Wilkens, Lenny (1937-…), was an outstanding college and professional basketball player who became one of the greatest coaches in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was an All-American player in college and played in nine NBA All-Star games as a professional. Wilkens was the second person, after John Wooden, to be elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach (see Wooden, John ). Wilkens was elected as a player in 1989 and as a coach in 1998. Wilkens held the NBA career record for most coaching victories (1,332) until Don Nelson broke his record at the end of the 2009-2010 season. Wilkens holds the NBA record for most losses by a head coach (1,155).
Leonard Randolph Wilkens was born on Oct. 28, 1937, in the borough of Brooklyn in New York City. He attended Providence College from 1956 to 1960, where he was a star guard. The St. Louis Hawks of the NBA selected Wilkens in the first round of the NBA draft in 1960. Wilkens established himself as one of the NBA’s finest playmakers, leading the league in number of assists twice. He played for St. Louis from 1960 to 1968, when he was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics. He was Seattle’s player-coach from 1969 to 1972. He was then traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, playing there for two seasons. He was player-coach of the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1974-1975 season and then retired as a player.
After coaching Cleveland for the 1975-1976 season, Wilkens became head coach and director of player personnel for Seattle. He coached the SuperSonics to the NBA championship in the 1978-1979 season. Wilkens coached Cleveland from 1986 to 1993, when he moved to the Atlanta Hawks. He was named NBA Coach of the Year his first season in Atlanta. Wilkens resigned as coach of Atlanta after the 1999-2000 season. He then coached the Toronto Raptors from the 2000-2001 season through the 2002-2003 season. Wilkens became the coach of the New York Knicks in 2004. He resigned in early 2005.
