Another Bay Area sports legend has passed away.
Don Nelson, a former head coach of the Golden State Warriors, died yesterday. He was 86.
The family of Nelson – who coached the Dubs from 1988 to 1995 and 2006 to 2010 – announced his death in a statement yesterday. As a player for the Boston Celtics, Nelson won five NBA championships in 11 years.
After he retired from playing, Nelson coached four NBA teams, winning 1,335 games – the second-most in league history. He was named the league’s coach of the year three times. He was voted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.
An innovator, Nelson coached the Dubs during the heyday of the team’s high-scoring Run-TMC era, when they were led by Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin. In his second stint with the Warriors, he was the first pro coach of superstar Stephen Curry.
