Rick Adelman, the Hall of Fame NBA coach who ranks 10th in league history with 1,042 regular-season wins, died Monday at 79, the National Basketball Coaches Association announced. No cause of death has been disclosed.
Adelman is best known for guiding the Portland Trail Blazers to the NBA Finals twice, falling to the Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls. He also led the Sacramento Kings to eight winning seasons in eight years and engineered a 22-game winning streak with the Houston Rockets in 2008, the fourth-longest in NBA history.
“If it wasn’t for him, I don’t know what career I would have,” 20-year guard Kyle Lowry said Monday. “It’s a sad day.”
Adelman is survived by his wife of 56 years, Mary Kay, five of his six children, including Denver Nuggets coach David Adelman, and a dozen grandchildren. The NBCA honored him with its Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023.
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