John Chaney, legendary Temple basketball coach, dead at 89

John Chaney, Temple University’s Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach, has died. He was 89.

Chaney spent 24 years coaching the Owls to 23 consecutive postseason tournament appearances. The two-time National Coach of the Year is the school’s winningest men’s basketball coach, as measured both by wins and winning percentage (516-252, 67.3 percentage).

During his years with the Owls, Chaney coached some outstanding players such as Aaron McKie, Eddie Jones, Rick Brunson, Mark Macon, Tim Perry, Lynn Greer, Nate Blackwell, Howie Evans, Marc Jackson and others. These players helped him put together a total of 17 NCAA tournament bids, including a school-record 12 straight from 1990-2001.

Chaney started his coaching career at Sayre Junior High School, where his teams won 59 of 68 games. He then moved up to Simon Gratz and quickly turned a struggling 1-17 club into a perennial winner.

In 1972, he became the head coach of then Cheyney State College. He compiled a phenomenal 225-59 record, appeared in eight national championship tournaments and won the NCAA Division II title in 1978.

 

In 1982, he joined Temple after a decade of coaching great basketball at Cheyney State.

In 2001, Chaney was recognized for his coaching exploits when he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Temple basketball coach John Chaney gestures while speaking at a news conference on March 13, 2006. — AP Photo/Joseph Kaczmarek/File
 
215-893-5719; dhunt@phillytrib.com

 

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