Solid D
06-05-2005, 04:47 PM
Once the answer to a trivia question by Jimcs in the Trivia thread, Mo McHone was tabbed to coach Team USA World Championship Qualifying Team.
Here is the link and announcement.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.usabasketball.com/men/2005/05_mtoa_coaches.html
Internationally Experienced Mo McHone Selected To Lead 2005 USA Men's World Championship Qualifying Team
USA Team Home
http://www.usabasketball.com/images/2005/05_mtoa_coaches.jpg
2005 USA WCQ
Coaching Staff
June 2, 2005• Colorado Springs, Colorado
USA Basketball announced the coaching staff for its men's World Championship Qualifying Team. It featured two-time USA Basketball head coach Mo McHone (left), and serving as his assistants are Joey Meyer (middle), coach of the two-time NBDL championship Asheville team, and former NBA great and current NBDL Florida Flame head coach Dennis "DJ" Johnson (right).
USA Basketball, looking to a successful and experienced hand, today named former USA Basketball and CBA head coach Mo McHone as head coach of USA Basketball's 2005 Men's World Championship Qualifying Team that will compete Aug. 24-Sept. 4 in the Dominican Republic. USA Basketball also named as McHone's assistant coaches Joey Meyer, head coach of the two-time NBDL champion Asheville Altitude, and former NBA great Dennis "DJ" Johnson, head coach of the NBDL Florida Flame.
McHone, who has served as head coach of two previous USA Basketball teams, will guide the USA squad at the 2005 FIBA Americas World Championship Qualifying Tournament which will take place Aug 24-Sept. 4 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
"D.J. (Dennis Johnson) and Joey (Meyer) are going to do good jobs as assistant coaches," commented McHone about his staff. "DJ and I are friends, we worked together with the (Los Angeles) Clippers and I've always liked Joey. I thought he did a great job when he was at DePaul and now in the NBDL where he has won the last two championships. Both have coached in the minor leagues and I'm telling you these guys in the minor leagues get prepared for anything.
"One of the things that is kind of unique when doing this is you've got to put together a team. There's going to be a lot more to this than just picking guys because we have to be careful, so your experience in the minor leagues really helps you in that," added McHone.
The USA World Championship Qualifying Team is expected to be comprised of professional players from leagues other than the NBA. Tentative plans call for a group of approximately 20-25 players to assemble for training Aug. 6-9 at a site to be determined. The U.S. will get some valuable international experience when it participates in a tournament in Brazil The USA will join teams from Argentina, Brazil and Canada and play three games Aug. 11-13. Continuing is training in Brazil, the U.S. will also play two additional games against Brazil on Aug. 15 and 17. Returning to the United States Aug. 18, the team will train in the U.S. Aug. 18-20, then travel to the Dominican Republic.
The USA men will attempt to earn a qualifying spot for the United States at the 2006 FIBA World Championship. A total of 10 men's teams from North, South and Central Americas and the Caribbean will participate in the FIBA Americas Qualifying Tournament and the top four finishing teams, and Argentina which already qualified for the ‘06 Worlds by winning the 2004 Olympics, will earn a coveted qualification spot for the 2006 World Championship that is being held in Japan, Aug. 19-Sept. 3.
The tournament's 10 teams have been divided into two preliminary round groups of five each. Placed in preliminary round Group A with the United States were Brazil, Canada, Panama and Venezuela. Group B consists of Argentina, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Uruguay. The U.S. opens preliminary play Aug. 24 against Panama, then plays Brazil on Aug. 25, Canada on Aug. 26, and caps preliminary play against Venezuela on Aug. 27.
The top four ranked teams from each preliminary group advance to the second round and will play the four other teams they have not previously faced. The top four ranked teams in the second round advance to the semifinals. The winners of the semifinal games will play Sept. 4 in the gold medal game, the losers will meet in the bronze medal contest.
In FIBA Americas qualifying events held since 1989, USA Basketball men's teams are 46-4 and have won gold in five of the six Tournament of the Americas it has sent teams to.
Currently owning a 28-game winning streak in FIBA Americas Olympic or World Championship Qualifying Tournaments, USA squads featuring NBA players went 10-0 in the FIBA Americas Olympic Qualifiers in 2003 and again 1999. In 1997, featuring a team coached by McHone and made up of standouts from the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), the U.S. won its last eight games to finish 8-1 and claim the gold medal. Again featuring a team of CBA players, the 1993 USA team won gold after finishing 8-1. In 1989, utilizing college players, the Americans finished 6-2 and in possession of the silver medal. The U.S., having already qualified for the 1996 Olympics as the host country, didn't field a team for the 1995 Tournament of the Americas, and in 2001, with the U.S. already qualified for the 2002 World Championship as the host country, an all-star team from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) competed.
