Joseph Alexander Mullaney (November 17, 1924 – March 8, 2000)
In the 1970–71 season the Lakers finished 48–34, first in the new Pacific Division. The Lakers defeated the Chicago Bulls in the conference semifinal but lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the Western Conference Finals.
In the 1971–72 season the Colonels finished with a record of 68–16, the best ever record in the history of the ABA, winning the Eastern Division. However, the Colonels lost the 1972 Eastern Division Semifinals to the 44-40 New York Nets, 4–2. Mullaney coached the East team to a 142–115 win in the ABA All Star game that season.
After the 1972–73 season Mullaney left the Colonels to coach the Utah Stars. Mullaney was replaced in Kentucky by Babe McCarthy. Oddly, McCarthy and Mullaney both were named co-ABA Coach of the Year for the 1974–75 season.
During the 1973–74 season Mullaney coached the Utah Stars to a 51–33 record, finishing 1st in the Western Division. The Stars defeated the San Diego Conquistadors 4–2 in the 1974 Western Division Semifinals and the Indiana Pacers 4–3 in the 1974 Western Division Finals, losing the 1974 ABA Finals to the New York Nets 4–1. Mullaney coached the West in the 1974 ABA All-Star Game, losing to the McCarthy-coached East 128–112. Mullaney was replaced as coach of the Stars by Morris "Bucky" Buckwalter after that season in Utah.
During the 1974–75 season Mullaney coached the Memphis Sounds, finishing with a record of 27-57 and 4th place in the Eastern Division. Their season was ended by Mullaney's old team, the Kentucky Colonels, en route to the Colonels' 1975 ABA Championship.
In December 1975, Mullaney became the new head coach of the Spirits of St. Louis. Mullaney took the helm in St. Louis a bit after the middle of the season after the team opened with a 20–27 record under coach Rod Thorn. Mullaney was the final coach of the Spirits of St. Louis, as by the end of the 1975–1976 season, the Spirits alongside the Kentucky Colonels were the only two ABA teams that survived throughout the entire 1975–76 ABA season that did not join the NBA in the ABA–NBA merger.
Post ABA career
After the 1975–76 season Mullaney coached the Buffalo Braves of the NBA. Mullaney was brought on board by the Braves' new owner, John Y. Brown Jr., who had previously had an ownership interest in Mullaney's old team, the Kentucky Colonels. Despite Adrian Dantley earning Rookie of the Year the Braves finished in 4th with a 30–52 record.
Mullaney coached in Italy and then for Brown University from 1978 through 1981.
Death
Mullaney died of cancer in Providence, Rhode Island on March 8, 2000, aged 75. He is buried in East Greenwich, Rhode Island.
NBA career statistics
{| class="toccolours" style="font-size: 90%; white-space: nowrap;"
|-
! colspan="6" style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid #aaa;"| Legend
|-
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;"| GP
| Games played
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;"| FG%
| style="padding-right: 8px" | Field-goal percentage
|-
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;"| FT%
| Free-throw percentage
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;"| APG
| Assists per game
|-
| style="background:#f2f2f2; border:1px solid black;"| PPG
| Points per game
| style="background-color: #F2F2F2; border: 1px solid black" | Bold
| Career high
|-
|}
Regular season
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"
|-
! Year
! Team
! GP
! FG%
! FT%
! APG
! PPG
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| Boston
| 37 || .129 || .800 || 1.4 || .8
|-
|style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career
| 37 || .129 || .800 || 1.4 || .8
|-
|}
References
External links
- BasketballReference.com: Mullaney (as coach)