Legendary Georgetown Coach John Thompson Dies At Age 78
#Socialites, we have some unfortunate news to share. Legendary basketball coach and Basketball Hall of Famer John Thompson Jr. has died, ESPN reports. The beloved coach was 78-years-old. Although no immediate cause of death has been announced, TMZ reports that Thompson passed away Monday morning.
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Thompson was the first African-American head coach to win the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship when his Georgetown Hoyas — led by Patrick Ewing — beat Houston 84-75 at the Kingdome in Seattle in 1984. Thompson, who also coached stars like Dikembe Mutombo, Alonzo Mourning and Allen Iverson, during 27 seasons at Georgetown was later enshrined into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999.
While many players have praised Thompson for his great work, Iverson personality thanked him for “saving his life.” He said those words again, this Monday after receiving the sad news.
“Thanks For Saving My Life Coach. I’m going to miss you, but I’m sure that you are looking down on us with a big smile. I would give anything just for one more phone call from you only to hear you say, ‘Hey MF’ then we would talk about everything except basketball. May you always Rest in Paradise, where there is no pain or suffering. I will always see your face in my mind, hoping that I made you proud. ‘Your Prodigal Son’. #Hoya4Life”
As the Daily News notes, he was a three-time national coach of the year, three-time Big East coach of the year, won 7 Big East tournament titles and made 14 consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament; 19 in total.
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