Kim Hughes (basketball)

For other people named Kim Hughes, see Kim Hughes (disambiguation).

Kim Hughes

Hughes with Olimpia Milano in the 1974–75 season
Personal information
Born	(1952-06-04) June 4, 1952 Freeport, Illinois, U.S.
Listed height	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight	220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
High school	Freeport (Freeport, Illinois)
College	Wisconsin (1971–1974)
NBA draft	1974: 3rd round, 45th overall pick
Selected by the Buffalo Braves
Playing career	1974–1989
Position	Center
Number	35, 12, 44, 3
Career history
As player:
1974–1975	Olimpia Milano
1975–1978	New York / New Jersey Nets
1978–1980	Denver Nuggets
1980–1981	Cleveland Cavaliers
1981–1983	Virtus Roma
1983–1988	Viola Reggio Calabria
1988–1989	Basket Brescia
As coach:
1998–2003	Denver Nuggets (assistant)
2003–2010	Los Angeles Clippers (assistant)
2010	Los Angeles Clippers (interim)
2012–2015	Portland Trail Blazers (assistant)
2015–2016	Viola Reggio Calabria (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
ABA champion (1976) ABA All-Rookie First Team (1976) Italian Serie A champion (1983)
Career ABA and NBA statistics
Points	1,624 (3.8 ppg)
Rebounds	2,367 (5.6 rpg)
Blocks	502 (1.2 bpg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

Kim Galen Hughes (born June 4, 1952) is an American former basketball player and coach. He played professional basketball in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the New York / New Jersey Nets, Denver Nuggets, and Milwaukee Bucks between 1975 and 1981. Hughes served as the interim head coach for the Los Angeles Clippers for 33 games in 2010. On July 4, 2015, he was fired from his position as an assistant coach with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Playing career

The 6-foot-11 Hughes played college basketball at the University of Wisconsin from 1971 to 1974, averaging 15 points and 11 rebounds as a senior. His identical twin, Kerry, also 6–11, was also a starter on the Badgers. Hughes was selected by the Buffalo Braves in the third round (ninth pick) of the 1974 NBA draft; immediately, he played professionally in Italy during the 1974–75 season for Olimpia Milano. He spent the 1975–76 season with the New York Nets of the American Basketball Association (ABA), where he averaged eight points and nine rebounds and was named to the First Team ABA All-Rookie Team. The 1976 Nets team, which featured Julius Erving, Swen Nater, Larry Kenon and Brian Taylor, won the ABA championship.

Hughes spent two more seasons with the Nets after the franchise moved to the National Basketball Association (NBA). In July 1978, Hughes signed with the Denver Nuggets, where he played for two full seasons. Eight games into the 1980–81 NBA season, Hughes was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers. He retired from the NBA at the end of the 1981 season, but continued to play professionally in Italy until 1989. During his ABA and NBA career, Hughes averaged 3.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, and had field goal and free throw percentages of 49.7% and 39.7%, respectively.

Career statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high
†	Won an NBA championship

ABA

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1975–76†	New York	84	–	25.7	.530	.000	.455	9.2	0.7	1.2	1.4	8.2
Career		84	–	25.7	.530	.000	.455	9.2	0.7	1.2	1.4	8.2

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1975–76†	New York	12	–	22.2	.509	.000	.400	6.0	0.8	0.8	1.1	5.0
Career		12	–	22.2	.509	.000	.400	6.0	0.8	0.8	1.1	5.0

NBA

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1976–77	New York	81	–	25.7	.427	–	.275	7.0	1.2	1.5	1.5	4.0
1977–78	New Jersey	56	–	15.3	.356	–	.310	4.3	0.7	0.9	0.9	2.2
1978–79	Denver	81	–	13.4	.538	–	.400	4.1	0.9	0.7	1.3	2.6
1979–80	Denver	70	–	17.3	.505	.000	.366	4.7	1.1	0.9	1.1	3.1
1980–81	Denver	8	–	19.9	.440	.000	.500	6.3	1.4	1.4	1.8	2.9
1980–81	Cleveland	45	–	7.4	.356	.000	.000	1.7	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.7
Career		341	–	16.8	.449	.000	.333	4.7	0.9	0.9	1.1	2.7

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1978–79	Denver	3	–	11.7	.500	–	.500	3.7	0.0	0.7	0.0	1.0
Career		3	–	11.7	.500	–	.500	3.7	0.0	0.7	0.0	1.0

Coaching career

Hughes has worked as a scout and assistant coach with the NBA's Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers, and Portland Trail Blazers.

In 2004, Hughes was diagnosed with prostate cancer, but the Clippers and Donald Sterling refused to cover the cost of his surgery. Several Clippers players, including Corey Maggette, Chris Kaman, Marko Jarić and Elton Brand, chipped in to pay for Hughes' treatment. It turned out that the cancer was more advanced than previously thought and about to metastasize. The cost of the surgery was estimated by Hughes to be at least $70,000.

On February 4, 2010, Hughes replaced Mike Dunleavy, Sr. as the head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers. On April 15, 2010, Hughes was released from his duties as interim head coach after going 8–25. On August 17, 2012, Hughes was named as an assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers. On July 4, 2015, it was reported that Kim Hughes was relieved of his duties as assistant coach of the Portland Trail Blazers due to circumstances related to media statements and free agency.

Head coaching record

Legend

Regular season	G	Games coached	W	Games won	L	Games lost	W–L %	Win–loss %
Playoffs	PG	Playoff games	PW	Playoff wins	PL	Playoff losses	PW–L %	Playoff win–loss %

Team	Year	G	W	L	W–L%	Finish	PG	PW	PL	PW–L%	Result
L.A. Clippers	2009–10	33	8	25	.242	3rd in Pacific	—	—	—	—	Missed playoffs
Career		33	8	25	.242		—	—	—	—

External links

• Kim Hughes coaching profile
• Kim Hughes' NBA statistics at basketball-reference