Jack Ramsay, a Hall of Fame coach who led the Portland Trail Blazers to the 1977 NBA championship before he became one of the NBA's most respected broadcasters, has died following a long battle with cancer. He was 89.
His family announced his death, saying he "led the greatest life that one could lead."
Ramsay was a longtime NBA analyst for ESPN and coached 20 seasons in the NBA, during which he emphasized fitness, selflessness, ball movement and skill -- qualities that carried his Portland team to the 1976-77 championship in his first season as coach of the team.
He has long been an icon in Portland, remembered as much for his distinctive 1970s fashion sense as for the city's only NBA title.