Buddy Jeannette
1948 BAA Champion | Baltimore Bullets Player-Coach | Hall of Fame Player
Buddy Jeannette was born on September 15, 1917, in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. He played college basketball at Washington & Jefferson College before becoming one of the top professional guards of the pre-NBA era.
Jeannette became a player-coach with the Baltimore Bullets and led the franchise to the 1948 BAA championship. He later returned to the NBA with the modern Baltimore Bullets during the 1960s.
Jeannette finished his BAA/NBA head-coaching career with a 136-173 regular-season record and a 14-10 playoff record.
Coach Jeannette passed away on March 11, 1998, at the age of 80.
- Overall Coaching Record: 136-173
Coaching Career
Jeannette served as player-coach of the original Baltimore Bullets after the franchise entered the Basketball Association of America.
In 1947-1948, the Bullets went 28-20 during the regular season and defeated the Philadelphia Warriors in the BAA Finals, giving Jeannette a championship as both a player and head coach.
Baltimore returned to the playoffs in 1948-1949. Jeannette remained with the franchise through part of the 1950-1951 season before his first NBA coaching stint ended.
Notable Players Coached
- Connie Simmons
- 1948 BAA champion
- Kleggie Hermsen
- 1948 BAA champion
- Paul Hoffman
- 1948 BAA champion
Jeannette returned to the NBA as head coach of the modern Baltimore Bullets for the 1964-1965 season.
The Bullets finished 37-43, reached the playoffs, and advanced to the Western Division Finals before losing to the Los Angeles Lakers.
It was Jeannette's first NBA head-coaching season in more than a decade.
Notable Players Coached
- Walt Bellamy
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
- 1962 NBA Rookie of the Year
- 4× NBA All-Star
- Gus Johnson
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
- 5× NBA All-Star
- Bailey Howell
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
- 2× NBA champion
- 6× NBA All-Star
Jeannette returned to the Baltimore bench during the 1966-1967 season as an interim head coach.
He took over after Mike Farmer and coached 16 games, going 3-13 before Gene Shue became the team's head coach.
The stint became Jeannette's final BAA/NBA head-coaching assignment.
Notable Players Coached
- Gus Johnson
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
- 5× NBA All-Star
- Don Ohl
- 5× NBA All-Star