MORRIS "MO" McHONE
McHone as head coach of two separate USA Basketball teams has compiled a 12-2 overall record (.857 winning percentage) and won gold and silver medals.
"I'm definitely very honored that USA Basketball remembered me and thought I did a good enough job to ask me to do it again," said McHone. "I have to be honest, I didn't know if I wanted to go through the pressure of doing it again because as the head coach you put a lot of pressure on yourself to do well because you are representing the USA. I know it will be a lot of work, I know it will be very time consuming, but at the same time in the end I know it will be worth it."
McHone coached the 1999 USA Basketball Men's Pan American Games Team, a team comprised of players from the CBA, to a 4-1 record and the silver medal at the games in Winnipeg, Canada. Two years earlier, he led the 1997 USA Tournament of the Americas Team to an 8-1 record and the gold medal in Montevideo, Uruguay. For his efforts along the USA sidelines in 1997, USA Basketball selected McHone as its 1997 National Coach of the Year.
For the past one-and-a-half seasons, since January 2004, he has served as an assistant coach for the Seoul (South Korea) SK Knights in the professional Korea Basketball League (KBL).
"There's no question my coaching experience in Korea will help. The number one thing that it will help me with is the fact that for almost a year and a half I've been coaching a 40-minute game instead of a 48 (minute game). That is one of the biggest differences, understanding the difference between a 40-minute game and a 48-minute game. The game has to be managed completely different because of that. I think that right there if nothing else that would be significant enough to help me," said McHone. "Even though they play a combination of NBA rules and international rules in Korea, it (coaching there) really helps. I know I'll be better prepared this time than I was the first time for the differences in the game."
McHone spent two seasons (2001-02 and 2002-03) as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Clippers and was an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons for two seasons (1999-2000 and 2000-01). His first NBA job was in 1979-80 as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers under Stan Albeck. The two coaches moved to San Antonio the following season, where they led the Spurs to three-straight division titles (1981-83). McHone served as the Spurs' head coach for 31 games during the 1983-84 season before spending one more season (1985-86) as an assistant in Cleveland.
Prior to his return to the NBA in 1999, McHone spent seven years as a head coach in the CBA. He posted a 229-168 (.577 winning percentage) record and became just the second coach in CBA history to win the league championship in back-to-back seasons. He led the Yakima Sun Kings to the 1995 CBA crown and then coached the Sioux Falls Skyforce to the 1996 CBA title. During the five seasons between 1994-95 and 1998-99 he guided his teams to the CBA finals four times.
McHone was a two-time winner of the CBA's Coach of the Year award, earning the honor in 1995 with Yakima and in 1997 when he led Sioux Falls to a 47-9 record, the fourth-best mark in league history.
A 1965 graduate of Florida State University, McHone also has 14 years of experience as a college assistant coach, including stints at Florida State (1970-78), University of Georgia (1978-79) and Bradley University (1986-91).
JOEY MEYER
"It sounds pretty simple, but I'm really excited. I think this is a great opportunity, but it's also a tremendous challenge," stated Meyer, who served as an assistant coach at the 1988 U.S. Olympic Trials and has been involved in coaching basketball for 31 years. "I'm looking forward to working with Mo and DJ. I think Mo is going to do a great job. I'll try to help him in any way I can to put a real solid team together and a great effort down there.
"I'll be honest, I was surprised by the call, but very excited about the call. I have 26 years of college coaching experience and five years in the minor leagues, so I've had a lot of different experiences that I hope will help me in this venture."
A very successful college basketball coach, Meyer made history in 2004-05 when his Asheville Altitude team became the first NBDL team to repeat as champion after also directing Asheville to the 2004 NBDL crown.
Named Asheville's head coach on July 21, 2001, Meyer in his four seasons (2001-02 through 2004-05) in the NBDL has compiled a 104-96 overall record for a .520 winning percentage. Meyer has now won more games than any coach in the history of the NBDL.
