Don Nelson
Donald Arvid Nelson 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 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.
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 is 1,335–1,063. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.
Early life
Donald Arvid Nelson was born on May 15, 1940, in Muskegon, Michigan, to Arvid and Agnes Nelson. Nelson grew up with his family and two sisters on his grandfather's rural Illinois farm near Sherrard, Illinois. He first learned basketball shooting in the chicken yard where a spokeless bicycle wheel was nailed to the shed to make a basket. Nelson attended a one-room, six-grade, seven-student school. When his family lost the farm, the Nelsons moved to nearby Rock Island, Illinois, while Don was in middle school. His father Arvid eventually worked at the Rock Island Arsenal.Nelson attended Rock Island High School, in Rock Island, one of the Quad Cities. The Nelsons lived in downtown Rock Island on 19th street and Don would walk to school, stopping to shoot baskets at several different locations along the way. Nelson would go to the YMCA after practice and shoot more.
Graduating in 1958, Nelson led the Rocks to a 47–7 record in his last two years under coach Bob Riley. He had 39 points and 20 rebounds against Moline High School and 30 points and 29 rebounds against No. 1-ranked Ottawa High School. As a junior, Nelson averaged 12.6 points as Rock Island finished 25–3. As a senior, Nelson averaged 20.2 points, leading the Rocks to a 22–4 record in 1957–58.
After his senior year in high school, Nelson wasn't heavily recruited. His father did not see a future for Don in basketball and wanted him to become a watch repairman. University of Iowa Coach Sharm Scheuerman, who had graduated from Rock Island in 1952, recruited Nelson, who ultimately chose the Hawkeyes over Wheaton College and Nelson's hometown Augustana College.
College career
As a 6'6" sophomore under coach Schuerman at Iowa, Nelson averaged a double-double of 15.8 points and 10.0 rebounds, as Iowa finished 14–10 in 1959–1960.In the era when NCAA freshman weren't allowed to play varsity, Nelson was joined on the Iowa campus by future Hall of Famer Connie Hawkins in 1960. However, after playing for the freshman Iowa team in 1960–1961, Hawkins was embroiled in the 1961 college basketball gambling scandal and left Iowa. Hawkins was never charged with a crime and was later reinstated by the NBA, who had banned him.
"If Connie had stayed, we would have had a great team," Nelson said. "I feel we could have edged out Ohio State my junior and senior years."
In 1960–1961, Nelson averaged 23.8 points and 10.6 rebounds as Iowa finished second in the Big Ten Conference with an 18–6 record. A mass academic eligibility issue hit the team, as the other four starters were declared academically ineligible at semester, leaving Nelson as the only starter remaining. With Nelson carrying the team, Iowa rallied around him and finished 2nd in the Big 10.
As a senior in 1961–1962, Nelson averaged 23.8 points and 11.9 rebounds as the Hawkeyes finished 13–11.
In Nelson's years at Iowa, the Big Ten conference was full of future NBA players. Among others, Ohio State had future Hall of Fame players in John Havlicek and Jerry Lucas, along with Larry Siegfried. Indiana had a future Hall of Fame inductee in Walt Bellamy, while Purdue had future NBA All-Star Terry Dischinger.
"It was a terrific training ground for the pros," Nelson said. "So many of them became stars."
"It's an overused phrase, but the tougher the game got, the tougher Don played," Scheuerman said of Nelson. "He always had a lot of savvy. Don did some things you just can't coach. Some players have the body, but aren't mentally tough. Others are mentally tough, but don't have the body. Don had both."
"I felt more responsibility and my teammates expected me to carry a bigger portion of the load," Nelson said of his Iowa career. "I still look back at that time as one of the highlights of my whole career. Sharm did a terrific job coaching and we played some terrific basketball."
"What I remember most about it is playing for Sharm and our relationship over 50 years and how close we were and how much I loved that man," Nelson reflected in 2012 of Scheuerman, who died in 2010. "A role model certainly, but I could never duplicate that man's life because he was so special. I certainly tried. I'm certainly a better person just by knowing him and talking to him. But we spent a lot of time together over the last 50 years."
Overall, Nelson averaged 21.1 points and 10.9 rebounds in his 72-game Iowa career. He left Iowa as the program's all-time leading scorer.
Professional career
Chicago Zephyrs (1962–1963)
After his career at Iowa, Nelson was selected as the 17th draft pick in the 1962 NBA draft by the Chicago Zephyrs of the NBA.As a rookie, Nelson averaged 17 minutes, playing alongside Walt Bellamy, Terry Dischinger, Si Green and Charlie Hardnett. Zephyrs Coach Jack McMahon was replaced by player Slick Leonard halfway through the season as Chicago finished 25–55. The Chicago Zephyrs moved to become the Baltimore Bullets after the season. Nelson played for the Zephyrs for one season averaging 6.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 17 minutes. Nelson was then acquired by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1963.
