Δεν κρυβω να σας πω,πως η ειδηση του θανατου του με ταραξε καπως..
Ηταν ο αγαπημενος μου προπονητης.
Μπορει να μην ηταν ο πιο πολυνικης η' ο πιο πολυ-τροπαιουχος,παρολα αυτα για μενα ηταν το Νο1..
Δεν νομιζω οτι υπαρχουν ανθρωποι του χωρου(παικτες,προπονητες,φιλαθλοι,τηλεσχολ
ιαστες,δημοσιογραφοι),που να μην τον αναγνωριζουν και να μην τον σεβονται.
Δεν ξερω γιατι,ουτε με ποιον τροπο,ομως καταφερνε κ ενεπνεε μεγαλο σεβασμο.
Ισως γιατι εκτος απο σπουδαιος προπονητης,ηταν και πολυ σπουδαιος ανθρωπος & δασκαλος,μια μεγαλη προσωπικοτητα.
Το αποκορυφωμα στη προπονητικη του καριερα το πετυχε με τα ''κακα παιδια'' του Ντητροιτ,κερδιζοντας 2 συνεχομενα πρωταθληματα και ακολουθησε η πολυ τιμητικη για εκεινον επιλογη στο να αναλαβει ως 1ος προπονητης,τη θρυλικη Ντριμ-Τιμ 1,στους Ολυμπιακους της Βαρκελωνης.
Παρα πολλοι,στεκονται στο πολυ σκληρο κ αμυντικο παιχνιδι εκεινης της ομαδας.Πιστευω ωστοσο,οτι ηταν και πολυ ικανη επιθετικα ομαδα.
Ολοκληρωμενη ομαδα σιγουρα.
Εκεινος?Πανεξυπνος & ευφυης προπονητης,αριστος ψυχολογος και μαιτρ στο να δινει τους καταλληλους ρολους στους καταλληλους παικτες,καθως και στο να τους πειθει ωστε να τους αποδεχονται πληρως..
Δεν ξερω αν θα μπορουσε καποιος αλλος προπονητης,να διαχειριστει με τοση μεγαλη επιτυχια,το ''αγριο συνοθυλευμα'' των Λαιμπιρ,Ροντμαν,Τομας,Μαχορν,Εντουαρντς,Ντ
�υμαρς,Αγκουαιρ & των υπολοιπων..
Ενω ολοι αυτοι οι παικτες,εσπερναν τον πανικο στα αγωνιστικα τερεν,μπροστα του καθονταν ''σουζα'' και τον προσεχαν με ευλαβεια..τον σεβονταν και τον αποδεχονταν πληρως..
Ο Ροντμαν,τον ειχε σαν πατερα του και οταν ο Ντειλι αποχωρησε απ τα Πιστονια,αρχισε τις γνωστες του τρελες..
Τεραστια μορφη..
Full Version: Τσακ Ντειλι
Οπως ανεφερα και στον Τοπικ των Πιστωνς ειναι απο τους λιγους προπονητες που το ονομα του θα ειναι σημειο αναφορας στην Ιστορια του μπασκετ.Μεγαλη μορφη.....
Οπως σωστα λεει ο φιλος bullet "τα Κακα Παιδια" βαραγαν προσοχες μπροστα στον Ντειλι.
Ειναι ενας απο αυτους που το φιλοσοφησε το αθλημα και κερδισε.
Ο Αιζαια Τομας τον ειχε σαν πατερα.Το ιδιο και ο Ντουμαρς.Ο Ροντμαν ηταν αλλος ανθρωπος στο Ντιτροιτ ναι μεν "βρομικος" αλλα οχι τοσο τρελος.
Να σημειωθει οτι ποτε δεν ηταν μακρια απο το μπασκετ παρολο που απομακρυνθηκε απο τους παγκους πριν αρκετα χρονια και συχνα πυκνα ελεγες τις αποψεις δινοντας καποιες συνεντευξεις.Η τελευταια ηταν κατα την διαρκεια των Ολυμπιακων στο Πεκινο.
