OAKLAND, United States (AFP) — Retired NBA coach Doug Moe, a pioneer of the “Run ‘n Gun” attack, was named Sunday as winner of the 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award by the National Basketball Coaches Association.
Moe, 79, was the 1988 NBA Coach of the Year with the Denver Nuggets, who led the league in scoring in six of his 10 seasons guiding the club.
“In the 1970s and ’80s Doug Moe established a pace and space game that was decades ahead of its time,” said Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle, the NBCA president. “Congratulations to a true visionary on this special recognition of innovation and accomplishment.”
Moe began his NBA head coaching career with the San Antonio Spurs in 1976 and the team led the NBA in scoring in three of his four seasons there.
He joined the Nuggets from 1980 through 1991 before a final campaign with Philadelphia in 1992-93. He came out of retirement to serve as an assistant with Denver from 2003 to 2008.
“I am incredibly honored,” Moe said. “I’d like to thank the National Basketball Coaches Association and the selection committee for choosing me for this prestigious award.”
Denver’s 1981-82 scoring average of 126.5 points a game remains an NBA record, with Moe’s attack relying upon ball movement, screens and constant cuts to the basket. His career NBA head coaching record was 628-529.
© Agence France-Presse
