Don Nelson
Donald Arvid Nelson (born May 15, 1940) is an American former professional basketball player and head coach. Nelson is second all-time in regular season wins of any coach in NBA history, with 1,335 (he held the record for most wins for almost 12 years before he was surpassed by Gregg Popovich in 2022). He coached the Milwaukee Bucks, the New York Knicks, the Dallas Mavericks, and the Golden State Warriors. After an All-American career at the University of Iowa, Nelson won five NBA championships playing with the Boston Celtics, with his number 19 retired by the franchise in 1978.
Nelson in April 2012 | |||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | May 15, 1940 Muskegon, Michigan, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Rock Island (Rock Island, Illinois) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Iowa (1959–1962) | ||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 1962: 3rd round, 17th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Selected by the Chicago Zephyrs | |||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1962–1976 | ||||||||||||||
| Position | Small forward | ||||||||||||||
| Number | 44, 20, 19 | ||||||||||||||
| Coaching career | 1976–2010 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| As player: | |||||||||||||||
| 1962–1963 | Chicago Zephyrs | ||||||||||||||
| 1963–1965 | Los Angeles Lakers | ||||||||||||||
| 1965–1976 | Boston Celtics | ||||||||||||||
| As coach: | |||||||||||||||
| 1976 | Milwaukee Bucks (assistant) | ||||||||||||||
| 1976–1988 | Milwaukee Bucks | ||||||||||||||
| 1988–1995 | Golden State Warriors | ||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | New York Knicks | ||||||||||||||
| 1997–2005 | Dallas Mavericks | ||||||||||||||
| 2006–2010 | Golden State Warriors | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
As player:
As coach: | |||||||||||||||
| Career playing statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Points | 10,898 (10.3 ppg) | ||||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 5,192 (4.9 rpg) | ||||||||||||||
| Assists | 1,526 (1.4 apg) | ||||||||||||||
| Stats at NBA.com | |||||||||||||||
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||||||||||||||
| Career coaching record | |||||||||||||||
| NBA | 1335–1063 (.557) | ||||||||||||||
| Basketball Hall of Fame as coach | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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His unique brand of basketball is often referred to as "Nellie Ball". A coaching innovator, Nelson is credited with, among other things, pioneering the concept of the point forward, a tactic which is frequently employed by teams at every level today. He was named one of the Top 10 coaches in NBA history.
On April 7, 2010, Nelson passed Lenny Wilkens for first place on the all-time NBA wins list with his 1,333rd career win. His all-time record coaching record was 1,335–1,063 (.557). He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.