Kαποια quotes απο τον Θρυλικο προπονητη.
I think the Pistons have such a well rounded team, which is why they're so successful. All you have to do is look at the stats defensively and at their rebounding and scoring.
Chuck Daly
I've had too lengthy a career and coached too many players to make a choice.
Chuck Daly
If you're going to have to beg them to play, it's not going to work.
Chuck Daly
The important thing is to get the right players on the team so Mike can be successful.
Chuck Daly
The two championship years were that significant for me.
Chuck Daly
There's nothing like being involved with a team that can go that distance.
Chuck Daly
Though I'd have to say it was generally the guys in Detroit, as a group, that won the two Championships. They were terrific and I always look back very fondly.
Chuck Daly
To some degree. I know I couldn't do it anymore.
Chuck Daly
Οπως σωστα λεει ο φιλος bullet "τα Κακα Παιδια" βαραγαν προσοχες μπροστα στον Ντειλι.
Ειναι ενας απο αυτους που το φιλοσοφησε το αθλημα και κερδισε.
Ο Αιζαια Τομας τον ειχε σαν πατερα.Το ιδιο και ο Ντουμαρς.Ο Ροντμαν ηταν αλλος ανθρωπος στο Ντιτροιτ ναι μεν "βρομικος" αλλα οχι τοσο τρελος.
Να σημειωθει οτι ποτε δεν ηταν μακρια απο το μπασκετ παρολο που απομακρυνθηκε απο τους παγκους πριν αρκετα χρονια και συχνα πυκνα ελεγες τις αποψεις δινοντας καποιες συνεντευξεις.Η τελευταια ηταν κατα την διαρκεια των Ολυμπιακων στο Πεκινο.
Kαποια quotes απο τον Θρυλικο προπονητη.
I think the Pistons have such a well rounded team, which is why they're so successful. All you have to do is look at the stats defensively and at their rebounding and scoring.
Chuck Daly
I've had too lengthy a career and coached too many players to make a choice.
Chuck Daly
If you're going to have to beg them to play, it's not going to work.
Chuck Daly
The important thing is to get the right players on the team so Mike can be successful.
Chuck Daly
The two championship years were that significant for me.
Chuck Daly
There's nothing like being involved with a team that can go that distance.
Chuck Daly
Though I'd have to say it was generally the guys in Detroit, as a group, that won the two Championships. They were terrific and I always look back very fondly.
Chuck Daly
To some degree. I know I couldn't do it anymore.
Chuck Daly
The Detroit Pistons made plenty of enemies while winning titles and throwing blows two decades ago. Chuck Daly, though, was universally admired for his class and coaching acumen.
"I never understood how a great man and nice guy coached the Bad Boys," Charles Barkley said.
Daly died Saturday morning at 78 in Jupiter, Fla., with his family by his side, the Pistons said. The team announced in March he was being treated for pancreatic cancer.
The Hall of Fame coach led the Dream Team to the Olympic gold medal in 1992 after winning back-to-back NBA championships in Detroit.
Daly was renowned for his ability to create harmony out of diverse personalities at all levels of the game, whether they were Ivy Leaguers at Pennsylvania, Dream Teamers Michael Jordan and Barkley, or Pistons as dissimilar as Dennis Rodman and Joe Dumars.
"It's a players' league. They allow you to coach them or they don't," Daly once said. "Once they stop allowing you to coach, you're on your way out."
Daly was voted one of the 10 greatest coaches of the NBA's first half-century in 1996, two years after being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the first coach to win both NBA and Olympic titles.
Daly had a career regular-season record of 638-437 in 13 NBA seasons. In 12 playoff appearances, his teams went 75-51. He left Detroit as the Pistons' leader in regular-season and playoff victories.
NBA commissioner David Stern said the "void left by his death will never be filled."
"Chuck did much more than coach basketball games," he said in a statement. "He positively impacted everyone he met, both personally and professionally, and his love of people and the game of basketball helped develop the next generation of coaches."
Daly had a golden touch at the Barcelona Games with the likes of Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Jordan, using a different lineup every game.
