Jack McKinney (basketball)

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Jack McKinney
Personal information
Born(1935-07-13)July 13, 1935
Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedSeptember 25, 2018(2018-09-25) (aged 83)
Bonita Springs, Florida, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Career information
High schoolSt. James
(Chester, Pennsylvania)
CollegeSaint Joseph's (1954–1957)
PositionGuard
Coaching career1959–1984
Career history
As coach:
1959–1960St. James HS
1960–1965Saint Joseph's (assistant)
1965–1966Philadelphia Textile
1966–1974Saint Joseph's
1974–1976Milwaukee Bucks (assistant)
1976–1979Portland Trail Blazers (assistant)
1979Los Angeles Lakers
1980–1984Indiana Pacers
1984Kansas City Kings
Career highlights and awards

As assistant coach:

Career coaching record
NBA136–215 (.387)
College163–83 (.663)

John Paul McKinney (July 13, 1935 – September 25, 2018)[1] was an American college and professional basketball coach. As a head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Los Angeles Lakers, he introduced an up-tempo style of play that became known as Showtime. However, his only season with the Lakers ended prematurely after a bicycle accident. McKinney joined the Indiana Pacers, where he was named NBA Coach of the Year in 1981. He also coached the Kansas City Kings (now known as the Sacramento Kings). In addition, he served as an assistant for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Portland Trail Blazers.

Early life[edit]

John Paul McKinney was born on July 13, 1935, in Chester, Pennsylvania, to Paul McKinney, a police detective, and Jen McMahon, a homemaker.[2] He attended St. James High in Chester, where he played basketball under coach Jack Ramsay. He graduated in 1953.[3][4]

College career[edit]

McKinney went to college at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia. He played three seasons for the Hawks, who were also coached by Dr. Jack Ramsay, and led the team to the Big 5's inaugural title and the school's first ever postseason in the 1956 National Invitation Tournament (NIT).[3] He was also a member of their track and field team.[4]

Coaching career[edit]

St. James High School (1959–1960)[edit]

McKinney coached one season at St. James in 1959–60, leading them to a 17–11 record.[3]

Saint Joseph's High School (1960–1965)[edit]

McKinney coached five years at his alma mater St. Joseph's as an assistant under Ramsay.

Philadelphia Textile (1965–1966)[edit]

McKinney was the head coach at Philadelphia Textile for one season in 1965–66.

Saint Joseph's (1966–1974)[edit]

McKinney returned to St. Joe's in 1966, replacing the departed Ramsay as head coach.[5] McKinney is a member of the Saint Joseph's and the Big 5 Halls of Fame.[3] He was also named the Eastern Coach of the Year by Philadelphia sportswriters for his 1973–74 season when the Hawks, predicted to have a poor year after graduating Mike Bantom to the NBA and Pat McFarland to the American Basketball Association (ABA), had a stellar season again winning their conference and qualifying for postseason play.[6][7] However, he was fired after a first-round loss in the 1974 NCAA Division I basketball tournament, and his dismissal prompted a demonstration by over 500 students.[2][7]

Milwaukee Bucks (1974–1976)[edit]

McKinney was an assistant coach with the Milwaukee Bucks from 1974 to 1976.

Portland Trail Blazers (1976–1979)[edit]

McKinney was an assistant coach with the Portland Trail Blazers, and won an NBA championship with the Trail Blazers under Ramsay in 1976–77. Ramsay called McKinney the architect of the offense and his wife Claire said McKinney considered his tenure with the Blazers the highlight of his career.[2]

Los Angeles Lakers (1979)[edit]

McKinney received his first NBA head coaching job in 1979–80 with the Lakers. Owner Jerry Buss, who had recently acquired the team, wanted games to be entertaining, and hired the coach to install a running offense.[8][9] McKinney had 6-foot-9-inch (2.06 m) rookie Magic Johnson, who some thought should play forward, be a point guard, even though incumbent Norm Nixon was already one of the best in the league.[10][11][12]

