Philly hoops legend Jim Lynam still everyone's favorite teacher

ABOUT TWO hours before the 76ers play a home game at the Wells Fargo Center, a familiar face makes his way down onto the court and the mood immediately changes. Smiles contagiously appear. There isn't a mad rush toward Jimmy Lynam, but the flow of the traffic on the court that consists of players, coaches and media members shifts toward the 74-year-old Philadelphia legend.

Everyone wants to say hi and talk a little hoops with the patriarch of this basketball-rich city. And Lynam has time for everyone.

"Hey coach," says a security guard, stopping Lynam in his tracks. "I've got a way the Sixers can play Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel together." Lynam stops, gives his patented "go ahead" and listens. Truly listens. He has a response to the suggestions that leaves the guard satisfied that he has just been taught a quick lesson in basketball.

The funny part about it all is that Lynam, after finishing off stellar playing careers at West Catholic High and then Saint Joseph's, never even thought about entering the coaching world after his playing days were over. He was sitting on the beach with his future wife, Kay, one summer day when someone approached him.

"It was August and Kay and I were on the beach," Lynam recalled. "Father John Dugan, who I didn't know at the time, came up to me and said he had a job for me coaching at Lansdale Catholic, if I wanted it. I couldn't believe it. I never had even thought of coaching. We were getting married a month later and so I took the job."

All the knowledge the 5-9 point guard had accumulated while being the backcourt mate of Herb Magee at West Catholic and observing Jack Ramsay coach at St. Joe's came spilling out in his first season, as Lansdale Catholic went 18-1.

"I don't know how much that had to do with coaching, probably none of it," said Lynam. "I inherited really good players.

"The next season Father Dugan made me the athletic director and I taught math. We got our brains beat in on the court because we had lost everyone to graduation and I didn't really like teaching high school. So, I was going to take a computer job with the government when Ramsay called me and asked me to coach on his staff. It was, like, late May when he called."

And from there, Jimmy Lynam's career path was formed and Philadelphia basketball is better for it.

There were college coaching gigs at Fairfield and American before his memorable three-year run at his alma mater. It was during that time at St. Joe's when Lynam masterminded one of the biggest upsets in college basketball history when his Hawks beat No. 1 DePaul in the 1981 NCAA Tournament, a 49-48 decision decided on a buzzer-beating layup by John Smith.

"Coach was a player's coach," said Bryan Warrick, a junior guard and leading scorer on the 1980-81 team. "He had an uncanny ability of recognizing game situations. He always made the right move in college. I've been around a lot of coaches; he had the best feel of the game of anyone that I've seen. His assessment of his team and the opponent was always right. We'd play games in the 40s sometimes and sometimes we'd play games in the 90s. He just knew what a game called for us to have the best chances of winning.

"The one thing that I loved about him was he was about winning. It was not about him at all. It was not about an individual at all. It was all about the team."

Lynam's success at St. Joe's, which included a 65-28 record, led to a long run in the NBA, beginning with an assistant-coaching position with Ramsay in Portland.

After a couple of seasons as the head coach of the Clippers, Lynam came home and was an assistant for the Sixers for three years before taking over as head coach during the 1987-88 season. He stayed here for four more years before moving to the front office as general manager. He spent his last 11 seasons in the league as an assistant coach in New Jersey, Portland and here again.

But for all the basketball wisdom accumulated through the years, what made, and makes, Lynam such a success and so widely adored is his ability to deal with people.

"When I took the (head-coaching) job in Portland, he was somebody I just had to have on my staff," said former Sixers star Maurice Cheeks, now an assistant with the Oklahoma City Thunder. "I always think of that with Jimmy - I had to have him. So when I then got the job in Philly, again, I had to have him. He always gives you what you need, whether you're a player or a coach."

Cheeks played for the Sixers during the years Lynam was an assistant.

"He goes beyond X's and O's," Cheeks said. "He knew how to handle Charles (Barkley). He knew how to handle players who weren't stars. He is just a guy who has it all. You always wanted to go to him for answers. I love Jimmy."

Lynam has had that effect on many.

Since they first met as eight graders, Lynam and Magee have grown a lasting friendship. There have been too many rounds of golf played together, surpassed only by the amount of funny stories they share.

"It's always basketball," Magee said of the pair's most popular subject. "If we call, we'll talk for five seconds about something else, then it's back to basketball, the guys he's seen, how good my team is. I'll ask questions about situations. He's one of those guys that if you ask a question, you're going to get a straight, honest answer and it will be very entertaining.

"I have a couple of friends who I play golf with, and they'll always ask if Jimmy is going to play. If you have lunch or a beer after, that's when everybody wants to be in the group with Jimmy. You play 18 holes and he could have 18 different stories on the tee and never stuff that is about him. It's never about him. Always about guys that played in the league or different guys."

"Jimmy has all the qualities when it comes to the X's and O's," said John Nash, former Sixers GM who has worked throughout the league with Lynam. "Most coaches are adept at diagramming and designing a game plan and he is as good as anybody at that. But I think his real strength is his optimistic view of players. Most coaches are very critical of their players, focus on what players can't do. Jimmy was always the opposite. He accentuated the positive. That's what made him an excellent coach and he believed in his players. Jack McMahon used to say a player can only be as good as his coach thinks he can be. Jimmy always felt they could be better than they were, and his job was to make them better and in so doing he did that. And improved what was bad.

"His background as a teacher I think played a big part in that. He was excellent. He would have been great in any area 'cause he's a people person. Such an easy guy to be with and he could deliver a negative message in the right way. He has that rare ability to offer constructive criticism without a player getting down. It's amazing."

Lynam now lends his expertise to Sixers' pregame and postgame shows on Comcast SportsNet, sharing the camera with his daughter, Dei. Not surprisingly, he is overly prepared. He pours through his notes before, during and after the game. He watches in the Comcast studios with remote in hand, playing the game back and forth as though he is watching film. When a producer mentioned in his ear that Golden State forward Draymond Green wasn't worth a huge contract, Lynam simply replied with "Star. Star. Star. Star. Star."

Point taken.

He watches the game while munching through a sandwich, pickle slices, nuts and chips, all packed by Kay. He blurts out comments, suggestions and opinion to no one in particular, then rewinds the game to prove his point. You sit and watch and can't help but learn.

Perhaps he would have been a terrific teacher had he given it more of a chance. For basketball fans in Philly, there's little doubt he made the right choice. He is one of us. Always has been, always will be.

Recently, as Lynam prepared to leave the court one night, a couple of strangers made their way toward him.

"Hey coach," one said.

Lynam leaned in to listen (he is sort of a close-talker).

"Go ahead," said Lynam.

Another lesson about to be taught.

cooneyb@phillynews.com

On Twitter: @BobCooney76

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