"Chuck was a great leader," Jordan said. "I only wish I could have played for him outside of the Dream Team."
Added Bird: "He handled that team and its talent as well as anybody could," Bird said. "He treated us all with respect and had us all vying for the same goal. For me, it was an honor to play for him."
Daly humbled the NBA superstars by coaching a group of college players to victory in a controlled scrimmage weeks before the Olympics.
"I was the happiest man in the gym," Daly said.
In Barcelona -- a team also bolstered by Patrick Ewing, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, Chris Mullin, Karl Malone and John Stockton -- the Americans scored more than 100 points in each of their eight wins and their victory margin topped 43 points. Daly did not call a timeout during the tournament.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski was an Olympic assistant under Daly.
"For that, I am eternally grateful," he said. "There was no better ambassador for the game of basketball than Chuck Daly."
Daly also made the right moves for the Pistons, who were notorious for their physical play with Bill Laimbeer and Rick Mahorn leading the fight, Rodman making headlines and Hall of Fame guards Isiah Thomas and Dumars lifting the team to titles in 1989 and 1990.
"He did an unbelievable job of taking a bunch of different personalities and molding them into a team," Mahorn said.
Thomas, the former New York Knicks coach and president who now coaches at Florida International University, said Daly's death was an "immeasurable loss for the NBA and the entire basketball world."
"I can't explain in words how much he gave me as a player and a man," he said.
Former Piston John Salley gave Daly the nickname Daddy Rich for his impeccably tailored suits. The National Basketball Coaches' Association created pins with the initials "CD" that many coaches and broadcasters are wearing as it dedicates this postseason to Daly. The organization also established the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award, which will be given annually.
Despite his success, Daly wasn't part of a Coach of the Year presentation until he handed the trophy to then-Detroit coach Rick Carlisle in 2002.
"This is as close as I've ever been to that thing," Daly said, looking at the Red Auerbach Trophy.
Born July 20, 1930, in St. Marys, Pa., Charles Jerome Daly played college ball at St. Bonaventure and Bloomsburg.
He began coaching in the NBA in 1978 as an assistant under Billy Cunningham in Philadelphia. His first head coaching job was with Cleveland, but he was fired after the Cavaliers went 9-32 the first half of the 1981-82 season.
In 1983, Daly took over a Detroit team that had never had two straight winning seasons and led the Pistons to nine straight. He persuaded Rodman, Thomas, Dumars, Mahorn and Laimbeer to play as a unit and they responded with championships in 1989 and 1990.
Far from being intimidated by the Pistons' Bad Boys image, Daly saw the upside of it.
"I've also had players who did not care," he said a decade later. "I'd rather have a challenging team."
Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson went up against Daly while coaching the Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.
"In the heat of those battles, Chuck was always a friend of coaches," Jackson said. "A good guy. He was always in the coaching fraternity and always extended a friendly hand."
After leaving Detroit, Daly coached the New Jersey Nets for two seasons and led them to the playoffs both times.
He left broadcasting to return to the bench in 1997 with the Orlando Magic and coached them two seasons, then retired at 68 because he was weary of travel. Daly joined the Vancouver Grizzlies as a senior adviser in 2000. In retirement, he divided time between homes in Jupiter and suburban Detroit.
The Pistons retired No. 2 in 1997 to honor Daly's two NBA titles.
"Without you, there wouldn't be us," Mahorn told the coach during the ceremony.
Daly is survived by his wife, Terry, daughter Cydney and grandchildren Sebrina and Connor.
The funeral is Wednesday in Tequesta, Fla., at St. Jude Catholic Church. Visitation is Tuesday in nearby Jupiter at Aycock Funeral Home.
πηγη:nba.com News
"I never understood how a great man and nice guy coached the Bad Boys," Charles Barkley said.
Daly died Saturday morning at 78 in Jupiter, Fla., with his family by his side, the Pistons said. The team announced in March he was being treated for pancreatic cancer.
The Hall of Fame coach led the Dream Team to the Olympic gold medal in 1992 after winning back-to-back NBA championships in Detroit.
