John Chaney (basketball, born 1932)

John Chaney (January 21, 1932 – January 29, 2021) was an American college basketball coach, best known for his success at Temple University from 1982 through 2006. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001 and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.

This article is about the basketball player and head coach. For the player and assistant coach, see John Chaney (basketball, born 1920).

John Chaney
Biographical details
Born(1932-01-21)January 21, 1932
Jacksonville, Florida
DiedJanuary 29, 2021(2021-01-29) (aged 89)
Playing career
1951–1955Bethune–Cookman
1955–1963Sunbury Mercuries
1963–1966Williamsport Billies
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1963–1966William L. Sayre Junior HS
1966–1972Simon Gratz HS
1972–1982Cheyney State
1982–2006Temple
Head coaching record
Overall741–312 (college)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
NCAA Division II Tournament (1978)
8 A-10 regular season (1985, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1998–2000, 2002)
6 A-10 Tournament (1985, 1987, 1988, 1990, 2000, 2001)
Awards
Division II National Coach of the Year (1978)
Henry Iba Award (1987, 1988)
Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000)
NABC Coach of the Year (1988)
AP Coach of the Year (1988)
UPI Coach of the Year (1988)
Basketball Hall of Fame
Inducted in 2001
College Basketball Hall of Fame
Inducted in 2006

Early life and playing career

Chaney was born in Jacksonville, Florida, but grew up in Philadelphia. He began his career after graduating from Bethune–Cookman College and spending some time in the Eastern Professional Basketball League, first with the Sunbury Mercuries from 1955 to 1963 and Williamsport Billies from 1963 to 1966.[1]

Coaching career

Chaney first became a basketball coach in 1963 at William L. Sayre Junior High School (now high school) at 58th and Walnut Street in Philadelphia. His teams had a 59–9 win-loss record in three seasons.[2] Inheriting a one-win team in 1966 at Simon Gratz High School in Philadelphia, Chaney compiled a 63–23 record in six seasons.[1]

Chaney's first collegiate position was at Cheyney State College, where he coached the Cheyney Wolves in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division II. At Cheyney, Chaney had a 232–56 record. Cheyney won the 1978 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament.[3]

After a decade at Cheyney, Chaney moved on to Temple University in 1982, where he coached the Temple Owls in NCAA Division I.[4] Chaney built a reputation as a tough coach who always demanded excellence on and off the court. He was well known for his early-morning practices, match-up zone defense, tough non-conference scheduling, and winning basketball teams.[2] He won the Henry Iba Award, given annually to the best college basktball coach by the United States Basketball Writers Association, in 1987 and 1988.[5]

On February 13, 1994, Chaney threatened to kill then-University of Massachusetts Amherst coach John Calipari at a post-game news conference, where Calipari was speaking at a podium. Chaney entered the conference mid-speech, calling him an "Italian son-of-a-bitch," accusing Calipari of manipulating the referees. When Calipari attempted to respond to the accusations, Chaney yelled, "Shut up...!", and proceeded to charge the stage, before being stopped by security. While being held back, Chaney shouted, "When I see you, I'm gonna kick your ass!" As security restrained Chaney, he repeatedly yelled, "I'll kill you!" and angrily admitted telling his players to "knock your fucking kids in the mouth."[6] Chaney received a one-game suspension for the incident.[7] The two coaches later reconciled. Chaney praised Calipari's coaching ability and defended him over the Derrick Rose controversy at the University of Memphis.[8]

On December 20, 2004, during a win over Princeton, Chaney became the fifth active coach and 19th all-time to appear on the sidelines for 1,000 games, joining Lou Henson (New Mexico State, Illinois), Bob Knight (Army, Indiana, Texas Tech), Eddie Sutton (Creighton, Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma State, San Francisco), and Hugh Durham (Florida State, Georgia, Jacksonville).[9]

In 2005, Chaney ordered backup forward Nehemiah Ingram into the game to commit hard fouls against Big 5 rival Saint Joseph's in response to what he thought were several missed calls by the referees. After the game Chaney admitted to "sending a message" and stated "I'm going to send in what we used to do years ago, send in the goons."[10] John Bryant of Saint Joseph's suffered a fractured arm as a result of an intentional foul.[10] Following the incident, he suspended himself for one game, and upon hearing the severity of the injury, the university suspended him for the remainder of the regular season.[10] Chaney self-extended the suspension to that year's Atlantic 10 Conference Men's Basketball Tournament.[11]

On March 13, 2006, Chaney announced his retirement from coaching at a press conference, effective after Temple's play in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).[12] Fran Dunphy was named Chaney's successor following the season. Chaney was later inducted into the Big 5 Hall of Fame, which recognizes the best in Philadelphia's college basketball history. Chaney won a total of 741 career games. He took Temple to the NCAA tournament 17 times. His 1987–88 Owls team entered the NCAA tournament ranked #1 in the country, and he reached the Elite Eight on five occasions. In 2001, Chaney was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.[13]

