the Cleveland Cavaliers from 1986 to 1993. During his time with Cleveland, the team had three seasons with 50 or more wins. They set a franchise record with 57 victories in both the 1988–89 and 1991–92 seasons. In the 1991–92 season, the Cavaliers reached the Eastern Conference Finals. This was only the second time in the team's history.
Despite these successes, the Cavaliers did not make deeper playoff runs under Wilkens. Four of their playoff losses were against the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls. In 1993, after losing to the Bulls in the second round of the playoffs, Wilkens resigned as coach.
Coaching the Atlanta Hawks (1993–2000)
On June 2, 1993, Wilkens became the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks. In his first season, the Hawks matched a franchise record with 57 wins. They earned the top spot in the Eastern Conference. However, the Hawks traded their superstar Dominique Wilkins during the season. This led to a second-round loss to the Indiana Pacers.
On January 6, 1995, Wilkens won his 939th regular season game. This made him the all-time winningest coach in NBA history. He held this record for almost 15 seasons. In 1997, his contract was extended. The Hawks never made it past the second round during Wilkens' time, even though they made the playoffs six times in a row and had three 50-win seasons. He resigned as head coach on April 24, 2000, after a 28-54 record.
Coaching the Toronto Raptors (2000–2003)
In June 2000, Wilkens signed a four-year contract to become the head coach of the Toronto Raptors. He replaced Butch Carter. In his first season, he led the Raptors to their first playoff series win. They defeated the New York Knicks in the first round. Wilkens and the team went their separate ways after a tough 2002-03 season. The team finished with a 24-58 record and had many injuries.
Coaching the New York Knicks (2004–2005)
The Hall of Famer was named head coach of the New York Knicks on January 15, 2004. This happened after the team started the season with a 15-24 record under Don Chaney. After the Knicks had a slow start to the 2004–05 season, Wilkens resigned from the team on January 22, 2005.
Executive Roles
Wilkens was the General Manager of the Seattle SuperSonics from April 1985 to May 1986. During this time, he drafted future All-Star Xavier McDaniel. He also hired Head Coach Bernie Bickerstaff.
On November 29, 2006, Wilkens was hired as vice chairman of the SuperSonics' ownership group. He was later named the Sonics' President of Basketball Operations on April 27, 2007. On July 6, 2007, Wilkens resigned from the Sonics organization.
Broadcasting Work
Wilkens briefly worked at Northwest FSN Studio. He was a college basketball analyst, sharing his knowledge about the game.
Personal Life
Lenny Wilkens has been married to Marilyn Reed since 1962. They have three children: Leesha, Randy, and Jamee. The Wilkens family also has seven grandchildren, six girls and one boy.
Wilkens is the founder of the Lenny Wilkens Foundation for Children. He lives in Medina, Washington. He is a practicing Catholic.
Awards and Honors
NBA
- 1979 NBA champion (as head coach of Seattle)
- 13-time NBA All-Star
- nine times as a player
- four times as a head coach
- 1971 NBA All-Star Game MVP
- 1994 NBA Coach of the Year
- 2011 Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award
- No. 19 retired by Seattle SuperSonics (carried over to the Oklahoma City Thunder)
- Top 10 Coaches in NBA History (NBA 50th Anniversary)
- Top 15 Coaches in NBA History (NBA 75th Anniversary)
USA Basketball
- Two-time Olympic gold medal winner:
- 1992 as an assistant coach with the "Dream Team"
- 1996 as head coach of the U.S. men's team
Halls of Fame
- Three-time Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee
- class of 1989 as a player
- class of 1998 as a coach
- class of 2010 as a member of the "Dream Team"
- Cleveland Cavaliers Wall of Honor (class of 2022)
- U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame (class of 2009 – as a member of the "Dream Team")
- FIBA Hall of Fame (class of 2017 – as a member of the "Dream Team")
- College Basketball Hall of Fame (class of 2006)
- Providence College Hall of Fame.
State/Local
- The City of Seattle renamed Thomas Street to Lenny Wilkens Way.
Organizational
- 1999 Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement
Famous Quotes
- "I learned my basketball on the playgrounds of Brooklyn. Today, being a playground player is an insult. It means all you want to do is go one-on-one, it means your fundamentals stink and you don't understand the game. But the playgrounds I knew were tremendous training grounds."
- "Show people how to have success and then you can push their expectations up."
Quotes
- "I learned my basketball on the playgrounds of Brooklyn. Today, being a playground player is an insult. It means all you want to do is go one-on-one, it means your fundamentals stink and you don't understand the game. But the playgrounds I knew were tremendous training grounds."
- "Show people how to have success and then you can push their expectations up."
Images for kids
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Wilkens in 2013
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Wilkens with the Seattle SuperSonics in 1968
See also
In Spanish: Lenny Wilkens para niños