On November 8, 1979, the Lakers were 9–4 after 13 games, when McKinney suffered a near fatal head injury after falling while bicycling.[2] Assistant coach Paul Westhead, who also worked under McKinney at St. Joseph's, was named the interim head coach.[12] However, the length of the recovery and lingering doubts about the complete return of McKinney's mental faculties, combined with the team's level of success under Westhead, ultimately meant that McKinney would never get the chance to return to the job. Westhead continued to use McKinney's offense, a creative and spontaneous offense that came to be known as Showtime,[12][13][14] and the team finished the season with a record of 60–22.[2] The Lakers advanced to that year's NBA Finals, when McKinney was fired mid-series on May 13, 1980.[15][16] The Lakers won the series for their first of five NBA titles in nine seasons, and hired Westhead to permanently replace McKinney.[17]

Pat Riley, who replaced Westhead as Lakers coach, won four titles with the team and became the coach most synonymous with the Showtime Lakers.[2][18] However, Norm Nixon credited McKinney with creating Showtime. "That should never be forgotten," said Nixon.[19] According to Riley, McKinney "might have won five or six titles for the Lakers in the '80s" were it not for his accident.[2] McKinney was deferential. "I just put in some ideas that were accepted, and the rest was up to Paul and Pat and some great players," he said.[2]

Indiana Pacers (1980–1984)[edit]

McKinney joined the Indiana Pacers the following season in 1980–81.[19] He was hired at the recommendation of a guilt-ridden Buss, who was a business partner with Pacers owner Frank Mariani.[19][20] In his first season, McKinney was named the NBA Coach of the Year after leading the Pacers to their first playoff appearance since the former American Basketball Association (ABA) team joined the NBA during the ABA–NBA merger of 1976. Over the next three seasons, however, the team's performance regressed, and McKinney was fired after the Pacers posted the league's worst record in the 1983–84 season.

Kansas City Kings (1984)[edit]

McKinney was soon hired as the head coach of the Kansas City Kings, but resigned from the position on November 18, 1984, after the team started with a 1–8 record in the 1984-85 season.[21] He left coaching for good afterwards, citing ongoing issues with his memory, plus no longer feeling passionate about the profession.[22]

Post-playing career[edit]

After he left coaching, McKinney relocated back to his native Pennsylvania with his family. He worked as a sales representative for a major sporting goods company, while also filling in at times as a color analyst for the Philadelphia 76ers broadcasts. He said he got offers to come back to coaching, but never took any of them. Eventually, he and his wife would retire to Florida.

In 2005, McKinney co-authored a book about his experiences at Saint Joseph's, and donated 10 percent of its proceeds to the school.[3]

Personal life[edit]

McKinney died on September 25, 2018, at a hospice in Bonita Springs, Florida, at the age of 83.[2]

McKinney was portrayed by Tracy Letts in the HBO documentary series Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.

Head coaching record[edit]

College[edit]

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Philadelphia Textile Rams () (1965–1966)
1965–66 Philadelphia Textile 21–6 NCAA College Division Second Round
Philadelphia Textile: 21–6
Saint Joseph's Hawks (Middle Atlantic Conference) (1966–1974)
1966–67 Saint Joseph's 16–10 4–1
1967–68 Saint Joseph's 17–9 3–2
1968–69 Saint Joseph's 17–11 3–2 NCAA University Division First Round
1969–70 Saint Joseph's 13–12 5–0 1st
1970–71 Saint Joseph's 19–9 6–0 1st NCAA University Division First Round
1971–72 Saint Joseph's 16–9 5–1 2nd
1972–73 Saint Joseph's 22–6 6–0 1st NCAA University Division First Round
1973–74 Saint Joseph's 19–11 5–1 T–1st NCAA Division I First Round
Saint Joseph's: 142–77 37–7
Total: 163–83

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

NBA[edit]

Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Los Angeles 1979–80 14 10 4 .714 1st in Pacific — — — — Replaced by Paul Westhead
Indiana 1980–81 82 44 38 .537 3rd in Central 2 0 2 .000 Lost in first round
Indiana 1981–82 82 35 47 .427 4th in Central — — — — Missed playoffs
Indiana 1982–83 82 20 62 .244 6th in Central — — — — Missed playoffs
Indiana 1983–84 82 26 56 .317 6th in Central — — — — Missed playoffs
Kansas City 1984–85 9 1 8 .111 (resigned) — — — — —
Career 351 136 215 .387   2 0 2 .000  

