The National Basketball Coaches Association has announced that Rick Adelman, famed Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach and one of only ten coaches in NBA history to win more than 1,000 games, is the recipient of the 2023 Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award.
“Rick Adelman’s career in the NBA has been highlighted by innovation, integrity, and excellence,” said Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, Indiana Pacers coach and president of the National Basketball Coaches Association. “His teams have always played to their strengths, and Rick has always found subtle ways to reinvent. NBA basketball to help its players thrive. His quiet, unassuming nature belies his influence as one of the greatest NBA coaches of all time.”
“I am honored to receive the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award,” said Rick Adelman. “To be included among the previous winners is special. Chuck was an amazing coach and is respected by everyone who has coached against his teams. For an award like this, I have to thank everyone who has helped me along the way, especially the assistant coaches and the front office. I also want to thank the players.” “I’ve had them over the years. Their effort and cooperation have made everything I’ve done possible. Good players make training so much easier.”
“This event makes me think of Michael Goldberg who was a huge help to all the coaches and especially to me. He was a good friend who I miss. Thanks to the National Basketball Association and Coaches Rick Carlisle and David Fogel. I also want to thank the selection committee for extending this honor to me. I am grateful to all who made it possible, especially my wife Mary Kay and my family. Thank you.”
Rick Adelman has coached in the NBA for 29 years, 23 as the head coach of five different teams (Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves), amassing a 1042-749 (. 582) career record. Known for his free-flowing, read-and-response action offense, he has led his teams to the playoffs sixteen times, to the Conference Finals four times and to the NBA Finals twice.
He played collegiately at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, and as a senior in 1967-68 he was voted West Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year. Drafted by the San Diego Rockets in 1968, Adelman played seven seasons in the NBA.
Adelman began his coaching career at Chimikita Community College in Salem, Oregon in 1977 where he led his teams to a 141-39 record and three conference championships in six years. While at Chemeketa in 1983, he was hired by legendary coach Jack Ramsey as an assistant coach with the Portland Trail Blazers, a position he held until he was named head coach midway through the 1988-89 season.
In his first full season as an NBA head coach, 1989-90, Adelman led the Blazers to a 59-23 record, a Western Conference Championship and a trip to the NBA Finals. Two years later, the Blazers were once again champions of the Western Conference and returned to the NBA Finals. Under Adelman, Portland had four straight 50-plus win seasons, a record of 291-154 (. 684) and was in the playoffs all six seasons.
Adelman coached the Golden State Warriors for the 1995-96 and 1996-97 seasons before taking over at Sacramento in 1998. In eight seasons as coach of the Kings, Adelman had a record of 395-229 (. 683), winning 50 games. or more in five consecutive seasons and have taken the team to the playoffs each year.
In 2007, Adelman was named head coach of the Rockets where he led Houston to back-to-back 50-plus seasons in his first two years and a winning record in all four seasons. Adelman finished his coaching career with the Minnesota Timberwolves, where his teams improved from 17-26 to 31-40 wins in his three seasons at the helm.
In 2014, after he retired, Adelman ranked ninth all-time in both games won (1,791) and games won (1,042). Today, he ranks 10th in games won and 13th on the all-time wins list with 79. His team has had a total of 11 50-win seasons and two 60-plus win seasons. Adelman finished runner-up for Coach of the Year as he was voted four times with Three different teams (1990-91 with Portland, 2000-01 and 2001-02 with Sacramento and 2008-2009 with Houston) and has been a three-time All-Star Game coach.
Adelman was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach in 2021. He was inducted into the Loyola Marymount Hall of Fame in 1986 and was named Oregon Sportsperson of the Year in both 1990 and 1992. In 2015, West Coast made The conference (formerly the WCAC) has been inducted into its own Hall of Honor.
“Rick Adelman is well respected for his teaching, hard-to-defend moving offense, and his ability to convince players of his philosophy,” said David Fogel, National Basketball Coaches Executive Director and General Counsel. “His commitment to the game and his players is reflected in his professional accomplishments and makes him the most deserving recipient of this award. Congratulations to Coach Adelman on this prestigious honor.”
The National Basketball Coaches Association’s Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award honors Hall of Fame coach Chuck Daly, who set the standard for integrity, competitive excellence, and tireless promotion of NBA basketball during his distinguished coaching career in the NBA. The award is decided annually by a selection committee made up of some of the game’s most respected basketball coaches and executives, including Bernie Bickerstaff, Billy Cunningham, Joe Dumars, Phil Jackson, Gregg Popovich, Pat Riley, Donnie Walsh, and Lenny Wilkins.
Previous recipients are Mike Fratello (2022), Larry Brown (2021), Dale Harris (2020), Frank Layden (2019), Doug Moe (2018), Al Attles and Hebe Brown (2017), KC Jones and Jerry Sloan (2016), Dick Mota (2015), Bernie Bickerstaff (2014), Bill Fitch (2013), Pat Riley (2012), Lenny Wilkins (2011), Jack Ramsay and Tex Winter (2010), and Tommy Heinsohn (2009).