In 2004-05, Meyer guided the Altitude to a 27-21 regular season mark, good for second best in the league. In the 2005 NBDL Playoffs, his Asheville club defeated the Huntsville Flight 90-86, then in the championship game, romped over regular season champs Columbus Riverdragons 90-67 to take the 2005 title.
During the 2003-04 season, Meyer guided the Altitude to an impressive and NBDL-best 28-18 regular season finish, then went on to claim the league championship.
The son of Hall of Fame coach Ray Meyer, as a player he competed for four seasons for DePaul University (Ill.) (1968-71) and scored 1,233 career points and served as co-captain during his senior season.
He followed in his father's footsteps at DePaul, serving as the freshman head coach from 1971-72 and the junior varsity head coach from 1972-73. After serving as an assistant coach on his father's DePaul staff for 11 years, Meyer took over the head coaching reins in 1984.
As the head coach for 13 seasons (1984-85 through 1996-97), he posted a 231-158 record (.594 winning percentage), and posted six 20-win or better seasons, seven NCAA Tournament appearances and three NIT bids. He was named CBS Chevrolet Coach of the Year in 1987 and won the Great Midwest Conference regular season championship in 1991-92.
Prior to his arrival in Asheville, Meyer coached the Chicago Skyliners of the ABA to a league-best 29-11 record en route to a Western Conference Championship in 2000.
DENNIS JOHNSON
"This is a joy for me and a real honor. I'm very proud and ready to go," remarked Johnson on his selection to the USA coaching staff. "I look at it as probably a bigger honor than anything I've received. As a guy who played in the league and throughout collegiate ball I never had the chance to play for the United States, but it was always one of those things you always hoped you'd be selected for. But I never had the chance to do that so this is filling that void and the void was big too. It's one of those things that has been a goal, whether it was to coach or whether it was to play, and I feel very happy and pleased about it.
"Mo and I had the chance to coach together with the Clippers and I know what Mo likes to do and maybe even what he doesn't like to do. I got a little bit of that too from Joey this year in NBDL while coaching against him and seeing what he likes to do. So I think as a staff we're going to be right on track. When everything gets going it should be real easy for all of us to hook up and put our styles together but let Mo take the lead."
Possessing a wealth of experience as both an NBA player and coach, Johnson was named head coach for the inaugural 2004-05 season of the Flame on Aug. 24, 2004. In Florida's first NBDL season he led the Flame to a 17-31 finish.
Johnson joined the Flame staff after an extensive NBA career. During his 14 seasons as a player in the NBA, Johnson played with the Seattle SuperSonics (1976-77 through 1979-80), Phoenix Suns (1980-81 through 1982-83) and Boston Celtics (1983-84 through 1989-90). Johnson claimed three NBA championships (1979, 1984 and 1986) and earned MVP honors of the 1979 NBA Finals. A five-time NBA All-Star selection (1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1985), Johnson was named All-NBA first team in 1981, All-NBA second team in 1980, and he was selected to nine consecutive NBA All-Defensive Teams between 1979 and 1987.
Playing in 1,100 regular season games and another 180 Playoff games, Johnson compiled in his 14 regular seasons 15,535 career points (14.1 ppg.), 4,249 rebounds (3.9 rpg.), 5,499 assists (5.0 apg.) and 1,477 steals (1.3 spg.). In NBA Playoff games his averages improved to 17.3 ppg., 5.6 apg., 4.3 rpg. and 1.4 spg. Johnson retired following the 1989-90 season as just the 11th player in NBA history to amass more than 15,000 points and 5,000 assists.
Johnson also gained valuable experience coaching in the NBA. He was an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics for four seasons (1993-94 through 1996-97) and was an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers for four-plus seasons (Jan. 2000 through 2003-04). He was named interim head coach for the Clippers on March 3, 2003, and compiled an 8-16 record through the end of the regular season. He was head coach of the CBA La Crosse Catbirds in 1999-2000 and compiled a 14-22 mark.
Johnson played two years (1973-74, 1974-75) at Harbor Junior College (Calif.) and averaged 18.3 points per game and 12.0 rebounds per game in his second season while helping Harbor Junior College to a state championship.
Johnson went on to play at Pepperdine University (Calif.). In his one season playing for the Waves he averaged 15.7 ppg., 5.8 rpg. and 3.3 apg., while helping lift Pepperdine into the Top 20 and a berth in the 1976 NCAA Tournament. He filed for hardship following his junior year at Pepperdine and was given permission to enter the 1976 NBA Draft, where he was a 2nd round (29th pick overall) selection of the Seattle SuperSonics.
