The NBA world mourned the loss of one of it's iconic coaches on Sunday with the news that Don Nelson, Hall of Fame NBA coach and five-time champion as a member of the Boston Celtics, passed away at the age of 86.

Nelson spent a combined five decades in the basketball world, but as a coach was most notable while leading the Golden State Warriors for 10 years in two different stints with the team and before the Warriors' dynasty of the modern day, Nelson's teams defined basketball in the Bay.

That's why his loss has been felt so deeply, both in the NBA at large and by the Warriors of today. 

Among the many messages shared by NBA players and coaches of past and present, both Steph Curry and Steve Kerr shared heartfelt messages to Nelson on social media. 

"My first coach in the NBA. One of the greatest minds in the game and pushed the way it was played!" Curry shared in an Instagram story. "NellyBall was a real thing. Game me the opportunity to find myself back in '09. Forever grateful. RIP Coach."

Curry's relationship with Nelson was especially meaningful as Nelson in Curry that no one else did at the time, and Nelson lived to see himself vindicated in his faith in Curry years later as the Warriors shooter grew to become one of the most impactful players in NBA history, winning two MVPs and four championships in his time as Golden State's franchise player. 

Nelson was the one that first took a chance on Curry when he advocated for the Warriors to draft him in the 2009 NBA Draft, when Nelson as still head coach. Without his faith and his encouragement of Curry, there may have never been the creation of the game's greatest shooter or even the dynasty that formed around him.

Kerr, the Warriors' current coach, also shared a heartfelt statement about Nelson, who set the standard for Warriors' coaches, in an official statement that he gave to ESPN.

"Don Nelson was a true innovator whose influence in the game of basketball is still felt today," Kerr said (via HoopsHype). "He consistently challenged conventional thinking, experimented with different lineups and styles of play and saw possibilities in the game that others often did not. So much of what is now commonplace in the NBA can be traced back to the way Nellie approached the game."

Kerr was spot in the way that he described how Nelson changed the game. "Nellie Ball," the style of play that Nelson essentially invented, can be seen in every team that plays basketball in 2026. Nelson prioritized pace over positioning and in a way that enabled every player on the floor, no matter their assigned spot, to take up a different aspect of the game and in turn enabled them all to be offensive units. 

That play style has been emulated across the league since and the offensive explosion the NBA has experienced is all because of the precedent that Nelson set. 

There are few figures in basketball that were as beloved as Nelson, who still holds the second-most wins by any head coach of all time, and the outpouring of love and support from the greatest players and coaches in the game today proves that.