A heavy start to the week in the basketball world. One of the most beloved and accomplished coaches the league has ever produced, Rick Adelman, is gone, and the responses came fast.
The tributes said a lot about the man and even more about what he meant to the players who played for him and the reporters who covered him.
Adam Silver and Daryl Morey Lead Tributes as the NBA World Mourns Rick Adelman’s Loss
The news of Rick Adelman’s passing broke on Monday. The Hall of Fame coach, who piled up 1,042 wins across 23 seasons, died at the age of 79.
No official causes were disclosed, but within hours, tributes came pouring in from everywhere.
Commissioner Adam Silver set the tone. He called Adelman “a brilliant strategist and teacher of the game, and an even better person.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued the following statement today regarding the passing of former NBA player, head coach and Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Rick Adelman: pic.twitter.com/oko0ZXxyNa
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) June 2, 2026
“RIP Rick Adelman. First head coach I ever hired. Hall of Famer, brilliant basketball mind, and a great family man. I’ll never forget the 22-game win streak or him pushing the eventual champion 2009 Lakers to Game 7. Thinking of his family today,” Daryl Morey posted.
RIP Rick Adelman. First head coach I ever hired. Hall of Famer, brilliant basketball mind, and a great family man. I’ll never forget the 22-game win streak or him pushing the eventual champion 2009 Lakers to Game 7. Thinking of his family today.
— Daryl Morey 🗽🏀 (@dmorey) June 2, 2026
The National Basketball Coaches Association, which presented Adelman with the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023, also honored the legendary coach on social media.
One user went further, saying that Adelman was “the last piece keeping the Sacramento Kings relevant.”
Rick Adelman was the last piece keeping the Sacramento Kings relevant when he was coaching them
— Ed Memphis (@SayMane901) June 1, 2026
NBA writer Marc J. Spears kept it short: “Rest in Peace Hall of Famer. Outstanding coach who was beloved by his players. Great man. My condolences and prayers to the Adelman family.”
Rest in Peace Hall of Famer. Outstanding coach who was beloved by his players. Great man. My condolences and prayers to the Adelman family. https://t.co/vc9Htj1kQQ
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) June 1, 2026
The Kings’ corner of the internet was hit hardest. A user wrote, “Heartbreaking. The greatest coach in Sacramento Kings history. Rest in peace, Rick.”
Heartbreaking.
The greatest coach in Sacramento Kings history.
Rest in peace, Rick 💔 https://t.co/FjedWmMgmq
— J r u e (@thatl0calguy) June 1, 2026
Former Trail Blazers reporter Casey Holdahl wrote: “Just awful, condolences to the Adelman family.”
Just awful, condolences to the Adelman family https://t.co/Q9UVjg6zTk
— Casey Holdahl (@CHold) June 1, 2026
There was a reason why losing Adelman hit hardest in Sacramento. Hired by the franchise in 1998, he was the winningest coach in the Kings’ history.
Sacramento was tricky at first, but Adelman helped them push their pace harder than anyone else in the league, while the rest of the league had the ground to crawl. The 2001-02 team won 61 games, pushing the eventual champions, the Los Angeles Lakers, to seven games in the Western Conference Finals.
Before joining Sacramento, he had coached the Golden State Warriors and the Portland Trail Blazers.
Adelman took over the Trail Blazers midway through the 1988-89 season and built a Clyde Drexler-led group, reaching the Finals in 1990 and 1992.
Adelman led Portland to 291 regular-season wins, which still ranks third in franchise history. His résumé closed out in Houston and Minnesota, with a 22-game winning streak with the Rockets in 2008.
He finished 1,042-749, 10th on the all-time wins list, and entered the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021. His son, David, is the current head coach of the Denver Nuggets.
In the 20 seasons since Adelman left Sacramento in 2006, the Kings have made the playoffs once and have cycled through 13 head coaches.
