MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The only head coach to win both an NCAA national championship and an NBA championship in his career has stepped down from his position with the Memphis Tiger men’s basketball program.
Basketball Hall of Famer Larry Brown has reportedly faced health concerns. These concerns, "while not serious," have lead Brown to no longer act as the special advisor to the head coach of the Tigers.
“We wish Coach Brown a speedy recovery,” Memphis head men’s basketball coach Penny Hardaway said. “Having Coach Brown as part of our program over the last year-and-a-half was very impactful on our student-athletes and me as a coach, and we hope all the best for him and good health moving forward.”
Most recently, Brown previously took a leave of absence from the team in late October. Brown is also the recipient of the 2021 Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award, presented annually by the National Basketball Coaches Association. Furthermore, he is the only head coach in NBA history to lead eight different teams to the playoffs.
“Coach Brown is a legend, and his basketball knowledge is truly amazing,” Hardaway said when Browd was first added to the program. “Ever since I played for him with the Knicks, I have soaked up his wisdom every chance I could. He will make a tremendous impact on our student-athletes and everyone within our program.”
In 26 seasons an NBA head coach, Brown won 1,098 games and made the playoffs 18 times to go along with eight 50-win seasons, three conference championships and the 2004 title as head coach of the Pistons. He was the 2000-01 NBA Coach of the Year with the Philadelphia 76ers, where he coached NBA Player of the Year Allen Iverson and led the 76ers to their best record since 1984-85 at 56-26. Hardaway and Brown’s longstanding relationship dates back to when Brown coached Hardaway on the 2005-06 New York Knicks team.
Brown spent seven seasons on the collegiate level during the 1980s, two at UCLA and five at Kansas, leading his squads to three Final Four appearances and one NCAA title. He was named Naismith College Coach of the Year in 1988.
Brown also has two Olympic Gold Medals (1964, player; 2000, assistant coach) and one bronze medal (2004, head coach).
Most recently, Brown was the head coach at SMU from 2012-16, where he went 94-39 in four seasons with two postseason trips. He was the head coach of Auxilium Torino in Italy’s Lega Basket Serie A in 2018.
Brown began his coaching career in the ABA, where he led the Carolina Cougars from 1972-74 before taking the helm in Denver for two seasons. He continued with the Nuggets following their move to the NBA in 1976-77 before moving on to coach UCLA for two seasons. There, he led a freshman-dominated team to the 1980 NCAA title game before falling to Louisville.