Here is the link and announcement.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.usabasketball.com/men/2005/05_mtoa_coaches.html
Internationally Experienced Mo McHone Selected To Lead 2005 USA Men's World Championship Qualifying Team
USA Team Home
http://www.usabasketball.com/images/2005/05_mtoa_coaches.jpg
2005 USA WCQ
Coaching Staff
June 2, 2005• Colorado Springs, Colorado
USA Basketball announced the coaching staff for its men's World Championship Qualifying Team. It featured two-time USA Basketball head coach Mo McHone (left), and serving as his assistants are Joey Meyer (middle), coach of the two-time NBDL championship Asheville team, and former NBA great and current NBDL Florida Flame head coach Dennis "DJ" Johnson (right).
USA Basketball, looking to a successful and experienced hand, today named former USA Basketball and CBA head coach Mo McHone as head coach of USA Basketball's 2005 Men's World Championship Qualifying Team that will compete Aug. 24-Sept. 4 in the Dominican Republic. USA Basketball also named as McHone's assistant coaches Joey Meyer, head coach of the two-time NBDL champion Asheville Altitude, and former NBA great Dennis "DJ" Johnson, head coach of the NBDL Florida Flame.
McHone, who has served as head coach of two previous USA Basketball teams, will guide the USA squad at the 2005 FIBA Americas World Championship Qualifying Tournament which will take place Aug 24-Sept. 4 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
"D.J. (Dennis Johnson) and Joey (Meyer) are going to do good jobs as assistant coaches," commented McHone about his staff. "DJ and I are friends, we worked together with the (Los Angeles) Clippers and I've always liked Joey. I thought he did a great job when he was at DePaul and now in the NBDL where he has won the last two championships. Both have coached in the minor leagues and I'm telling you these guys in the minor leagues get prepared for anything.
"One of the things that is kind of unique when doing this is you've got to put together a team. There's going to be a lot more to this than just picking guys because we have to be careful, so your experience in the minor leagues really helps you in that," added McHone.
The USA World Championship Qualifying Team is expected to be comprised of professional players from leagues other than the NBA. Tentative plans call for a group of approximately 20-25 players to assemble for training Aug. 6-9 at a site to be determined. The U.S. will get some valuable international experience when it participates in a tournament in Brazil The USA will join teams from Argentina, Brazil and Canada and play three games Aug. 11-13. Continuing is training in Brazil, the U.S. will also play two additional games against Brazil on Aug. 15 and 17. Returning to the United States Aug. 18, the team will train in the U.S. Aug. 18-20, then travel to the Dominican Republic.
The USA men will attempt to earn a qualifying spot for the United States at the 2006 FIBA World Championship. A total of 10 men's teams from North, South and Central Americas and the Caribbean will participate in the FIBA Americas Qualifying Tournament and the top four finishing teams, and Argentina which already qualified for the ‘06 Worlds by winning the 2004 Olympics, will earn a coveted qualification spot for the 2006 World Championship that is being held in Japan, Aug. 19-Sept. 3.
The tournament's 10 teams have been divided into two preliminary round groups of five each. Placed in preliminary round Group A with the United States were Brazil, Canada, Panama and Venezuela. Group B consists of Argentina, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Uruguay. The U.S. opens preliminary play Aug. 24 against Panama, then plays Brazil on Aug. 25, Canada on Aug. 26, and caps preliminary play against Venezuela on Aug. 27.
The top four ranked teams from each preliminary group advance to the second round and will play the four other teams they have not previously faced. The top four ranked teams in the second round advance to the semifinals. The winners of the semifinal games will play Sept. 4 in the gold medal game, the losers will meet in the bronze medal contest.
In FIBA Americas qualifying events held since 1989, USA Basketball men's teams are 46-4 and have won gold in five of the six Tournament of the Americas it has sent teams to.
Currently owning a 28-game winning streak in FIBA Americas Olympic or World Championship Qualifying Tournaments, USA squads featuring NBA players went 10-0 in the FIBA Americas Olympic Qualifiers in 2003 and again 1999. In 1997, featuring a team coached by McHone and made up of standouts from the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), the U.S. won its last eight games to finish 8-1 and claim the gold medal. Again featuring a team of CBA players, the 1993 USA team won gold after finishing 8-1. In 1989, utilizing college players, the Americans finished 6-2 and in possession of the silver medal. The U.S., having already qualified for the 1996 Olympics as the host country, didn't field a team for the 1995 Tournament of the Americas, and in 2001, with the U.S. already qualified for the 2002 World Championship as the host country, an all-star team from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) competed.
