| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1942-05-17)May 17, 1942 (age 83) Hazard, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Randolph-Macon Academy (Front Royal, Virginia) |
| College | VMI (1961–1964) |
| NBA draft | 1964: 4th round, 97th overall pick |
| Drafted by | St. Louis Hawks |
| Coaching career | 1967–2001 |
| Career history | |
Coaching | |
| 1967–1969 | E.C. Glass HS (assistant) |
| 1969–1970 | George Wythe HS |
| 1970–1972 | VMI (assistant) |
| 1972–1976 | VMI |
| 1976–1981 | Colorado |
| 1981–1983 | New Jersey Nets (assistant) |
| 1983 | New Jersey Nets |
| 1983–1985 | Chicago Bulls (assistant) |
| 1986–1991 | Washington Bullets (assistant) |
| 1991–1993 | Indiana Pacers (assistant) |
| 1993–1995 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 1996–1998 | Indiana Pacers (assistant) |
| 1999–2001 | Cleveland Cavaliers (assistant) |
Stats atBasketball Reference  | |
William Henry Blair Jr. (born May 17, 1942[1]) is an American formerbasketball coach and player. Blair attended theVirginia Military Institute for college basketball. As team captain of the Keydets, he helped lead the team to their firstSouthern Conference championship in 1964, which saw them attend their first ever NCAA Tournament. He was drafted by the St. Louis Hawks in 1964 but did not play. He became a coach in 1967 and was hired by VMI to serve on their staff in 1970 and became their head coach in 1972. After three middling seasons, he led them to a conference championship in 1976 that saw then go to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament. He left for theUniversity of Colorado after the season ended. He coached five seasons before he was fired.
Blair then worked twenty seasons in theNational Basketball Association, beginning in New Jersey with theNew Jersey Nets, and continuing to theChicago Bulls, underKevin Loughery, helping to draftMichael Jordan. He then moved to theWashington Bullets under Wes Unseld, and next theIndiana Pacers underLarry Brown—coaching spectacular teams withReggie Miller at the helm. In 1993, he became the head coach of theMinnesota Timberwolves, then returned to the Pacers, and finally finished his career underRandy Wittman at theCleveland Cavaliers.[2]
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VMI Keydets(Southern Conference)(1972–1976) | |||||||||
| 1972–73 | VMI | 7–19 | 3–9 | 8th | |||||
| 1973–74 | VMI | 6–18 | 3–9 | 7th | |||||
| 1974–75 | VMI | 13–13 | 6–6 | T–4th | |||||
| 1975–76 | VMI | 22–10 | 9–3 | 1st | NCAA Elite 8 | ||||
| VMI: | 48–60 | 21–27 | |||||||
| Colorado Buffaloes(Big Eight Conference)(1976–1981) | |||||||||
| 1976–77 | Colorado | 11–16 | 5–9 | 6th | |||||
| 1977–78 | Colorado | 9–18 | 3–11 | 8th | |||||
| 1978–79 | Colorado | 14–13 | 4–10 | 8th | |||||
| 1979–80 | Colorado | 17–10 | 7–7 | 5th | |||||
| 1980–81 | Colorado | 16–12 | 5–9 | 6th | |||||
| Colorado: | 67–69 | 24–46 | |||||||
| Total: | 115–129 | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | 1982–83 | 6 | 2 | 4 | .333 | 3rd in Atlantic | – | – | – | – | L New York 0–2 |
| Minnesota | 1994–95 | 82 | 21 | 61 | .256 | 6th in Midwest | – | – | – | – | Missed playoffs |
| Minnesota | 1995–96 | 20 | 6 | 14 | .300 | (fired) | – | – | – | – | – |
| Career | 108 | 29 | 79 | .269 | – | – | – | – |