Jim Pollard
Minneapolis Lakers Head Coach | Chicago Packers Head Coach | Basketball Hall of Famer
Jim Pollard was born on July 9, 1922, in Oakland, California. After a Hall of Fame playing career, he moved into coaching.
Pollard returned to the NBA as head coach of the Minneapolis Lakers during the 1959-1960 season and later became the first head coach of the expansion Chicago Packers in 1961.
He finished his NBA head coaching career with a 32-87 regular-season record and a 5-4 playoff record.
Pollard was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in 1978. Coach Pollard passed away on January 22, 1993, at the age of 70.
- Overall Coaching Record: 32-87
Coaching Career
Jim Pollard took over the Minneapolis Lakers during the 1959-1960 season after John Castellani went 11-25 to start the year.
Pollard went 14-25 over the final 39 regular-season games as Minneapolis finished 25-50 and placed third in the Western Division.
The Lakers defeated the Detroit Pistons 2-0 in the Western Division Semifinals before taking the St. Louis Hawks to 7 games in the Western Division Finals.
Minneapolis lost the series 4-3, giving Pollard a 5-4 playoff record during his season with the Lakers.
Notable Players Coached
- Elgin Baylor
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (1977)
- 11× NBA All-Star
- 10× All-NBA First Team
- 1959 NBA Rookie of the Year
Pollard became the first head coach of the expansion Chicago Packers for the 1961-1962 NBA season.
The Packers finished their inaugural season with an 18-62 record and placed fifth in the Western Division, missing the playoffs.
The season became Pollard’s final NBA head coaching year.
Notable Players Coached
- Walt Bellamy
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (1993)
- 1962 NBA Rookie of the Year
- 4× NBA All-Star
- 1960 Olympic Gold Medalist