Daly was renowned for his ability to create harmony out of diverse personalities at all levels of the game, whether they were Ivy Leaguers at Pennsylvania, Dream Teamers Michael Jordan and Barkley, or Pistons as dissimilar as Dennis Rodman and Joe Dumars.
"It's a players' league. They allow you to coach them or they don't," Daly once said. "Once they stop allowing you to coach, you're on your way out."
Daly was voted one of the 10 greatest coaches of the NBA's first half-century in 1996, two years after being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the first coach to win both NBA and Olympic titles.
Daly had a career regular-season record of 638-437 in 13 NBA seasons. In 12 playoff appearances, his teams went 75-51. He left Detroit as the Pistons' leader in regular-season and playoff victories.
NBA commissioner David Stern said the "void left by his death will never be filled."
"Chuck did much more than coach basketball games," he said in a statement. "He positively impacted everyone he met, both personally and professionally, and his love of people and the game of basketball helped develop the next generation of coaches."
Daly had a golden touch at the Barcelona Games with the likes of Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Jordan, using a different lineup every game.
"Chuck was a great leader," Jordan said. "I only wish I could have played for him outside of the Dream Team."
Added Bird: "He handled that team and its talent as well as anybody could," Bird said. "He treated us all with respect and had us all vying for the same goal. For me, it was an honor to play for him."
Daly humbled the NBA superstars by coaching a group of college players to victory in a controlled scrimmage weeks before the Olympics.
"I was the happiest man in the gym," Daly said.
In Barcelona -- a team also bolstered by Patrick Ewing, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, Chris Mullin, Karl Malone and John Stockton -- the Americans scored more than 100 points in each of their eight wins and their victory margin topped 43 points. Daly did not call a timeout during the tournament.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski was an Olympic assistant under Daly.
"For that, I am eternally grateful," he said. "There was no better ambassador for the game of basketball than Chuck Daly."
Daly also made the right moves for the Pistons, who were notorious for their physical play with Bill Laimbeer and Rick Mahorn leading the fight, Rodman making headlines and Hall of Fame guards Isiah Thomas and Dumars lifting the team to titles in 1989 and 1990.
"He did an unbelievable job of taking a bunch of different personalities and molding them into a team," Mahorn said.
Thomas, the former New York Knicks coach and president who now coaches at Florida International University, said Daly's death was an "immeasurable loss for the NBA and the entire basketball world."
"I can't explain in words how much he gave me as a player and a man," he said.
Former Piston John Salley gave Daly the nickname Daddy Rich for his impeccably tailored suits. The National Basketball Coaches' Association created pins with the initials "CD" that many coaches and broadcasters are wearing as it dedicates this postseason to Daly. The organization also established the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award, which will be given annually.
Despite his success, Daly wasn't part of a Coach of the Year presentation until he handed the trophy to then-Detroit coach Rick Carlisle in 2002.
"This is as close as I've ever been to that thing," Daly said, looking at the Red Auerbach Trophy.
Born July 20, 1930, in St. Marys, Pa., Charles Jerome Daly played college ball at St. Bonaventure and Bloomsburg.
He began coaching in the NBA in 1978 as an assistant under Billy Cunningham in Philadelphia. His first head coaching job was with Cleveland, but he was fired after the Cavaliers went 9-32 the first half of the 1981-82 season.
In 1983, Daly took over a Detroit team that had never had two straight winning seasons and led the Pistons to nine straight. He persuaded Rodman, Thomas, Dumars, Mahorn and Laimbeer to play as a unit and they responded with championships in 1989 and 1990.
Far from being intimidated by the Pistons' Bad Boys image, Daly saw the upside of it.
"I've also had players who did not care," he said a decade later. "I'd rather have a challenging team."
Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson went up against Daly while coaching the Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.
"In the heat of those battles, Chuck was always a friend of coaches," Jackson said. "A good guy. He was always in the coaching fraternity and always extended a friendly hand."
After leaving Detroit, Daly coached the New Jersey Nets for two seasons and led them to the playoffs both times.