Los Angeles Lakers (1963–1965)
On September 6, 1963, Nelson was claimed on waivers by the Los Angeles Lakers from the Chicago Zephyrs. He played in 80 games in 1963–1964, but just 39 in 1964–1965 under coach Fred Schaus.In 1963–1964, Nelson played 80 games and averaged 5.2 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 17 minutes for the Lakers, as Los Angeles finished 42–38. He saw his first playoff action, as the Lakers were defeated by the St. Louis Hawks, with Bob Pettit, Cliff Hagan and Lenny Wilkens 3–2. Nelson averaged 3.4 points and 2.6 rebounds in the series.
In 1964–1965, Nelson played little, averaging 2.4 points and 1.9 rebounds in just six minutes per game in 39 games. The Lakers used Nelson more in the playoffs as they defeated Nelson's former team, the Baltimore Bullets in the playoffs 4–2. Nelson averaged 5.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in the series. The Lakers then faced the Boston Celtics in the 1965 NBA Finals. The Lakers lost to the Celtics 4–1, as Nelson averaged 7.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists and 20 minutes in the series.
After two seasons with the Lakers, where he averaged 4.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 13 minutes playing alongside Hall of Famers Elgin Baylor and Jerry West, Nelson left Los Angeles.
Boston Celtics (1965–1976)
After playing against them the season before in the NBA Finals, Nelson was signed as a free agent by the Boston Celtics on October 28, 1965.In his first season with Boston and coach Red Auerbach, Nelson averaged 10.2 points and 5.4 rebounds, helping the Celtics to the 1966 NBA Championship over the Lakers. Nelson became a sixth man off the bench for Boston, playing alongside Hall of Famers Bill Russell, Sam Jones, Satch Sanders, John Havlicek and KC Jones, as well as Larry Siegfried, Willie Naulls and Mel Counts.
Four more championships with Boston followed in 1968, 1969, 1974, and 1976.
In 1967–1968, Nelson was one of seven Celtics to average in double figures, as the Celtics finished 54–28 under player/coach Bill Russell. Nelson joined Russell, Havlicek, Bailey Howell, Sam Jones, Sanders and Siegfried in double digit scoring. The Celtics defeated the Lakers 4–2 in the 1968 NBA Finals to capture the NBA Championship. In the 1968 NBA Finals, Nelson averaged 14.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 27 minutes.
In 1968–1969, Nelson averaged 11.6 points and 5.6 rebounds as Boston finished 48–34 under Russell. They defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 4–1 and the New York Knicks 4–2 to advance to the NBA finals, where again they faced the Lakers. In Game 7 of the 1969 NBA Finals, against his former team, Nelson converted one of the most famous shots in playoff history—a foul-line jumper which dropped through the basket after hitting the back rim and bouncing several feet straight up. The shot, taken with just over a minute to go in the game and the Celtics clinging to a 103–102 lead, helped secure Boston's 11th NBA title in 13 seasons and Nelson's third title with the Celtics.
In 1973–1974, after rebuilding, the Celtics finished 56–26 under coach Tommy Heinsohn, as Nelson averaged 11.5 points and 4.2 rebounds in 21.3 minutes at age 33. Nelson and Havlicek were now joined by Jo Jo White, Dave Cowens, Paul Westphal, Paul Silas and Don Chaney on the roster.
In the first playoff round against the Buffalo Braves, Nelson scored over 20 points three times, averaging 15.7 points in the Celtics' a 4–2 series victory. In the Eastern Conference finals against the New York Knicks, Nelson scored 23 points in a game 2 win, averaging 15 points in the 4–1 series victory. The Knicks had beaten the Celtics in the playoffs the previous two seasons.
In the 1974 NBA Finals, the Celtics faced the Milwaukee Bucks, with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Oscar Robertson and Bobby Dandridge. In game seven at Milwaukee, Nelson started over Silas and played a key part in double-teaming Abdul-Jabbar. He scored six points in 17 minutes as Boston had a 13-point halftime lead and won 102–87, securing their 4th NBA Championship with Nelson.
Nelson played his last season in 1975–1976, and won his 5th NBA Championship as Boston defeated the Phoenix Suns in the 1976 NBA Finals 4–2. Nelson averaged 6.4 points and 2.4 rebounds in the regular season and 9.1 points and 2.9 rebounds in the playoffs.