Overview
- Wilkens died Nov. 9 at his Seattle-area home at age 88, with local reports saying he passed peacefully surrounded by family.
- He coached the Seattle SuperSonics to the 1979 NBA championship, the franchise’s lone title.
- A three-time Hall of Fame inductee, he was honored as a player (1989), a coach (1998) and for his role with the 1992 U.S. Olympic team (2010).
- He retired from coaching in 2005 with an NBA-record 1,332 wins, a mark later surpassed by Don Nelson and Gregg Popovich.
- NBA figures including commissioner Adam Silver, Jerry Colangelo and Spurs assistant Mitch Johnson praised Wilkens’ character, influence and pioneering turn as a Black player-coach.