The Warriors were one win away from pulling off the largest upset within the NBA Finals in basketball history when Mike Riordan attempted to tackle Rick Barry.
Barry, Golden State's star player, couldn't consider the Washington Bullets guard climbed on his back as he dribbled left. He stood on the baseline and was indignant.
But before Barry could defend himself, his coach sprinted off the bench to confront Riordan and his Washington teammate Wes Unseld. Alvin Attles, knowing he couldn’t let his best player be thrown out of the decisive game, took over the confrontation head-on so Barry didn't should.
For years, Attles was referred to as “The Destroyer” for his hard-nosed play on the Warriors, but in point of fact he was something completely different.
“He was really something of a protector,” Barry told this news organization in a telephone interview on Wednesday. “He was a very peaceful guy, a very caring person. But he was also incredibly tough.”
Attles was ejected in Game 4, however the Warriors, as they did so often in that postseason, got here back to win and sweep Washington for the 1975 championship. It was the high point of the Warriors organization on the West Coast to that time, and like so most of the franchise's biggest moments, Attles was right in the course of it – putting his team before himself.
“I think Al had a good personality on and off the field,” said longtime Warriors commentator Jim Barnett, who played for Attles for 3 seasons.
“And I think he lived a respectable life on and off the court. He never cheated anyone, never cheated the fans by not always playing his best. And he never cheated life by taking shortcuts and doing things that are unethical. He was a very ethical man. He did that on the court and off the court in his personal life. He lived an ethical life and I think that rubbed off on a lot of us and taught us a lot.”
Attles died Tuesday on the age of 87 surrounded by his family. He had suffered from dementia for several years, which limited his duties as a Warriors legend and community ambassador. But for 64 years, the Hall of Famer represented the Warriors as a player, coach, general manager, executive director and legend like no other NBA franchise.
“The real warrior: Mr. Warrior,” said Golden States head coach Steve Kerr in a video after Attles' death. “A man who was employed by the same franchise for over 60 years – unprecedented in sports. Al was truly the figurehead of this organization.”
In an Instagram story, Steph Curry echoed Kerr's sentiments, saying Attles was “a pioneer in professionalism, courage and competitiveness, forging his own path every step of the way.”
Attles is certainly one of six Warriors whose jersey number hangs within the rafters of Chase Center. On the night his teammate Wilt Chamberlain made history by scoring 100 points, he added 17 and made 8 of 8 perfect shots. Attles was with the Warriors for six a long time in a league that’s seven a long time old, and his 557 wins as a coach remain a franchise record.
Barry met Attles in 1965 when he was a freshman. They were roommates and, as Barry recalls, they became close, though they didn't at all times share the identical living preferences. Attles liked to show up the thermostat, Barry recalls. He forced Barry to look at his TV shows with him – shows that Barry couldn't stand.
“I always tell everyone that I owe a huge debt to Al Attles for giving me the incentive to play exceptionally well my rookie year so that I would be able to negotiate a single room the next year,” Barry said.
Barry did just that, winning Rookie of the Year by averaging 25.7 points and 10.6 rebounds per game as Attles' roommate. Barry earned a roommate spot and was the league's leading scorer the following 12 months before moving to the ABA.
When Barry returned to the NBA, Attles coached the Warriors. Under the leadership of Barry and Nate Thurmond, Attles became the second black head coach in NBA history to win an NBA championship in 1975. The Bullets had the league's best record, however the Warriors swept them in an upset victory that can be the topic of a 2025 documentary that’s currently in “the final stages,” Barry said.
“I just wish Al was still there to see it,” Barry said.
Attles coached the 1975 team and his other clubs from 1970 to 1983 as a disciplinarian and mentor. He was no-nonsense but in addition had a humorousness. Barnett, the legendary broadcaster, said his head coach had a “huge influence” on him and his profession.
“I definitely learned about teamwork,” Barnett said. “I kicked around a lot because obviously I wasn't a player like Rick Barry or Nate Thurmond. So I had a lot of different coaches and a lot of different teammates. Al had a way of unifying a team that played with six, seven or eight men and making you feel important. If you were the 11th man on the team, he was inclusive. He made everyone feel like they were part of the team and made everyone feel important, no matter what their contribution was, we were a team.”
Attles stayed loyal to the Warriors organization and continued to make everyone feel like a team – at meetings and dinners with team managers, at games and at community appearances. One of the primary things Kerr did when he was hired was to ask Attles to talk to the team. Forty years after the 1975 championship, Attles and his wife, Wilhelmina, rode the 2015 champion Warriors through downtown Oakland.
Attles remained lively within the Bay Area as a Warriors legend and community ambassador, as did his family. Wilhelmina famously taught Juan Toscano-Anderson in elementary school and gifted him an invite to Warriors basketball camp, which launched a successful profession that culminated with the Warriors from 2019-2022.
Barnett called Attles a “great coach and a great person.” In recent years, when Attles was unwell, Barnett occasionally had lunch together with his son, Al Attles III, and visited his former head coach a number of times. Barry also recently spent some quality time with Attles.
“He knew who I was,” Barry said. “And in fact, his first question to me was, 'How's your jump shot?' I started laughing and said, 'Al, I'm too old to jump shot, I can't jump anymore.'”
The Bay Area sports community has lost Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda and now Attles this 12 months. As Curry put it in his Instagram story, Attles' DNA is throughout this organization.”
“It's not about me,” Attles said in an old interview included within the Warriors' tribute video for him. “It's about my grandchildren, my children and all of the young individuals who can look up and say, 'You know, perhaps I can do this sooner or later.'”
Originally published:
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