Wikipedia

Tom Nissalke

Thomas Edward Nissalke (July 7, 1932 – August 22, 2019) was an American professional basketball coach in the National Basketball Association and American Basketball Association. He coached several teams in both leagues, and had an overall coaching record of 371–508.

Tom Nissalke
Personal information
Born(1932-07-07)July 7, 1932
Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
DiedAugust 22, 2019(2019-08-22) (aged 87)
Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
Career information
High schoolWayland Academy (Beaver Dam, Wisconsin)
CollegeFlorida State (1953–1954, 1956–1957)
Coaching career1957–1995
Career history
As coach:
1957–1962Wayland Academy
1962–1963Wisconsin (assistant)
1963–1968Tulane (assistant)
1968–1971Milwaukee Bucks (assistant)
1971–1972Dallas Chaparrals
1972–1973Seattle SuperSonics
1973–1974San Antonio Spurs
1974–1976Utah Stars
1976Puerto Rico
1976–1979Houston Rockets
1979–1982Utah Jazz
1982–1984Cleveland Cavaliers
1986–1987Jacksonville Jets
1990–1991Charlotte Hornets (assistant)
1991–1992Winnipeg Thunder
1994–1995Denver Nuggets (assistant)
Career highlights and awards

Early life

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Thomas Edward Nissalke was born on July 7, 1932, in Madison, Wisconsin.

College career

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Nissalke attended Florida State University from 1953 to 1954, took a break, and resumed from 1956 to 1957.

Coaching career

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Wayland Academy (1957–1962)

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Nissalke started his coaching career at Wayland Academy as the varsity boys basketball coach when he was hired by Ray Patterson, his former coach.

In 1957–58, his team finished with an overall record of 6–12 and a Conference record of 5–9.

In 1958–59, his team finished with an overall record of 13–5.

In 1959–60, his team finished with an overall record of 9–9.

In 1960–61, his team finished with an overall record of 12–5 and a Conference record of 12–2, thus ending the season as conference champions.

In 1961–62, his team finished with an overall record of 9–10.

Nissalke coached there from 1957 until 1962. He went on to the college ranks, thus advancing his career. He finished with an overall record of 49–41 at Wayland.

Wisconsin (1962–1963)

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Nissalke was an assistant coach at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1962 to 1963.

Tulane (1963–1968)

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Nissalke was an assistant coach at Tulane University from 1963 to 1968.

Milwaukee Bucks (1968–1971)

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Nissalke was an assistant coach with the Milwaukee Bucks from 1968 to 1971.

Dallas Chaparrals (1971–1972)

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Nissalke coached the Dallas Chaparrals of the American Basketball Association from 1971 to 1972, where he won the ABA Coach of the Year Award.

Seattle SuperSonics (1972–1973)

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Nissalke moved to the NBA with the Sonics for one season.

San Antonio Spurs (1973–1974)

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Nissalke returned to the team, now in San Antonio, in 1973, bringing with him "a patterned, deliberate offense to San Antonio." During his tenure, the "Iceman" George Gervin had arrived from the Virginia Squires and was the center of the team. Though Nissalke's club was successful, he was fired in the beginning of the 1974–75 ABA season.

Utah Stars (1974–1976)

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Nissalke then went to Utah with the ABA's Stars, but the club folded, surprisingly, at mid-season in the ABA's last hurrah in 1975–76. According to Remember the ABA, he has the final game ball in his closet.

Puerto Rico (1976)

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Nissalke was the coach of Puerto Rico at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, finishing in 9th place with a 2–5 record. Nissalke's squad came close to upsetting the United States, losing by a 94–93 score.

Houston Rockets (1976–1979)

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Nissalke succeeded Johnny Egan as Houston Rockets head coach on April 20, 1976.[1] He won the NBA Coach of the Year Award for the 76–77.

Utah Jazz (1979–1982)

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Nissalke coached the Utah Jazz from 1979 to 1982.

Cleveland Cavaliers (1982–1984)

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Nissalke coached the Cleveland Cavaliers from 1982 to 1984.

Jacksonville Jets (1986–1987)

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Nissalke coached the Jacksonville Jets from 1986 to 1987.

Charlotte Hornets (1990–1991)

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Nissalke was an assistant coach with the Charlotte Hornets from 1990 to 1991.

Winnipeg Thunder (1991–1992)

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Nissalke coached the Winnipeg Thunder of the World Basketball League from 1991 to 1992.

Denver Nuggets (1994–1995)

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Nissalke was an assistant coach with the Denver Nuggets from 1994 to 1995.

Legacy

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Nissalke holds the rare distinction of being named "Coach of the Year" in both the NBA and the ABA. He was also the commissioner of the short-lived National Basketball League in Canada in 1993–94. He had a combined coaching record of 371–508 (248–391 in NBA and 123–117 in ABA), with an 11–20 playoff record. He went 105–91 with the Chaparrals/Spurs, 13–32 with the Sonics, 18–26 with the Utah Stars, 124–122 with the Rockets, 60–124 with the Jazz, and 51–113 with the Cavaliers. He made it out of the first round of the playoffs just once, in 1977.

Post-coaching career

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After his coaching career, Nissalke took on revamping the YMCA of Utah and served as Chairman of the Board and later interim CEO. The YMCA had its most successful fundraising campaigns during his tenure.

Head coaching record

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Legend
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
Dallas* 1971–72 84 42 42 .500 3rd in Western 4 0 4 .000 Lost in Div. Semifinals
Seattle 1972–73 45 13 32 .289 (fired) – – – – –
San Antonio* 1973–74 84 45 39 .536 3rd in Western 7 3 4 .429 Lost in Div. Semifinals
San Antonio* 1974–75 28 18 10 .643 (resigned) – – – – –
Utah* 1974–75 28 14 14 .500 4th in Western 6 2 4 .333 Lost in Div. Semifinals
Utah* 1975–76 16 4 12 .250 (folded) – – – – –
Houston 1976–77 82 49 33 .598 1st in Central 12 6 6 .500 Lost in Conf. Finals
Houston 1977–78 82 28 54 .341 6th in Central – – – – Missed Playoffs
Houston 1978–79 82 47 35 .573 2nd in Central 2 0 2 .000 Lost in First Round
Utah 1979–80 82 24 58 .293 5th in Midwest – – – – Missed Playoffs
Utah 1980–81 82 28 54 .341 5th in Midwest – – – – Missed Playoffs
Utah 1981–82 20 8 12 .400 (fired) – – – – –
Cleveland 1982–83 82 23 59 .280 5th in Central – – – – Missed Playoffs
Cleveland 1983–84 82 28 54 .341 4th in Central – – – – Missed Playoffs
Career 879 371 508 .422 31 11 20 .355

Personal life

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Nissalke's entrepreneurial activities included developing and owning several health clubs throughout Texas in addition to co-owning a successful bar and restaurant, Green Street in Salt Lake City, Utah for over twenty years.

In January 2006, his wife of 46 years, Nancy, who also was a native of Madison, Wisconsin, died, succumbing to cancer. Together they had two children and two granddaughters.

On August 22, 2019, Nissalke died at his home in Salt Lake City, Utah.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Goldaper, Sam. "Rockets Drop Egan and Hire Nissalke," The New York Times, Wednesday, April 21, 1976. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  2. ^ Rock, Brad (August 23, 2019). "Former Utah Jazz head coach Tom Nissalke dies at age 87". Deseret News. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
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Preceded by Utah Stars head coach
1975–1976 		Succeeded by
Team folded
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