John Richard Motta was born on September 3,1931 and is an American former basketball coach whose career in the National Basketball Association spanned 25 years.
16 Facts About Dick Motta
2.
Dick Motta coached the Washington Bullets to the 1978 NBA Championship, and he won the 1971 NBA Coach of the Year Award with the Chicago Bulls.
3.
Dick Motta is eighth all-time with 1,952 games as coach, while ranking 13th in wins and fourth in losses; he has the most wins of eligible coaches not currently inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
4.
Dick Motta was known for his eccentric personality and fiery temper, which included infamously throwing his jacket at a referee, kicking a basketball into the stands and throwing a dollar bill onto the court and demanding it to play after a GM traded one of his players for cash considerations.
5.
Dick Motta retired from coaching in 1997 and ran a bed and breakfast with his wife in Bear Lake, Idaho.
6.
Dick Motta once said in an interview that winning the state championship at Grace in 1959 was his greatest thrill as a coach, even topping the NBA championship he won two decades later.
7.
Dick Motta was hired as head coach of the Chicago Bulls in 1968 after a six-year stint at Weber State.
8.
Dick Motta coached the team for eight seasons, coaching 656 games.
9.
Dick Motta was eventually replaced by Ed Badger on August 25,1976.
10.
Dick Motta had two years left on his contract with the Bulls who allowed him to negotiate with the Washington Bullets.
11.
Dick Motta left the Bulls to succeed K C Jones in a similar capacity with the Bullets on May 28,1976.
12.
Dick Motta resigned as head coach on May 27,1980 despite having one year left on his contract.
13.
Dick Motta had an agreement to honor that remaining year by joining the Bullets front office as a special consultant to general manager Bob Ferry if he didn't get any head coaching appointments from other teams.
14.
Dick Motta is sometimes erroneously credited with coining the celebrated phrase: The opera ain't over 'til the fat lady sings.
15.
Dick Motta was the first head coach of the Dallas Mavericks, hired by the team on July 16,1980.
16.
Dick Motta was reassigned from his head coach role on May 1,1996.