The Denver Nuggets are mourning the loss of a coaching legend and one of the pioneers of today's NBA offense, Doug Moe, who passed away at 87.
Moe came to Denver as an assistant coach in 1974-75, spending two seasons in Denver before taking over as head coach of the San Antonio Spurs in the newly merged ABA/NBA.
Moe found his way back to Denver again, as an assistant coach, in 1980-81. He took the reins as head coach the following season, on his way to 10 successful years and a .546 winning percentage with the Nuggets.
Moe's fast-paced style turned the Nuggets into the highest-scoring team of all time in his first season as head coach in 1981-82, setting a record at 126.5 points per game. A record that still stands today. Moe was also the coach during the highest-scoring game of all time, a 186-184 triple-overtime shootout in 1983 against the Pistons.
Moe's accomplishments peaked during the 1987-88 campaign when he won the Coach of the Year award. Moe and George Karl, in 2013, remain the only two Nuggets coaches to have ever won the award. Moe is second on the Nuggets' all-time wins list with 432, only behind Mike Malone's 471.
After a 10-year hiatus from coaching, Moe returned to the sidelines for the Nuggets in 2003-04 as an assistant coach. He was in the role until retiring from coaching for good in 2008.
The 1980's Nuggets were a lot like today's Nuggets
Moe's Nuggets laid the groundwork for the faster-paced, up-tempo style seen in today's NBA. His teams routinely hit 120 or more points per game, and his Nuggets teams hold three of the top seven point totals of all time, and four of the top 13.
However, like today's Nuggets, Moe's teams were not very stout on the defensive end. Conversely, the Nuggets allowed a then record-high 125.96 points per game in the 1981-82 season. A record that stood until after Moe left town in 1990, when the Nuggets obliterated their own record by nearly a full five points, allowing 130.77 points per game.
But statistics aside, Moe will be remembered for how great a person, coach, and individual he was. "Moe will be remembered for his gregarious, mercurial personality and his distinct strategy more than any results," said Bennett Durando.
A funny quote provided by Durando from former Nugget Bill Hanzlik sums up Coach Moe's personality and style perfectly. "I want the first person over half-court with the ball to shoot it. You're coming out of the game if you don't shoot it," Hanzlik said.
That was Moe's coaching style. He'll forever be held in the highest regard in Nuggets history. Rest in peace, Coach Moe.