 Orr in 2011 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1958-05-07)May 7, 1958 Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | December 15, 2022(2022-12-15) (aged 64) Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Withrow (Cincinnati, Ohio) |
| College | Syracuse (1976–1980) |
| NBA draft | 1980: 2nd round, 29th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Indiana Pacers |
| Playing career | 1980–1988 |
| Position | Power forward /small forward |
| Number | 55 |
| Coaching career | 1991–2022 |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 1980–1982 | Indiana Pacers |
| 1982–1988 | New York Knicks |
Coaching | |
| 1991–1994 | Xavier (assistant) |
| 1994–1996 | Providence (assistant) |
| 1996–2000 | Syracuse (assistant) |
| 2000–2001 | Siena |
| 2001–2006 | Seton Hall |
| 2007–2014 | Bowling Green |
| 2017–2022 | Georgetown (assistant) |
| Career highlights | |
As player:
As head coach:
| |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Louis McLaughlin Orr (May 7, 1958 – December 15, 2022) was an Americanbasketball player and coach. He played professionally in theNational Basketball Association (NBA) and became acollege basketball coach. Orr was the head coach atBowling Green State Universityfrom 2007 to 2014[1] and atSeton Hall from 2001 until 2006. He was formerly an assistant atXavier University,Providence College and his alma materSyracuse University, before getting his first head coaching job atSiena College. He was also an assistant coach atGeorgetown under his formerNew York Knicks teammatePatrick Ewing.[2]
Orr attended Withrow High School where he was coached by Charles Cadle. Orr was recruited byJim Boeheim as part of his first recruiting class to play atSyracuse University from 1976 to 1980,[3] and was part of the famed "Louie & Bouie Show" with teammateRoosevelt Bouie.[4] The duo was named so after the student newspaperThe Daily Orange ran a caricature of them heading up the basketball court in tuxedos and top hats.[5] During his four years, the Orangemen had a 100–18 record. Orr scored 1,487 points, helping team to four NCAA tournament appearances.
After graduating from Syracuse in 1980, he was the 28th pick in the1980 NBA draft, selected by theIndiana Pacers. Orr played two seasons with the Pacers, which included a playoff appearance his rookie season, during which Orr averaged 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 2.5 steals a game in afirst round loss against thePhiladelphia 76ers.[6] After that, he moved on to theNew York Knicks, and played for six years, with three overall playoff berths. Orr averaged career highs in points and rebounds for the Knicks, with 12.7 and 4.9, respectively, in the1984–85 season.[7] On January 20, 1987, Orr scored 8 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, recorded 6 assists, and hit a game-winning three point shot as time expired in a 111–109 win over theBoston Celtics.[8] He scored over 5,500 career points as a pro.
Orr's first assistant coaching job in 1990 in his hometown ofCincinnati, Ohio, withXavier. Then, in 1994, he began serving underPete Gillen atProvidence and soon he was an assistant underJim Boeheim atSyracuse. During his tenure there, he rose to become a noted assistant, and helped them to a 92–40 record in that time. Syracuse reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament twice during Orr's time there.
In2000, Orr received his first head coaching job, accepting the position as head coach atSiena College. In his lone year at Siena, Orr led the Saints to a three-way tie for first place in theMetro Atlantic Athletic Conference and a 20–11 record, the best ever for a first-year Siena coach. Siena broke many attendance records that year as well.
Orr became the first former Big East player to become a head coach in the conference after he was hired in2001 bySeton Hall afterTommy Amaker left to become the head coach atMichigan. In his first year in theBig East Conference, Orr went 12–18, but was noted for playingDuke very close in theMaui Invitational.
By his fifth season at Seton Hall, Orr had led the Pirates to two NCAA Tournaments in three years. In the2004 NCAA tournament, Seton Hall defeated the 9th seedArizona in the first round before falling to 1st seed Duke in the second round. During the2005–06 season, Orr led Seton Hall to a 9–7 record in the Big East and an 18–12 record overall. Seton Hall was seeded 10th in the2006 NCAA tournament and played the 7th seedWichita State, falling 86–66. Although Orr had made the NCAA tournament twice and theNIT once in his five seasons at Seton Hall, concerns about lackluster recruiting resulted in his firing after the 2005–06 season with a record of 80–69.
