| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1952-03-01)March 1, 1952 (age 73) Rockaway, New York, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Archbishop Molloy (Queens, New York) |
| College | South Carolina (1971–1974) |
| NBA draft | 1974: 1st round, 12th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Playing career | 1974–1983 |
| Position | Shooting guard |
| Number | 20, 32 |
| Coaching career | 1984–2013 |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 1974–1975 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 1975–1983 | Milwaukee Bucks |
Coaching | |
| 1984–1986 | Princeton (assistant) |
| 1986–1993 | Cleveland Cavaliers (assistant) |
| 1993–1995 | Atlanta Hawks (assistant) |
| 1995–1997 | Vancouver Grizzlies |
| 1997–1998 | Denver Nuggets (assistant) |
| 1999–2002 | Golden State Warriors (assistant) |
| 2001–2002 | Golden State Warriors (interim) |
| 2004–2007 | Indiana Fever |
| 2012–2013 | Charlotte Bobcats (assistant) |
| Career highlights | |
| As player: | |
| Career NBA playing statistics | |
| Points | 10,537 (16.2 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 1,688 (2.6 rpg) |
| Assists | 2,674 (4.1 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
| Career coaching record | |
| NBA | 36–148 (.196) |
| WNBA | 78–58 (.574) |
| Record atBasketball Reference | |
Brian Joseph Winters (born March 1, 1952) is an American formerbasketball player and coach.
Winters attended academic and athletic powerhouseArchbishop Molloy High School inQueens, New York, graduating in 1970. He then played collegiately with theUniversity of South Carolina, scoring 1,079 points over his career. While playing for South Carolina, Winters was hampered due to both a severe case ofmononucleosis and a series of knee injuries.[1] He was the 12th pick in the 1974NBA draft, taken by theLos Angeles Lakers.
Winters made theNBA All-Rookie Team with the Lakers before he was traded to theMilwaukee Bucks as part of the deal that brought future Hall of Fame centerKareem Abdul-Jabbar to the West Coast, which Abdul-Jabbar had demanded. On April 18, 1976, in the first playoff series of his NBA career, Winters scored 33 points and recorded 5 assists in a 107–104 Game 3 loss against theDetroit Pistons.[2] On November 30, 1976, Winters scored a career-high 43 points in a 115–106 victory over the Trailblazers.[3] The following season, on December 16, 1977, Winters scored 24 points and made a game-winning jumpshot during a 152–150 triple overtime win against theNew York Knicks.[4] On March 19, 1978, Winters scored 22 points and recorded a career-high 18 assists in a 117–106 victory against theWashington Bullets.[5]
Overall, he had a productive nine-year career that included two appearances in theNBA All-Star Game and six in the playoffs, and was a fan-favorite during the years that the Bucks struggled through immediately following the aforementioned Abdul-Jabbar trade. Winters averaged 16.2 points and 4.1 assists over his career, with his best years coming from 1975–76 to 1979–80, when he averaged 18.7 points. 4.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game. His game declined in the 1982–83 season, however, when he shot a career-worst 43 percent in the field, after which he retired at 31 years of age. The Bucks organization retired his number 32 on October 28, 1983, he was the third player in franchise history to be honored with a jersey retirement.[6][7]
In a 2005 interview, Chicago Bulls superstarMichael Jordan singled out Winters as the best "pure shooter" in history, claiming that "he had the most beautiful stroke of all the people whom [he could] think of."[8]
After retiring from the NBA, Winters became an assistant coach for two years under legendary coachPete Carril atPrinceton. From there, he moved on to become an assistant coach under Hall of FamerLenny Wilkens with theCleveland Cavaliers for 7 years andAtlanta Hawks for two more. Next he was the inaugural coach for theVancouver Grizzlies for a year and a half. Later Winters coached with theDenver Nuggets andGolden State Warriors. He was formerly the head coach of theWNBA'sIndiana Fever, leading them to their first ever consecutive-year playoff appearances.
