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Phil Johnson (basketball, born 1941)

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Phil Johnson
Personal information
Born (1941-09-06) September 6, 1941 (age 83)
Grace, Idaho, U.S.
Career information
High schoolGrace (Grace, Idaho)
College
Coaching career1963–2011
Career history
As coach:
1963–1964Utah State (freshmen)
1964–1968Weber State (assistant)
1968–1971Weber State
1971–1973Chicago Bulls (assistant)
1973–1978Kansas City-Omaha/Kansas City Kings
1979–1982Chicago Bulls (assistant)
1982Chicago Bulls (interim)
1982–1984Utah Jazz (assistant)
1984–1988Kansas City/Sacramento Kings
1988–2011Utah Jazz (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
As head coach:

As assistant coach:

  • 3× Big Sky regular season (1965, 1966, 1968)

Philip Donald Johnson (born September 6, 1941)[1][2] is a former college basketball player and a former basketball coach. He played college basketball at Utah State University and Weber State, and has coached collegiately at Weber State University.

Early life

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Philip Donald Johnson was born on September 6, 1941, in Grace, Idaho. He attended Grace High School, where he excelled in basketball and graduated in 1959.

College career

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Johnson attended Utah State University for one year before transferring to Weber College (now Weber State University) in Ogden, Utah, where he played on the Wildcats basketball team for one season. In 1961, Johnson returned to Utah State University and played two years on the Utah State Aggies basketball team.[3] Playing under coach LaDell Andersen, Johnson was part of Utah State teams that made the NCAA tournaments of 1962 and 1963. Johnson averaged 12.3 points and 7.1 rebounds in his senior season and graduated from Utah State in 1963 with a B.S. in physical education, and in 1964 he completed his master's degree.[4][5]

Coaching career

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Utah State (1963–1964)

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Johnson began his coaching career in the 1963–64 season as the freshman basketball team coach at Utah State.[6]

Weber State (1964–1971)

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In 1964, Johnson returned to his junior college alma mater, by then Weber State College, as an assistant coach under Dick Motta. In four seasons with Johnson as an assistant, Weber State finished at the top of the Big Sky Conference in 1965, 1966, and 1968 and made the 1968 NCAA Tournament.

In 1968, Johnson became head coach at Weber State. In three seasons with Johnson as head coach, Weber State was Big Sky regular season champions every season and made every NCAA tournament from 1969 to 1971. The Big Sky also recognized Johnson as Coach of the Year in those seasons, as well.[5] Johnson left Weber State with a 68–16 record.[7]

Chicago Bulls (1971–1973)

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In his first NBA coaching job, Johnson again joined Dick Motta's coaching staff in 1971 with the Chicago Bulls.[5]

Kansas City-Omaha/Kansas City Kings (1973–1978)

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On November 29, 1973, the Kansas City-Omaha Kings hired Johnson as new head coach after firing Bob Cousy.[8] Inheriting a 6–19 team, Johnson went 27–31 for the rest of the season, and the Kings finished 33–49.[9] The following season, Johnson led the Kings a 44–38 record and a berth in the 1975 NBA Playoffs.[10] For this achievement, Johnson earned the 1975 NBA Coach of the Year Award.[5] Johnson was fired on January 7, 1978, following a 13–24 start for the now Kansas City Kings.[11]

Chicago Bulls (1979–1982)

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In 1979, Johnson returned to the Chicago Bulls, this time as an assistant coach on Jerry Sloan's staff.[12][13] When Sloan was fired, Phil completed the year as Rod Thorn's assistant.

Utah Jazz (1982–1984)

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On July 20, 1982, Johnson joined Frank Layden's staff on the Utah Jazz and would serve as an assistant coach for two seasons.[5]

Kansas City/Sacramento Kings (1984–1988)

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On November 30, 1984, the Kansas City Kings hired Johnson as head coach, after Jack McKinney resigned following a 1–8 start. The Kings finished the 1984–85 season 31–51.[5][14] The Kings then moved to Sacramento, California, and Johnson coached the Kings' first two seasons in Sacramento. The team made the playoffs the first season. Following a 14–32 start, in the second year, the Kings fired Johnson on February 9, 1987. This was the second time the team fired Johnson from the head coaching position.[15]

Utah Jazz (1988–2011)

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Johnson was an assistant coach with the Utah Jazz from December 11, 1988 until his resignation on February 10, 2011.[5][16] During his stint with the Jazz, he was named the NBA's top assistant coach four times by an annual survey of NBA general managers (2002, 2004, 2007, 2010).

