Earlier this week, it was announced that Portland Trail Blazers’ head coach Chauncey Billups will be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the 2024 class.
A Legendary Playing Career
Billups had a phenomenal playing career which was highlighted by his 2004 championship with the Detroit Pistons, in which he was named the Finals MVP. Over the course of his 17-year career, he played for seven organizations and played in over 1000 games. The third overall pick in the 1997 draft, he started his career as a member of the Boston Celtics however he didn’t stay there for long, playing only 51 games with them. In 1998, he was traded to the Toronto Raptors in the middle of his rookie season. His stay north of the border would also be a short one, as after 29 games with his second team he was traded once again to the Denver Nuggets.
Billups finally found some stability in Colorado, as he spent two seasons with the Nuggets before once again being on the move, this time to the Orlando Magic.
Billups never played a game in Orlando and after the season he signed with Minnesota. The Timberwolves had some key pieces already in place, the biggest of which was Kevin Garnett. They hoped Billups would help them move forward, but after two seasons he was on his way to his long-term home, the Pistons. Eventually, he’d have another stint with the Nuggets, and spent some time as a member of the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Clippers before returning to the Motor City for the 2013-14 season, after which he called it a career.
Although he never won the award, he was a candidate for Most Valuable Player multiple times in his career and also was recognized for his defensive play as well, as a member of the league’s All-Defense team twice and occasionally earning votes for Defensive Player of the Year. When all was said and done, he ended with 15.2 points per game over the course of his career, along with 5.4 assists and one steal per game.
A Young Coaching Career
Although Billups is going into the Hall of Fame for his contributions as a player, his ties to the Trail Blazers didn’t start until the 2021-22 season when he made his head coaching debut. He inherited the team right before a time of transition, as he was on the sideline for the departure of quite a few longtime Blazers including the previous era’s top stars, CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard. His tenure so far hasn’t been great, at the time of writing he has a record of 81-162 which was exactly a win every third game. This season, it’s difficult to blame him for the team’s struggles as the organization has started an intense rebuild.
Even during the first two seasons that he was on the sideline, the team was essentially in a free fall and regardless of his performance, the team was going to be near the bottom of the standings. Now, his priority needs to be the development of the young players if he hopes to keep his job for the long run. One of his fellow 2024 classmates Jerry West is going into the Hall of Fame for the third time, and if Billups wants to follow that example and get in a second time, he’ll certainly need to step up his coaching performance for the remainder of his career.
Northwest Sports Desk 