He left broadcasting to return to the bench in 1997 with the Orlando Magic and coached them two seasons, then retired at 68 because he was weary of travel. Daly joined the Vancouver Grizzlies as a senior adviser in 2000. In retirement, he divided time between homes in Jupiter and suburban Detroit.
The Pistons retired No. 2 in 1997 to honor Daly's two NBA titles.
"Without you, there wouldn't be us," Mahorn told the coach during the ceremony.
Daly is survived by his wife, Terry, daughter Cydney and grandchildren Sebrina and Connor.
The funeral is Wednesday in Tequesta, Fla., at St. Jude Catholic Church. Visitation is Tuesday in nearby Jupiter at Aycock Funeral Home.
πηγη:nba.com News
DETROIT (AP) -- The former Catholic archbishop of Detroit will lead the funeral in Florida for former Detroit Pistons coach Chuck Daly.
The Archdiocese of Detroit said Tuesday that Cardinal Adam Maida will celebrate the liturgy for Daly. The funeral is Wednesday afternoon at St. Jude Catholic Church in Tequesta, Fla.
Daly had pancreatic cancer and died Saturday at 78 in Jupiter, Fla.
The Hall of Fame coach led the Dream Team to the Olympic gold medal in 1992 after winning back-to-back NBA championships in Detroit.
πηγη:NBA.COM NEWS
The Archdiocese of Detroit said Tuesday that Cardinal Adam Maida will celebrate the liturgy for Daly. The funeral is Wednesday afternoon at St. Jude Catholic Church in Tequesta, Fla.
Daly had pancreatic cancer and died Saturday at 78 in Jupiter, Fla.
The Hall of Fame coach led the Dream Team to the Olympic gold medal in 1992 after winning back-to-back NBA championships in Detroit.
πηγη:NBA.COM NEWS
QUOTE(a bullet for your head @ May 12 2009, 03:38 ) 
"Chuck was a great leader," Jordan said. "I only wish I could have played for him outside of the Dream Team."
Σοβαρη "καταθεση" αυτη του Μαικλ Τζορνταν!
Δειχνει αν και ειχαν μεγαλη αντιπαλοτητα και του "εβγαλε το λαδι" ποσο τον εκτιμουσε ο MJ.
Για μενα ηταν καλυτερος σαν προπονητης απο τον Φιλ Τζακσον των 9(10?) δαχτυλιδιων!
Ειχε μια ξεχωριστη φιλοσοφια που ειτε αρεσε ειτε δεν αρεσε ειναι και θα παραμεινει σημειο αναφορας για παντα και αυτο ειναι το πιο σημαντικο!
Ευχαριστω τα παιδια για τις συμβουλες που μου εδωσαν.
Απ τη μερα που συνεβη το μοιραιο,ενιωσα την αναγκη και να ανοιξω αυτο το τοπικ προς τιμην του Μεγαλου Τσακ Ντειλι,κ να πω καποια πραγματα που αισθανομουν,κ να υπαρχει ενα υλικο,ετσι...για να τον βλεπουμε και να τον θυμομαστε που και που...
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4894962
το FBI αναζητει τους συντακτες γραμματων που σταληκαν στον Ντειλη οταν μεσουρανουσαν οι Πιστονς στα τελη της δεκαετιας του 80 και αρχες 90...
Αρκετοι μισουσαν τους Πιστονς για την "αντιαθλητικη" τους αμυνα και αρκετα γραμματα ειχαν σταλει μετα απο τραυματισμους παικτων αλλων ομαδων σε αγωνες με τους Πιστονς, πιθανων απο οπαδους των εν λογω ομαδων, στον Ντειλι.
Σε καποιο απο αυτα ειχε κατηγορηθει ο Ντειλι οτι τον εχει εξουσιασει ο Σατανας
και γιαυτο οδηγει τους παικτες του να παιζουν χωρις να ενδιαφερονται για την υγεια των αντιπαλων τους.
το FBI αναζητει τους συντακτες γραμματων που σταληκαν στον Ντειλη οταν μεσουρανουσαν οι Πιστονς στα τελη της δεκαετιας του 80 και αρχες 90...