Post-playing career

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In 1992, Johnson was inducted into the Weber State University Sports Hall of Fame. In 2011, he was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame. On July 12, 2016, Johnson was awarded the inaugural Tex Winter Assistant Coach Lifetime Impact Award by the NBA Coach's Association. Utah State University inducted him into the Athletic Hall of Fame on September 4, 2016.

Head coaching record

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college basketball

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Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Weber State Wildcats (Big Sky Conference) (1968–1971)
1968–69 Weber State 27–3 15–0 1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1969–70 Weber State 20–7 12–3 1st NCAA First Round
1970–71 Weber State 21–6 12–2 1st NCAA First Round
Weber State: 68–16 (.810) 29–5 (.853)
Total: 68–16 (.810)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

NBA

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Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Kansas City–Omaha 1973–74 58 27 31 .466 4th in Midwest — — — —
Kansas City–Omaha 1974–75 82 44 38 .537 2nd in Midwest 6 2 4 .333 Lost in Conference semifinals
Kansas City 1975–76 82 31 51 .378 3rd in Midwest — — — —
Kansas City 1976–77 82 40 42 .488 4th in Midwest — — — —
Kansas City 1977–78 37 13 24 – fired mid-season — — — —
Chicago 1981–82 1 0 1 – interim — — — —
Kansas City 1984–85 73 30 43 .411 6th in Midwest — — — —
Sacramento 1985–86 82 37 45 .451 5th in Midwest 3 0 3 .000 Lost in First Round
Sacramento 1986–87 46 14 32 .304 Fired mid-season — — — —
Career 543 236 307 .435   9 2 7 .222  

Personal life

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Johnson and his wife, Ann, are the parents of two children, Mitchel and Nathan, and have two grandchildren, McKenna and Alexander. They reside in suburban Salt Lake City.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Marcus, Jeff (2003). Johnson, Philip Donald. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 1461726530. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  2. ^ "Phil Johnson, Assistant coach" (PDF). 2003–2004 Utah Jazz Media Guide. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
  3. ^ Benson, Lee (January 27, 2013). "About Utah: Basketball has been good to Phil Johnson". Deseret News. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
  4. ^ "USU Alumni Spotlight – Phil D. Johnson, Assistant Coach for the Utah Jazz", Aggie Insights, Utah State University Alumni Association, March 2004, archived from the original on December 22, 2014, retrieved February 19, 2015
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h "Phil Johnson". NBA. 2006. Archived from the original on March 15, 2011.
  6. ^ "Jazz briefs: Phil Johnson". Salt Lake Tribune. December 31, 2006. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
  7. ^ "Phil Johnson Coaching Record".
  8. ^ "1973–74 season review" (PDF). 2003–04 Sacramento Kings Media Guide. Sacramento Kings. p. 178. Archived from the original on November 9, 2004.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  9. ^ "1973–74 Kansas City-Omaha Kings Schedule and Results".
  10. ^ "1974–75 Kansas City-Omaha Kings Roster and Stats".
  11. ^ "1977–78 season review" (PDF). 2003–04 Sacramento Kings Media Guide. Sacramento Kings. pp. 186–187. Archived from the original on November 9, 2004.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  12. ^ Mitchell, Fred (February 18, 1982). "Thorn vows to change Bulls' philosophy after firing Sloan". Chicago Tribune. pp. 1–3 (Section 4).
  13. ^ "1981–82 Chicago Bulls Schedule and Results".
  14. ^ "1984–85 Kansas City Kings Roster and Stats".
  15. ^ "NBA: Last-place Sacramento Fires Coach, Assistant". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. February 10, 1987. Archived from the original on February 20, 2015.
  16. ^ "Utah Jazz: Phil Johnson surprised Jerry Sloan by saying he would go too". Deseret News. February 10, 2011. Johnson, who at 69 is six months older than [Jerry] Sloan...
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