Jan 10, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; ESPN broadcaster Hubie Brown during the NBA game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center. The Clippers defeated the Lakers 123-87. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
While you may now know Hubie Brown as a broadcaster for ESPN, Brown is Basketball Hall of Famer for his contributions to the game. Â He had been a successful coach in the ABA with the Kentucky Colonels before coming to Atlanta in 1976. Â Hubie also spent eight more seasons manning the sidelines with the New York Knicks and the Memphis Grizzlies before retiring to the booth early in the 2004-05 NBA season.
Brown has the longest gap between NBA Coach of the Year awards. Â He won his first back in 1977-78 with the Atlanta Hawks and his second with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2003-04. Â As one of the most respected basketball minds of the last 50 years, Brown was known for his ability to take a team down on its luck and get it back to being a playoff contending team.
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In his 5 seasons as the Head Coach of the Atlanta Hawks, Hubie Brown won 199 career games and took Atlanta to the postseason three times. Â He won 48.9% of his regular season games as head coach and a decent 37.5% of his playoff contests.
Though Hubie Brown took the Atlanta Hawks to consecutive Eastern Conference Semifinals in 1979 and 1980, he could never get late-70’s, early-80’s squads to a championship.  He will be best remembered in Atlanta for his three middle seasons (1977-80) where his Hawks teams were above .500 playoff teams.
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