LARRY BROWN - HEAD COACH

DETROIT PISTONS 2004-05 MEDIA GUIDE

With a basketball resume that includes 32 years of coaching at the collegiate or professional level, enshrinement into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2002, three ABA Coach of the Year awards, 2001 NBA Coach of the Year honors, an NCAA Championship in 1988 and a NBA Championship in 2004, Larry Brown continues adding achievements to an outstanding coaching career. Named the Pistons’ 24th head coach in franchise history on June 2, 2003, Brown reached the pinnacle of NBA success, guiding the 2003-04 Detroit Pistons to the NBA Championship in his first year as head coach. 

He became the first coach to win a NCAA and NBA Championship and the 12th coach in NBA history to win an NBA title in his first season with a club. 

Brown has coached a NBA record seven different teams to the NBA Playoffs and ranks fourth among all-time NBA coaches in playoff wins (85). 

He won his 900th career NBA game last season, becoming the seventh coach in NBA history to win 900 games (Lenny Wilkens, Don Nelson, Pat Riley, Bill Fitch, Red Auerbach, Dick Motta). Brown, who has posted a winning record in 28 of his 32 seasons as a professional head coach or collegiate head coach, has compiled a 1,339-881 (.603) career record. 

In 21 NBA seasons he has a record of 933-713 (.567), ranking seventh all-time among NBA coaches [surpassing Cotton Fitzsimmons (832) and Jack Ramsay (684) during the 2002 season] and third amongst active coaches.

The 64-year-old Brown joined the Pistons after spending six seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers. 

The 2002-03 campaign marked the fifth-straight season that the Sixers competed in the NBA Playoffs. After the team entered the All-Star break with a 25-24 record, Brown guided the squad to nine-straight wins, and put them in a position to challenge for the top spot in the Atlantic Division and the Conference. 

He won back-toback NBA Coach of the Month honors in February and March, his fourth and fifth such honors (January and April 2003 with Detroit, November 2000 with Philadelphia, February 1994 with Indiana and March 1992 with the L.A. Clippers). 

Hired as the 17th head coach in 76ers history on May 5, 1997, Brown led the club to a nine-win improvement in his first season, tying the seventh best single-season improvement in team history, and in 1998-99, led the club to its first winning season since 1990-91 and the NBA Playoffs. 2000-01 was a milestone season for Brown and the Sixers as the team recorded its best year in nearly two decades. 

He led the club to 56 wins, the most since 1984-85, the best record in the Eastern Conference and the Atlantic Division title. 

In addition, he passed Gene Shue (784) for ninth place on the all-time NBA coaching victory list, earned NBA Coach of the Year honors and guided the team to the NBA Finals, his first trip in 18 years as an NBA coach. Additional honors for Brown in 2001 included being named the NBA’s IBM Coach of the Month for November, and guiding the Eastern Conference to a come-from-behind victory as head coach in the 2001 NBA All-Star Game. 

Hustle and defense are trademarks of a Larry Brown-coached team. Traditionally, his teams are unselfish and compete every night. 

His teams have finished first in the division six times (1976-77 and 1977-78 with Denver; 1989-90 and 1990-91 with San Antonio; 1994-95 with Indiana and 2000-01 with Philadelphia). 

Prior to joining the Sixers, Brown spent four seasons (1993-94 to 1996-97) as head coach of the Indiana Pacers and compiled a record of 190-138 (.579). 

The Pacers’ all-time winningest NBA coach, he took the team to the playoffs three times, including the Eastern Conference Finals twice. 

Before joining Indiana, Brown was hired as head coach for the Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs, New Jersey Nets and Denver Nuggets, who he helped transition from the ABA to the NBA in 1976-77. 

He took the Spurs to the postseason twice (1990 and 1991), the Clippers twice (1992 and 1993), the Nets once (1983) and the Nuggets twice (1977 and 1978). Brown spent four seasons in the ABA, earning Coach of the Year honors three times. 

After two seasons each with Carolina and Denver, Brown returned to the collegiate ranks in 1979 as head coach at UCLA. 

The Bruins went to the national championship game in Brown’s first year in Westwood. After a twoyear stint with the New Jersey Nets (1981-83), Brown would spend the next five seasons as head coach at the University of Kansas, where he won the national championship in 1988. 

As a coach, Brown draws on his playing days where he was a member of the 1964 gold medal U.S. Olympic basketball team. 

In the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, Brown added another honor to his resume as an assistant coach on the gold medal Team USA. 

He is the only U.S. male to both play and coach in the Olympics. 

Brown most recently coached Team USA to a bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece. 

The three-time ABA All-Star holds the ABA record with 23 assists in a game and was the Most Valuable Player of the ABA All-Star Game in 1968. Brown and his wife, Shelly, reside with their daughter, Madison (6) and son, L.J. (9). 

The avid golfer also has two daughters, Kristen and Alli. 

LARRY BROWN 

HEAD COACH YEAR-BY-YEAR 

COACHING RECORD YEAR TEAM RECORD PLAYOFFS 

1972-73 Carolina Cougars (ABA) 57-27 7-5 

1973-74 Carolina Cougars (ABA) 47-37 0-4 

1974-75 Denver Nuggets (ABA) 65-19 7-6 

1975-76 Denver Nuggets (ABA) 60-24 6-7 

1976-77 Denver Nuggets (NBA) 50-32 2-4 

1977-78 Denver Nuggets (NBA) 48-34 6-7 

1978-79 Denver Nuggets (NBA) 28-25 

1979-80 UCLA (NCAA) 22-10 

1980-81 UCLA (NCAA) 20-7 

1981-82 New Jersey Nets (NBA) 44-38 0-2 

1982-83 New Jersey Nets (NBA) 47-29 

1983-84 Kansas (NCAA) 22-10 

1984-85 Kansas (NCAA) 26-8 

1985-86 Kansas (NCAA) 35-4 

1986-87 Kansas (NCAA) 25-11 

1987-88 Kansas (NCAA) 27-11 

1988-89 San Antonio Spurs (NBA) 21-61 

1989-90 San Antonio Spurs (NBA) 56-26 6-4 

1990-91 San Antonio Spurs (NBA) 55-27 1-3 

1991-92 Spurs/L.A. Clippers (NBA) 44-29 

San Antonio Spurs (NBA) 21-17 

Los Angeles Clippers (NBA) 23-12 2-3 

YEAR TEAM RECORD PLAYOFFS 

1992-93 Los Angeles Clippers (NBA) 41-41 2-3 

1993-94 Indiana Pacers (NBA) 47-35 10-6 

1994-95 Indiana Pacers (NBA) 52-30 10-7 

1995-96 Indiana Pacers (NBA) 52-30 2-3 

1996-97 Indiana Pacers (NBA) 39-43 

1997-98 Philadelphia 76ers (NBA) 31-51 

1998-99 Philadelphia 76ers (NBA) 28-22 3-5 

1999-00 Philadelphia 76ers (NBA) 49-33 5-5 

2000-01 Philadelphia 76ers (NBA) 56-26 12-11 

2001-02 Philadelphia 76ers (NBA) 43-39 2-3 

2002-03 Philadelphia 76ers (NBA) 48-34 6-6 

2003-04 Detroit Pistons (NBA) 54-28 16-7 

ABA TOTALS 229-107 (.682) 

NBA TOTALS 933-713 (.567) 

ABA PLAYOFF TOTALS 20-22 (.476) 

NBA PLAYOFF TOTALS 85-79 (.518) 

COLLEGIATE TOTALS 177-61 (.744) 

CAREER TOTALS 1,339-881 (.603)