“On Sunday morning our beloved husband, dad, grandfather and great-grandfather Don Nelson peacefully went to be with the Lord, surrounded by his loving family,” his family said in a statement. “Throughout his last week, friends and family encircled him with love, sharing the blessing of his friendship and revisiting treasured memories.”

Playing Career and Celtics Legacy

Nelson began his NBA career in 1962 with the Chicago Zephyrs before joining the Los Angeles Lakers in 1963, while he signed with the Boston Celtics in 1965 and won his first of five NBA titles with the team in his rookie season. He remained with the Celtics for 11 years and had his No. 19 jersey retired in 1978. The Celtics described Nelson as a “favorite of Red Auerbach’s” and highlighted his 1969 NBA Finals performance, where he hit a clutch foul-line jumper in Game 7 against the Lakers.

The Celtics said Nelson’s shot with just over a minute to go in that game helped secure Boston’s 11th title in 13 seasons, while his number was raised shortly after he retired in 1976, following another championship season.

Coaching Career and Influence

After retiring as a player, Nelson transitioned to coaching in 1976, beginning with the Milwaukee Bucks, he remained with the team until 1988, winning Coach of the Year awards in 1983 and 1985. He also coached the New York Knicks and Dallas Mavericks before joining the Golden State Warriors, where he won his third Coach of the Year award in 1992. He finished his career with 1,335 regular-season victories, a record at the time of his retirement in 2010.

Nelson was known for his new style of play, including the introduction of the “point forward” and a fast-paced offense; he credited his playing days with Celtics coach Red Auerbach for inspiring his approach. “The league really hadn’t seen an offense like the one we were running, and the results were undeniable,” Nelson wrote in 2016 in The Players’ Tribune.

Among his most notable coaching stints was with the Dallas Mavericks, where he coached Dirk Nowitzki from 1997 to 2005 — Nowitzki, in a message on X, said: “You have believed in me. You saw things in my game before I even realized I was capable. I don’t believe my career would have turned out this way if you hadn’t been my first coach and given me the freedom to play my game. I can only say THANK YOU. For everything. RIP, Legend.”

Legacy and Tributes

Nelson was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and was named one of the top 10 coaches of all time in the NBA’s 50th-anniversary ceremony in 1996. He was also the 2025 recipient of the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award — the Golden State Warriors described him as “an iconic figure in Warriors history” and highlighted his “forward-looking” contributions to the game.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued a statement honoring Nelson’s contributions to the league. The Dallas Mavericks announced that a funeral will be held in Dallas on Thursday, though no date for the burial in Hawaii has been set yet.