Αρκετοι μισουσαν τους Πιστονς για την "αντιαθλητικη" τους αμυνα και αρκετα γραμματα ειχαν σταλει μετα απο τραυματισμους παικτων αλλων ομαδων σε αγωνες με τους Πιστονς, πιθανων απο οπαδους των εν λογω ομαδων, στον Ντειλι.
Σε καποιο απο αυτα ειχε κατηγορηθει ο Ντειλι οτι τον εχει εξουσιασει ο Σατανας
και γιαυτο οδηγει τους παικτες του να παιζουν χωρις να ενδιαφερονται για την υγεια των αντιπαλων τους.QUOTE
Letter to late Daly referenced Satan
Associated Press
DETROIT -- The FBI investigated a series of threatening letters sent to Detroit Pistons coach Chuck Daly at the height of his team's success during the 1989-90 "Bad Boys" championship era, newly released government records show.
The 67 pages, obtained by The Associated Press as part of a Freedom of Information Act request, detail how federal agents in Detroit ordered fingerprint, handwriting and even psycholinguistic analyses as part of an effort to determine who sent the correspondences.
Daly's teams played a punishing, in-your-face brand of defense that angered opposing players and coaches, and -- based on the content of the letters examined by the FBI -- fans, too.
One letter, mailed from Cleveland and postmarked April 24, 1989, arrived about two months after Cavaliers guard Mark Price suffered a concussion following a Rick Mahorn elbow and three months after Cleveland's Brad Daugherty and Detroit's Bill Laimbeer had an on-court fistfight.
"God made me realize that YOU, not Laimbeer, Mahorn or any of the others are the one possessed by [Satan]," the author wrote in the one-page handwritten letter addressed to "Mr. Chuck Daly."
Daly, a Hall of Famer who died in May at the age of 78, gave the letter to team officials, who in turn notified NBA security in New York. The league advised the Pistons to turn it over to the FBI.
Federal agents interviewed Daly and team personnel and submitted the letter for various tests. A psycholinguistic analysis determined the author likely "has had previous psychiatric hospitalizations and/or is currently on outpatient status," but lacked "the capacity to carry out any form of planned action."
Another letter, this one typewritten and postmarked Royal Oak, Mich., on Feb. 16, 1990, also was addressed to Daly and claimed the Pistons didn't "know the meaning of the word `sportsmanship" and would "pay dearly."
The FBI ran a fingerprint test and determined the model of typewriter used, but as with the first letter, couldn't locate a suspect.
In each case, Hal Helterhoff, special agent in charge of the FBI in Michigan, wrote a letter to the U.S. attorney's office in Detroit to inform prosecutors that the agency hadn't been able to ID an author.
Current FBI spokeswoman Sandra Berchtold declined to comment on the letters sent to Daly. FBI files become a public record when the subject dies.
In Daly's day, the Pistons -- thanks to their physical style of play -- were perceived as villains by some opposing fans, and bitter rivalries grew with fellow Eastern Conference foes in Boston, Chicago and Cleveland.
Things got so bad that, ahead of a Cavs-Pistons game on March 3, 1989, someone called Cleveland coach Lenny Wilkens in his suburban Detroit hotel room and threatened his life. Wilkens notified NBA officials, and the league provided extra security for him during the game.
"It's sad. This is the first time anything like this ever happened to me," Wilkens said at the time. "It makes me nervous to have all these people around me."
It seems, though, that the threats against Daly weren't common knowledge in the team's locker room.
Hall of Fame Pistons guard Joe Dumars, now the team's president of basketball operations, said he "never heard of it."
Mahorn, currently a Pistons radio announcer, also had no recollection of the threats against his coach.
"I have no clue about that," he said.
Then-general manager Jack McCloskey, now retired and living in Georgia, remembers receiving his own letters and other threats during that time, usually over trades he had made.
"I can remember I stopped at a red light, and I had just traded Adrian Dantley," McCloskey said. "Two guys stopped next to me, recognized me and just had the finger gun. They did that. But when it all came out in championships, people forget it."
