Richie Adubato, Legendary Basketball Coach, Passes Away
The basketball community mourns the loss of Richie Adubato, a coach with a decades-long career in the NBA and WNBA. His family announced his passing on Thursday, at the age of 87. Adubato left a significant mark on the sport, coaching teams like the Dallas Mavericks, Orlando Magic, New York Liberty, and Washington Mystics.In his six seasons at the helm of the Liberty (1999-2004), Adubato led the team to the WNBA Finals on three occasions, where he coached future Hall of Famers Teresa Weatherspoon and Becky Hammon. He still holds the franchise record with 178 games coached and is second in wins (100). The coach also led the Washington Mystics of the WNBA for more than two seasons, between 2005 and 2007. Adubato was the Magic’s interim coach in 1997, after having been an assistant for several years. He was also the team’s radio analyst from 2005 to 2020. Before his time in the NBA, Adubato spent 18 years coaching basketball in high schools and universities in New Jersey. He graduated from William Paterson, where he captained the basketball and baseball teams. Richie Adubato’s legacy will endure in the memory of the fans and players who had the privilege of knowing him and being coached by him.Let’s remember him as the fun, intelligent, energetic, and genuinely warm human being he always was.
Beth Adubato, Richie Adubato’s daughter