On October 26, 2007, Winters option wasn't picked up by the Indiana Fever, ending his four-year tenure with the club.[9] He compiled a 78–58 record in the regular season to go with a 5–7playoff record. He was a scout for the Indiana Pacers for several seasons until he was let go during the NBA lockout in August 2011.[10] He spent the 2012–13 season as an assistant coach with theCharlotte Bobcats.[11]
Winters has been a talent scout for theIndiana Pacers since 2014.[12] He played a role in convincing the Pacers to draftMyles Turner.[1]
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vancouver | 1995–96 | 82 | 15 | 67 | .183 | 7th in Midwest | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Vancouver | 1996–97 | 43 | 8 | 35 | .186 | (fired) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Golden State | 2001–02 | 59 | 13 | 46 | .220 | 7th in Pacific | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Career | 184 | 36 | 148 | .196 | — | — | — | — |
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IND | 2004 | 34 | 15 | 19 | .441 | 6th in East | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| IND | 2005 | 34 | 21 | 13 | .618 | 2nd in East | 4 | 2 | 2 | .500 | Lost inConference finals |
| IND | 2006 | 34 | 21 | 13 | .618 | 3rd in East | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 | Lost inConference semifinals |
| IND | 2007 | 34 | 21 | 13 | .618 | 2nd in East | 6 | 3 | 3 | .500 | Lost inConference finals |
| Career | 136 | 78 | 58 | .574 | 12 | 5 | 7 | .417 |
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974–75 | L.A. Lakers | 68 | – | 22.3 | .443 | – | .826 | 2.0 | 2.9 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 11.7 |
| 1975–76 | Milwaukee | 78 | – | 35.8 | .464 | – | .829 | 3.2 | 4.7 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 18.2 |
| 1976–77 | Milwaukee | 78 | – | 34.8 | .498 | – | .847 | 3.0 | 4.3 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 19.3 |
| 1977–78 | Milwaukee | 80 | – | 34.4 | .463 | – | .840 | 3.1 | 4.9 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 19.9 |
| 1978–79 | Milwaukee | 79 | – | 32.6 | .493 | – | .856 | 2.2 | 4.8 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 19.8 |
| 1979–80 | Milwaukee | 80 | – | 32.8 | .479 | .373 | .860 | 2.8 | 4.5 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 16.2 |
| 1980–81 | Milwaukee | 69 | – | 25.7 | .475 | .353 | .869 | 2.0 | 3.3 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 11.6 |
| 1981–82 | Milwaukee | 61 | 13 | 30.0 | .501 | .387 | .788 | 2.8 | 4.1 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 15.9 |
| 1982–83 | Milwaukee | 57 | 12 | 23.9 | .434 | .324 | .859 | 1.9 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 10.6 |
| Career | 650 | 25 | 30.7 | .475 | .363 | .842 | 2.6 | 4.1 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 16.2 | |
| All-Star | 2 | 1 | 15.0 | .417 | – | – | 3.0 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 5.0 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Milwaukee | 3 | – | 42.0 | .629 | – | .800 | 2.3 | 5.0 | 1.7 | 0.7 | 27.3 |
| 1978 | Milwaukee | 9 | – | 33.9 | .497 | – | .741 | 3.3 | 6.4 | 1.3 | 0.9 | 20.4 |
| 1980 | Milwaukee | 7 | – | 38.3 | .460 | .429 | 1.000 | 3.0 | 5.3 | 1.6 | 0.0 | 15.9 |
| 1981 | Milwaukee | 7 | – | 25.9 | .459 | .333 | .750 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 10.0 |
| 1982 | Milwaukee | 6 | – | 38.7 | .494 | .500 | .833 | 2.5 | 4.7 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 16.8 |
| 1983 | Milwaukee | 9 | – | 26.7 | .429 | .273 | .824 | 2.4 | 3.6 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 9.9 |
| Career | 41 | – | 33.0 | .490 | .396 | .808 | 2.9 | 4.7 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 15.5 | |