“His Airness,” Michael Jordan has been in the spotlight and on a first name basis to generations of sports fans around the world for decades, but little is mentioned about the man who coached him to his Rookie of the Year award and who coached the Miami Heat in their first years as an expansion team.
Kevin Loughery has a long resume of coaching experience that spans several decades. Today, he is still relevant as fans watch an NBA that is dictated by individual offensive creativity instead of a game flow firmly entrenched in a limiting system. This evolution of professional basketball wouldn’t be possible without trendsetters like Loughery. Jordan has made some stunning public comments about his former coach. The same can be said for Julius Erving. Dr. J, in a totally impromptu instance, dropped Loughery’s name during an NBATV interview in a mic drop moment as his favorite coach of all time.
Kevin Loughery played in the ABA for 11 years as a guard. He started his coaching career with the Philadelphia 76ers as a player-coach in 1973. Just a year later in 1974, he coached the New York Nets of the ABA to two championships in both 1974 and 1975. Dr. J showcased his uniquely lethal skill set during his three years playing for Kevin Loughery with the N.Y. Nets.
Winning Two ABA Championships in Three Years with the Legendary Dr. J
In an exclusive session with NBATV, Loughery said of Dr. J:
“That man was the best. He was the easiest superstar you could possibly coach. He had more talent at that stage–we asked him to do everything. I really believe–and I’ve told this to Doc–that the NBA never saw the real Dr. J. I really believe that. In the ABA he did things that were incredible. We asked him to do everything.”
Loughery was a players’ coach before the term gained credence. If you watch the NBATV interview with former 76er teammates Charles Barkley and Julius Erving, you will see Charles taken by surprise when Erving picks Loughery as his all-time favorite over coaches with a bigger name. Jordan fondly remembers how much creativity he encouraged as his coach in Chicago.
Jordan and His First NBA Coach
As the head coach of the Bulls from 1983 to 1985, Loughery was in his second year as coach when Jordan was a rookie. He had the best view of the potential Jordan demonstrated, being courtside for both practices and games, but did Loughery have any inkling he was mentoring what many consider the greatest player of all time?
Here is his thought process on Jordan:
“The biggest thing you could have about a player to enjoy coaching is not only talent but when you’ve got someone to kind of come out and compete and play hard every night, that’s the player you enjoy being around… that’s the people you enjoy being associated with and that’s the situation I’ve had with Michael…”
In the book, The Jordan Rules, author Sam Smith makes it known that Loughery was Jordan’s pick as the most fun coach he ever played for. He enabled him to turn his creativity to the max, while allowing him to hone his own style and freelance instead of being limited as a player in a system.
During his own playing career, Loughery could score the ball with ease. As a natural scorer, he understood the mindset of a gifted scorer. He could identify with offensive-minded scorers, and was not one to put a cap on creativity. During 11 years in the league, he averaged 15.3 PPG and averaged over 20 points in two seasons.
Unlocking the Loughery Magic in Miami
Loughery was only the second coach the fledgling Miami Heat ever had. He coached South Florida’s budding expansion team to their first ever trip to the playoffs and another appearance in 1992-1993. His coaching tenure in Miami stretched from 1991-1995. Though the Heat did not finish better than fourth in their division during Loughery’s stint, formative strides did take place. Under Loughery’s tutelage, Rony Seikaly, the Heat’s first ever draft pick (drafted 9th overall in 1988), blossomed into one of the most productive two-way players in the league.
The 1991-1992 season was Loughery’s first with the Heat and the season that the Heat’s fourth overall pick averaged 22.3 points per game and finished second in the league in three pointers made. Glen Rice was a prolific long distance shooter as a power forward before it was popular for big men to shoot with range. It was not uncommon for Rice to score 30+ points on a given night. “He’s going to the basket more and more and creating his own shot,” Loughery said of Rice after a 1992 win over the Washington Bullets.
In 1994, Loughery was offered a new contract. Shortly after securing the extension, Heat fans learned of the trade of Glen Rice to Charlotte in exchange for Alonzo Mourning. The addition of Mourning would usher in a whole new era of Heat basketball. Loughery had a .455 overall winning percentage in his tenure with the Heat, winning 292 games. SBNation put him on their all time list of the five best coaches in Heat franchise history.
More creativity exists in today’s NBA than perhaps in any other era of our beloved league. We see big men create off the dribble and wing players perform with an arsenal of moves that leaves the viewer guessing what their next move will be. In order for the offensive onslaught to evolve to the high level it has reached, we needed creative and talented basketball minds to push the boundaries. Kevin Loughery was one of those creative risk takers and we benefit from his courage and foresight every time we tune in to an NBA game.