INDIANAPOLIS – Bobby “Slick” Leonard was selected as the ABA’s best coach. Hall of Fame player George McGinnis considered him a genius.
On Tuesday, the Indiana Pacers announced that the man who led them to three ABA championships during a Hall of Fame coaching career and who was selected as a 1963 NBA All-Star had passed away. No details were provided about 88-year-old Leonard, but he had been in poor health for the past several years.
“He was the best,” McGinnis said in March. ‘He loved all his boys and yes, he had his days. If you were on the wrong side of him, it wouldn’t be a good deal for you. ‘
But, McGinnis added, there was a big difference between Leonard and Indiana Hoosiers coach Bob Knight: After Leonard ripped at you and “ exhausted you, he took you out for a beer and said, ‘You know I love you, i’m doing this for your own good. ”
Leonard became one of the crown princes of Indiana basketball.
Yes, he went 573-534 in 14 seasons as a coach and won 529 in 12 seasons with the Pacers.
But the legacy went much deeper.
The tennis player from Terre Haute Gerstmeyer High School chose to play basketball at nearby Indiana University. He ended up leading the Hoosiers to two Big Ten titles, was a two-time All-American and made the winning free throws to take Indiana the 1953 national championship.
Decades later, he was selected as one of the 50 greatest players in school history and was part of Hoosiers’ eternal team.
“He has meant as much as anyone in the state of Indiana when it comes to the game of basketball,” said new Indiana coach Mike Woodson. “He played the game with a lot of flair. He coached with undeniable passion.
His smile put everyone at ease. The man was a champion through and through, whether at the Pacers organization or Indiana University. Without a doubt he was a hall of honor.
After serving in the United States Army in the mid-1950s, Leonard played professionally with the Minneapolis / Los Angeles Lakers for seven years and was named an NBA All-Star in 1963.
But his greatest moments as a professional came with the burgeoning franchise that hired him in 1968-69 and worked with him for more than half a century.
“Pacers fans will remember Bobby ‘Slick’ Leonard as the spirit of our franchise,” team owner Herb Simon said in a statement. “With a charisma, intensity and humor to match his nickname, Slick has made us champions.
“He was our biggest fan and our most affectionate critic, and he was the personification of Pacers basketball for generations of Hoosier families. But most importantly, Slick and (his wife) Nancy are our family, and his passing does not leave one. -fillable void in the back of the hearts of everyone associated with this organization. “
Leonard took the Pacers to the ABA Finals in his first season – and four more times in the next six years, winning titles in 1969-70, 1971-72 and 1972-73.
“He was the best coach I’ve ever played for in last shot, pressure situations,” said McGinnis. “In the seventh game, he changed the whole attack. It was genius. I think if you look at the Pacers, that’s why they won all three championships, I believe, in the seventh games on the road.”
Leonard did more than just win.
In 1977, the people helped Leonard and his wife organize a telethon that saved a franchise that faced financial ruin after moving from the ABA to the NBA.
He was released after the 1979-80 season and failed to record a win in the Pacers’ first four NBA seasons.
But he returned as the color commentator on Pacers’ television broadcasts in 1985. He later moved into the radio booth where the clear-talking, narrative Leonard uses his signature phrase “Boom, Baby!” Conceived. when Pacers players hit 3 pointers.
Leonard was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee in 2014. He is also a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame and the Indiana Sports Writers and Broadcasters Hall of Fame and was the first person inducted into the Indiana University Sports Hall of Fame.
His Pacers’ victory total, 529, hangs from a banner in the rafters of the Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Gov. Eric Holcomb called him the “epitome of basketball” and an “Indiana icon.”
“His presence in the arena and in our state will be sorely missed,” he said in a statement. “You can’t find anyone who doesn’t like Slick.”
Leonard is survived by his wife, their five children, 12 grandchildren and six grea grandchildren.