Publications[edit]

  • Jack McKinney with Robert Gordon, Jack McKinney's Tales from the Saint Joseph's Hardwood: The Hawk will Never Die, Sports Publishing (2005) ISBN 1-58261-929-8

References[edit]

  1. ^ A Biographical Directory of Professional Basketball Coaches
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Sandomir, Richard (September 26, 2018). "Jack McKinney, N.B.A. Coach Trailed by a 'What if?' Dies at 83". The New York Times. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e Toohey, Terry (September 26, 2018). "St. James and Saint Joseph's great Jack McKinney dead at 83". The Delaware County Daily Times. Archived from the original on February 26, 2021. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  4. ^ a b Clayton, Skip (2016). Philadelphia's Big Five: Celebrating the City of Brotherly Love s Basketball Tradition. Skyhorse Publishing. ISBN 9781613218532. Retrieved September 27, 2018. Jack graduated from St. James High School in 1953 and had played under Ramsey.
  5. ^ McKinney, Jack; Gordon, Robert (2005). Jack McKinney's Tales from Saint Joseph's Hardwood: The Hawk Will Never Die. Sports Publishing. pp. 15, 100. ISBN 9781582619293. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  6. ^ Spiewak, Pete (January 18, 2010). "GAME DAY FEATURE: Jack McKinney". SJU Athletic Communications. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  7. ^ a b "St. Joseph's Accepting Applications". Lebanon Daily News. UPI. March 23, 1974. p. 10. Retrieved September 29, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  8. ^ Medina, Mark (August 13, 2010). "Lakers owner Jerry Buss sets the standard for winning". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 3, 2013.
  9. ^ Ostler, Scott; Springer, Steve (1988). Winnin' times : the magical journey of the Los Angeles Lakers. Collier Books. pp. 104–107, 225. ISBN 0-02-029591-X.
  10. ^ Helin, Kurt (March 5, 2014). "The Extra Pass: Talking "Showtime" Lakers with author Jeff Pearlman". Pro Basketball Talk. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  11. ^ Ramsay, Dr. Jack (2004). Dr. Jack's Leadership Lessons Learned From a Lifetime in Basketball. John Wiley & Sons. p. 98. ISBN 9780471469292. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  12. ^ a b c Elderkin, Phil (April 8, 1980). "The no-name who's making his name with the Lakers". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  13. ^ Markazi, Arash (July 28, 2008). "Methods to the madness". SI.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  14. ^ Ostler, Springer 1988, pp. 110–11, 144–5.
  15. ^ Galluzo, Steve (February 12, 2011). "Jack McKinney". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  16. ^ Livingston, Bill (May 14, 1980). "Lakers coach McKinney dropped by owner Jerry Buss". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. E-1. Retrieved September 27, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  17. ^ Elliot, Helene (February 9, 2012). "Jack McKinney's bike ride changed Lakers' history". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  18. ^ Feldman, Dan (September 26, 2018). "Former Lakers, Pacers coach Jack McKinney dies at age 83". Pro Basketball Talk. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  19. ^ a b c "The Los Angeles Lakers' 80s Dynasty: Excerpt From Jeff Pearlman's Showtime". Parade. March 8, 2014. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  20. ^ Heisler, Mark (2008). Madmen's Ball: The Continuing Saga of Kobe, Phil, and the Los Angeles Lakers. Triumph Books. p. 44. ISBN 9781617499067.
  21. ^ Mike Littwin (14 January 1985). "THE RISE & FALL OF JACK MC KINNEY : Since That Terrible Day in 1979 When He Took a Spill on His Bicycle, Life Has Turned into a Roller Coaster of Highs and Lows for the Ex-Laker, Ex-Pacer, Ex-King Coach and Current-King Scout". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 29 April 2022.
  22. ^ Juliano, Joe (September 26, 2018). "Jack McKinney remembered as a gentleman and 'a terrific basketball coach'". philly.com. Retrieved September 28, 2018.

External links[edit]

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