Those who knew Daly said he had a special charisma that made it difficult for people to stay mad at him.
Charles Barkley, whom Daly coached to Olympic gold in 1992, has said he "never understood how a great man and nice guy coached the Bad Boys."
Associated Press
DETROIT -- The FBI investigated a series of threatening letters sent to Detroit Pistons coach Chuck Daly at the height of his team's success during the 1989-90 "Bad Boys" championship era, newly released government records show.
The 67 pages, obtained by The Associated Press as part of a Freedom of Information Act request, detail how federal agents in Detroit ordered fingerprint, handwriting and even psycholinguistic analyses as part of an effort to determine who sent the correspondences.
Daly's teams played a punishing, in-your-face brand of defense that angered opposing players and coaches, and -- based on the content of the letters examined by the FBI -- fans, too.
One letter, mailed from Cleveland and postmarked April 24, 1989, arrived about two months after Cavaliers guard Mark Price suffered a concussion following a Rick Mahorn elbow and three months after Cleveland's Brad Daugherty and Detroit's Bill Laimbeer had an on-court fistfight.
"God made me realize that YOU, not Laimbeer, Mahorn or any of the others are the one possessed by [Satan]," the author wrote in the one-page handwritten letter addressed to "Mr. Chuck Daly."
Daly, a Hall of Famer who died in May at the age of 78, gave the letter to team officials, who in turn notified NBA security in New York. The league advised the Pistons to turn it over to the FBI.
Federal agents interviewed Daly and team personnel and submitted the letter for various tests. A psycholinguistic analysis determined the author likely "has had previous psychiatric hospitalizations and/or is currently on outpatient status," but lacked "the capacity to carry out any form of planned action."
Another letter, this one typewritten and postmarked Royal Oak, Mich., on Feb. 16, 1990, also was addressed to Daly and claimed the Pistons didn't "know the meaning of the word `sportsmanship" and would "pay dearly."
The FBI ran a fingerprint test and determined the model of typewriter used, but as with the first letter, couldn't locate a suspect.
In each case, Hal Helterhoff, special agent in charge of the FBI in Michigan, wrote a letter to the U.S. attorney's office in Detroit to inform prosecutors that the agency hadn't been able to ID an author.
Current FBI spokeswoman Sandra Berchtold declined to comment on the letters sent to Daly. FBI files become a public record when the subject dies.
In Daly's day, the Pistons -- thanks to their physical style of play -- were perceived as villains by some opposing fans, and bitter rivalries grew with fellow Eastern Conference foes in Boston, Chicago and Cleveland.
Things got so bad that, ahead of a Cavs-Pistons game on March 3, 1989, someone called Cleveland coach Lenny Wilkens in his suburban Detroit hotel room and threatened his life. Wilkens notified NBA officials, and the league provided extra security for him during the game.
"It's sad. This is the first time anything like this ever happened to me," Wilkens said at the time. "It makes me nervous to have all these people around me."
It seems, though, that the threats against Daly weren't common knowledge in the team's locker room.
Hall of Fame Pistons guard Joe Dumars, now the team's president of basketball operations, said he "never heard of it."
Mahorn, currently a Pistons radio announcer, also had no recollection of the threats against his coach.
"I have no clue about that," he said.
Then-general manager Jack McCloskey, now retired and living in Georgia, remembers receiving his own letters and other threats during that time, usually over trades he had made.
"I can remember I stopped at a red light, and I had just traded Adrian Dantley," McCloskey said. "Two guys stopped next to me, recognized me and just had the finger gun. They did that. But when it all came out in championships, people forget it."
Those who knew Daly said he had a special charisma that made it difficult for people to stay mad at him.
Charles Barkley, whom Daly coached to Olympic gold in 1992, has said he "never understood how a great man and nice guy coached the Bad Boys."
CHUCK DALY NEVER SAW A SITUATION HE COULDN'T HANDLE....AND HE NEVER SAW A PLAYER THAT HE COULDN'T DEAL WITH...
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