After sitting out from coaching for a season, Orr was hired to become themen's basketball coach atBowling Green State University, replacing former head coachDan Dakich whose contract was not renewed by Bowling Green after ten seasons. In hisfirst season at Bowling Green, Orr posted a 13–17 overall record and 7–9 record in the MAC, finishing 5th in the East Division. Thefollowing season, Orr led Bowling Green to their 10th MAC regular season title after the Falcons posted an 11–5 conference record. Although the top seed in theconference tournament, Bowling Green would fall in the tournament semifinals to eventual championAkron. As the MAC regular season champion, Bowling Green received an automatic bid to the2009 National Invitation Tournament. Bowling Green was the 8th seed in bracket 3 and played at the bracket's top seedCreighton. Bowling Green made a strong comeback, but fell short, losing to Creighton 73–71 in their first-round game. Orr was named the MAC Coach of the Year for Bowling Green's performance during the 2008–09 season.
On March 11, 2014, Bowling Green announced that it would not renew Orr's contract. Orr was 101–121 in seven seasons, including a record of 54–60 in Mid-American Conference play.
On December 15, 2022, Orr died ofmelanoma at his home in Cincinnati at the age of 64.[3][9][10]
| 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 |
Source[11]
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980–81 | Indiana | 82 | 21.8 | .491 | .000 | .807 | 4.4 | 1.6 | .7 | .3 | 10.5 | |
| 1981–82 | Indiana | 80 | 41 | 24.4 | .497 | .125 | .799 | 4.1 | 1.7 | .7 | .3 | 11.5 |
| 1982–83 | New York | 82 | 14 | 20.3 | .462 | .000 | .800 | 2.8 | 1.1 | .8 | .3 | 8.4 |
| 1983–84 | New York | 78 | 20 | 21.0 | .458 | – | .820 | 2.9 | .8 | .8 | .2 | 8.9 |
| 1984–85 | New York | 79 | 31 | 31.0 | .486 | .100 | .784 | 4.9 | 1.7 | 1.3 | .3 | 12.7 |
| 1985–86 | New York | 74 | 64 | 30.2 | .445 | .000 | .784 | 4.2 | 2.4 | .8 | .4 | 11.9 |
| 1986–87 | New York | 65 | 8 | 22.2 | .427 | .200 | .727 | 3.6 | 1.7 | .7 | .3 | 7.0 |
| 1987–88 | New York | 29 | 0 | 6.2 | .320 | .000 | .500 | 1.2 | .3 | .2 | .0 | 1.4 |
| Career | 569 | 178 | 23.5 | .468 | .083 | .787 | 3.7 | 1.5 | .8 | .3 | 9.7 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Indiana | 2 | 28.0 | .360 | – | .857 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 2.5 | .5 | 12.0 | |
| 1983 | New York | 6 | 17.5 | .383 | – | 1.000 | 3.5 | .5 | .8 | .7 | 7.7 | |
| 1984 | New York | 12 | 18.1 | .414 | – | .789 | 4.2 | .5 | .3 | .1 | 6.1 | |
| 1988 | New York | 2 | 0 | 1.5 | .000 | – | .500 | 1.0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .5 |
| Career | 22 | 0 | 17.9 | .392 | – | .842 | 3.8 | .6 | .6 | .3 | 6.5 | |
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Siena Saints(Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference)(2000–2001) | |||||||||
| 2000–01 | Siena | 20–11 | 12–6 | T–1st | |||||
| Siena: | 20–11 (.645) | 12–6 (.667) | |||||||
| Seton Hall Pirates(Big East Conference)(2001–2006) | |||||||||
| 2001–02 | Seton Hall | 12–18 | 5–11 | 6th(West) | |||||
| 2002–03 | Seton Hall | 17–13 | 10–6 | T–3rd(West) | NIT First Round | ||||
| 2003–04 | Seton Hall | 21–10 | 10–6 | T–5th | NCAA Division I Round of 32 | ||||
| 2004–05 | Seton Hall | 12–16 | 4–12 | T–9th | |||||
| 2005–06 | Seton Hall | 18–12 | 9–7 | 7th | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| Seton Hall: | 80–69 (.537) | 38–42 (.475) | |||||||
| Bowling Green Falcons(Mid-American Conference)(2007–2014) | |||||||||
| 2007–08 | Bowling Green | 13–17 | 7–9 | 5th(East) | |||||
| 2008–09 | Bowling Green | 19–14 | 11–5 | T–1st(East) | NIT First Round | ||||
| 2009–10 | Bowling Green | 14–16 | 6–10 | 6th(East) | |||||
| 2010–11 | Bowling Green | 14–19 | 8–8 | T–5th(East) | |||||
| 2011–12 | Bowling Green | 16–16 | 9–7 | 6th(East) | CIT First Round | ||||
| 2012–13 | Bowling Green | 13–19 | 7–9 | T–4th(East) | |||||
| 2013–14 | Bowling Green | 12–20 | 6–12 | 6th(East) | |||||
| Bowling Green: | 101–121 (.455) | 54–60 (.474) | |||||||
| Total: | 201–201 (.500) | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
· Basketball Reference