MORRIS "MO" McHONE
McHone as head coach of two separate USA Basketball teams has compiled a 12-2 overall record (.857 winning percentage) and won gold and silver medals.
"I'm definitely very honored that USA Basketball remembered me and thought I did a good enough job to ask me to do it again," said McHone. "I have to be honest, I didn't know if I wanted to go through the pressure of doing it again because as the head coach you put a lot of pressure on yourself to do well because you are representing the USA. I know it will be a lot of work, I know it will be very time consuming, but at the same time in the end I know it will be worth it."
McHone coached the 1999 USA Basketball Men's Pan American Games Team, a team comprised of players from the CBA, to a 4-1 record and the silver medal at the games in Winnipeg, Canada. Two years earlier, he led the 1997 USA Tournament of the Americas Team to an 8-1 record and the gold medal in Montevideo, Uruguay. For his efforts along the USA sidelines in 1997, USA Basketball selected McHone as its 1997 National Coach of the Year.
For the past one-and-a-half seasons, since January 2004, he has served as an assistant coach for the Seoul (South Korea) SK Knights in the professional Korea Basketball League (KBL).
"There's no question my coaching experience in Korea will help. The number one thing that it will help me with is the fact that for almost a year and a half I've been coaching a 40-minute game instead of a 48 (minute game). That is one of the biggest differences, understanding the difference between a 40-minute game and a 48-minute game. The game has to be managed completely different because of that. I think that right there if nothing else that would be significant enough to help me," said McHone. "Even though they play a combination of NBA rules and international rules in Korea, it (coaching there) really helps. I know I'll be better prepared this time than I was the first time for the differences in the game."
McHone spent two seasons (2001-02 and 2002-03) as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Clippers and was an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons for two seasons (1999-2000 and 2000-01). His first NBA job was in 1979-80 as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers under Stan Albeck. The two coaches moved to San Antonio the following season, where they led the Spurs to three-straight division titles (1981-83). McHone served as the Spurs' head coach for 31 games during the 1983-84 season before spending one more season (1985-86) as an assistant in Cleveland.
Prior to his return to the NBA in 1999, McHone spent seven years as a head coach in the CBA. He posted a 229-168 (.577 winning percentage) record and became just the second coach in CBA history to win the league championship in back-to-back seasons. He led the Yakima Sun Kings to the 1995 CBA crown and then coached the Sioux Falls Skyforce to the 1996 CBA title. During the five seasons between 1994-95 and 1998-99 he guided his teams to the CBA finals four times.
McHone was a two-time winner of the CBA's Coach of the Year award, earning the honor in 1995 with Yakima and in 1997 when he led Sioux Falls to a 47-9 record, the fourth-best mark in league history.
A 1965 graduate of Florida State University, McHone also has 14 years of experience as a college assistant coach, including stints at Florida State (1970-78), University of Georgia (1978-79) and Bradley University (1986-91).
JOEY MEYER
"It sounds pretty simple, but I'm really excited. I think this is a great opportunity, but it's also a tremendous challenge," stated Meyer, who served as an assistant coach at the 1988 U.S. Olympic Trials and has been involved in coaching basketball for 31 years. "I'm looking forward to working with Mo and DJ. I think Mo is going to do a great job. I'll try to help him in any way I can to put a real solid team together and a great effort down there.
"I'll be honest, I was surprised by the call, but very excited about the call. I have 26 years of college coaching experience and five years in the minor leagues, so I've had a lot of different experiences that I hope will help me in this venture."
A very successful college basketball coach, Meyer made history in 2004-05 when his Asheville Altitude team became the first NBDL team to repeat as champion after also directing Asheville to the 2004 NBDL crown.
Named Asheville's head coach on July 21, 2001, Meyer in his four seasons (2001-02 through 2004-05) in the NBDL has compiled a 104-96 overall record for a .520 winning percentage. Meyer has now won more games than any coach in the history of the NBDL.
In 2004-05, Meyer guided the Altitude to a 27-21 regular season mark, good for second best in the league. In the 2005 NBDL Playoffs, his Asheville club defeated the Huntsville Flight 90-86, then in the championship game, romped over regular season champs Columbus Riverdragons 90-67 to take the 2005 title.
