16.5 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 6.7 APG, 43 FG%, 77 FT%
“After a Hall of Fame career as one of the great playmakers in basketball history, Lenny Wilkens turned to coaching and led his teams to more wins than any other coach in NBA history.
Wilkens coached the Dream Team to the gold medal for the United States at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, and was an assistant to Chuck Daly with the original Dream Team at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.
As a player, Wilkens was diminutive in stature, but his list of accomplishments made him one of the giants of the game. His reserved demeanor belies his achievements while his self-effacing manner is reflected in his coaching style: a game plan based on unselfish offensive and defensive play that creates powerhouse teamwork.
“I’ve always believed you need balance,” he explained to the Boston Globe. “It’s not that I don’t want a star–I’ll always take a star–but even if you have a star, it’s important to surround him with the right kind of complementary players.”
During Wilkens’ 15 years as a player in the NBA, he scored 17,772 points for an average of 16.5 ppg and handed out 7,211 assists. He ranks among the all-time leaders in assists, games played, minutes played and free throws made. The nine-time All-Star was also the MVP of the 1971 midseason classic in San Diego.” [Read]
(Sources: NBA.com, YouTube, Basketball-reference.com)
