The basketball world mourns a Hall of Fame visionary who secured over 1,000 victories and transformed franchises across three decades, leaving an indelible legacy as a premier NBA mentor.
Former Sacramento Kings coach Rick Adelman, a Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, has died at the age of 79, the NBA Coaches Association posted on X on Monday evening.
The cause of Adelman's death was not announced at the time of publication. He is the father of Denver Nuggets coach David Adelman.
Rick Adelman won 1,402 games as an NBA coach, which is the 10th-most in league history. He served as a head coach for 23 of his 29 seasons, leading the Kings, Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves.
The NBA Coaches Association highlighted Rick Adelman's accomplishments, his induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021 and receiving the NBCA Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023. They also shone a light on his impact outside of basketball.
"Adelman will be remembered not only as a coach and a player, but also as a mentor to so many in the basketball community," the NBA Coaches Association wrote on X. "Rick was a husband to Mary Kay for 56 years; father to Kathy, RJ, Laura, David, Caitlin, and Patrick; and a grandfather of twelve. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the entire Adelman family during this difficult time."
Rick Adelman started his NBA coaching career with the Trail Blazers as an assistant from 1983 89. He became the head coach six seasons later and manned that position for five seasons.
The Trail Blazers made the NBA Finals twice under his leadership. They lost to the Detroit Pistons (1990) and the Chicago Bulls (1992).
Portland parted ways with Rick Adelman after the 1993-94 season, and he took a coaching break. He returned to coaching, and the Warriors hired him in 1995.
His tenure with Golden State was a far cry from his time with the Trail Blazers. He did not record a winning season after two seasons, and his entire staff was fired on April 28, 1997.
Rick Adelman took another coaching break before Sacramento called for his services in 1998. He transformed the Kings into a perennial playoff team, even making the Western Conference Finals in 2002, but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers.
While he turned Sacramento around, the organization did not renew his contract after the 2005-06 season. Rick Adelman became the Rockets' coach on May 18, 2007, and during his tenure, led the team to a 22-game winning streak in 2008.
He made the playoffs twice with Houston, but just like Sacramento, they did not renew his contract in 2011. His last coaching stop was with the Timberwolves, hired on Sept. 13, 2011.
Rick Adelman recorded his 1,000th victory against the Pistons on April 6, 2013, becoming the eighth NBA coach to achieve that accomplishment. He announced his retirement from coaching a year later and stayed with Minnesota as a consultant.
Before coaching, he played seven seasons for five different teams. Rick Adelman played for the San Diego Rockets (Houston), Trail Blazers, Bulls, New Orleans Jazz (Utah) and Kansas City-Omaha Kings (Sacramento).
Rick Adelman was one of the most accomplished coaches in NBA history. He leaves a legacy with his impact on basketball and the community in 79 years of life.
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