During the 2003-04 season, Meyer guided the Altitude to an impressive and NBDL-best 28-18 regular season finish, then went on to claim the league championship.
The son of Hall of Fame coach Ray Meyer, as a player he competed for four seasons for DePaul University (Ill.) (1968-71) and scored 1,233 career points and served as co-captain during his senior season.
He followed in his father's footsteps at DePaul, serving as the freshman head coach from 1971-72 and the junior varsity head coach from 1972-73. After serving as an assistant coach on his father's DePaul staff for 11 years, Meyer took over the head coaching reins in 1984.
As the head coach for 13 seasons (1984-85 through 1996-97), he posted a 231-158 record (.594 winning percentage), and posted six 20-win or better seasons, seven NCAA Tournament appearances and three NIT bids. He was named CBS Chevrolet Coach of the Year in 1987 and won the Great Midwest Conference regular season championship in 1991-92.
Prior to his arrival in Asheville, Meyer coached the Chicago Skyliners of the ABA to a league-best 29-11 record en route to a Western Conference Championship in 2000.
DENNIS JOHNSON
"This is a joy for me and a real honor. I'm very proud and ready to go," remarked Johnson on his selection to the USA coaching staff. "I look at it as probably a bigger honor than anything I've received. As a guy who played in the league and throughout collegiate ball I never had the chance to play for the United States, but it was always one of those things you always hoped you'd be selected for. But I never had the chance to do that so this is filling that void and the void was big too. It's one of those things that has been a goal, whether it was to coach or whether it was to play, and I feel very happy and pleased about it.
"Mo and I had the chance to coach together with the Clippers and I know what Mo likes to do and maybe even what he doesn't like to do. I got a little bit of that too from Joey this year in NBDL while coaching against him and seeing what he likes to do. So I think as a staff we're going to be right on track. When everything gets going it should be real easy for all of us to hook up and put our styles together but let Mo take the lead."
Possessing a wealth of experience as both an NBA player and coach, Johnson was named head coach for the inaugural 2004-05 season of the Flame on Aug. 24, 2004. In Florida's first NBDL season he led the Flame to a 17-31 finish.
Johnson joined the Flame staff after an extensive NBA career. During his 14 seasons as a player in the NBA, Johnson played with the Seattle SuperSonics (1976-77 through 1979-80), Phoenix Suns (1980-81 through 1982-83) and Boston Celtics (1983-84 through 1989-90). Johnson claimed three NBA championships (1979, 1984 and 1986) and earned MVP honors of the 1979 NBA Finals. A five-time NBA All-Star selection (1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1985), Johnson was named All-NBA first team in 1981, All-NBA second team in 1980, and he was selected to nine consecutive NBA All-Defensive Teams between 1979 and 1987.
Playing in 1,100 regular season games and another 180 Playoff games, Johnson compiled in his 14 regular seasons 15,535 career points (14.1 ppg.), 4,249 rebounds (3.9 rpg.), 5,499 assists (5.0 apg.) and 1,477 steals (1.3 spg.). In NBA Playoff games his averages improved to 17.3 ppg., 5.6 apg., 4.3 rpg. and 1.4 spg. Johnson retired following the 1989-90 season as just the 11th player in NBA history to amass more than 15,000 points and 5,000 assists.
Johnson also gained valuable experience coaching in the NBA. He was an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics for four seasons (1993-94 through 1996-97) and was an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers for four-plus seasons (Jan. 2000 through 2003-04). He was named interim head coach for the Clippers on March 3, 2003, and compiled an 8-16 record through the end of the regular season. He was head coach of the CBA La Crosse Catbirds in 1999-2000 and compiled a 14-22 mark.
Johnson played two years (1973-74, 1974-75) at Harbor Junior College (Calif.) and averaged 18.3 points per game and 12.0 rebounds per game in his second season while helping Harbor Junior College to a state championship.
Johnson went on to play at Pepperdine University (Calif.). In his one season playing for the Waves he averaged 15.7 ppg., 5.8 rpg. and 3.3 apg., while helping lift Pepperdine into the Top 20 and a berth in the 1976 NCAA Tournament. He filed for hardship following his junior year at Pepperdine and was given permission to enter the 1976 NBA Draft, where he was a 2nd round (29th pick overall) selection of the Seattle SuperSonics.