Personal life

Chaney and his wife, Jeanne, had a daughter, Pamela.[14] Chaney died on January 29, 2021, at the age of 89 after a brief illness.[13][15]

Head coaching record
Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Cheyney State Wolves (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference[16][17]) (1972–1982)
1972–73 Cheyney State 23–512–21st (Eastern)NCAA College Regional Third Place
1973–74 Cheyney State 19–711–3T–1st (Eastern)
1974–75 Cheyney State 16–99–52nd (Eastern)
1975–76 Cheyney State 24–511–11st (Eastern)NCAA Division II Elite Eight
1976–77 Cheyney State 20–810–21st (Eastern)NCAA Division II Elite Eight
1977–78 Cheyney State 27–212–01st (Eastern)NCAA Division II Champion
1978–79 Cheyney State 24–710–21st (Eastern)NCAA Division II Third Place
1979–80 Cheyney State 23–512–01st (Eastern)NCAA Division II Regional Third Place
1980–81 Cheyney State 21–89–3T–1st (Eastern)NCAA Division II Regional Third Place
1981–82 Cheyney State 28–311–11st (Eastern)NCAA Division II Elite Eight
Cheyney State: 225–59 (.792)107–19 (.849)
Temple Owls (Atlantic 10 Conference[18]) (1982–2006)
1982–83 Temple 14–155–93rd (East)
1983–84 Temple 26–518–01stNCAA Division I Second Round
1984–85 Temple 25–615–31stNCAA Division I Second Round
1985–86 Temple 25–615–3T–2ndNCAA Division I Second Round
1986–87 Temple 32–417–11stNCAA Division I Second Round
1987–88 Temple 32–218–01stNCAA Division I Elite Eight
1988–89 Temple 18–1215–32ndNIT First Round
1989–90 Temple 20–1115–31stNCAA Division I First Round
1990–91 Temple 24–1013–52ndNCAA Division I Elite Eight
1991–92 Temple 17–1311–52ndNCAA Division I First Round
1992–93 Temple 20–138–6T–2ndNCAA Division I Elite Eight
1993–94 Temple 23–812–42ndNCAA Division I Second Round
1994–95 Temple 19–1110–6T–2ndNCAA Division I First Round
1995–96 Temple 20–1312–42nd (East)NCAA Division I Second Round
1996–97 Temple 20–1110–64th (East)NCAA Division I Second Round
1997–98 Temple 21–913–31st (East)NCAA Division I First Round
1998–99 Temple 24–1113–31st (East)NCAA Division I Elite Eight
1999–00 Temple 27–614–21st (East)NCAA Division I Second Round
2000–01 Temple 24–1312–4T–2ndNCAA Division I Elite Eight
2001–02 Temple 19–1512–4T–1st (East)NIT Third Place
2002–03 Temple 18–1610–6T–2nd (East)NIT Quarterfinal
2003–04 Temple 15–149–72nd (East)NIT First Round
2004–05 Temple 16–1411–52nd (East)NIT First Round
2005–06 Temple 17–168–8T–7thNIT Opening Round
Temple: 516–253 (.671)296–100 (.747)
Total:741–312 (.704)

      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

See also

References
  1. "John Chaney". Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  2. Cherner, Reid (January 13, 2004). "Chaney a teacher first 'who cares so much'". USA Today. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  3. "John Chaney". Temple University Athletics. Archived from the original on April 28, 2006. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  4. "Chaney Is Named Coach at Temple". The New York Times. August 18, 1982. Retrieved May 6, 2010.
  5. https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/30800754/hall-fame-temple-coach-john-chaney-dies-89
  6. Moran, Malcolm (February 14, 1994). "COLLEGE BASKETBALL; Chaney Lambastes UMass's Calipari". The New York Times. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
  7. "Temple's Chaney Is Suspended : Basketball: The coach apologizes for threatening to kill Massachusetts' Calipari after game". Los Angeles Times. February 15, 1994.
  8. S.L. Price (March 14, 2011). "Too Slick, Too Loud, Too Successful Why John Calipari Can'T Catch A Break - Sports Illustrated Vault". Vault.si.com. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  9. "Temple's Chaney steams toward 1,000th game as collegiate coach | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com.
  10. "The Madness of John Chaney". Philadelphia Magazine. July 5, 2007. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
  11. "Chaney won't coach in Atlantic 10 tourney". ESPN.com. February 28, 2005.
  12. "Temple coach Chaney retires". ESPN.com. March 13, 2006.
  13. Jensen, Mike (January 29, 2021). "John Chaney, legendary Temple University basketball coach, dies at 89". Inquirer.com. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  14. "O'Neil: Chaney's disappearing act". ESPN.com. September 16, 2008.
  15. "John Chaney, Temple's commanding basketball coach, dies at 89". NBA.com. January 29, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  16. "PSAC year-by-year men's basketball champions" (PDF). Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. 2013. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  17. "MBB PSAC NCAA Playoff History" (PDF). Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  18. "2013-14 Atlantic 10 Men's Basketball" (PDF). Atlantic 10 Conference. Retrieved January 29, 2021.

Further reading
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