Jim Boylan (born April 28, 1955) is an American basketball coach. He served as the interim head coach for the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...

for part of the 2007–08 NBA season. He also served as an interim coach for the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

for part of the

2012–13 NBA season 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length&nb ...

. Most recently, he played a part in helping the Cleveland Cavaliers win the

2016 NBA Finals The 2016 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2015–16 season and conclusion of the 2016 playoffs. The Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the defending NBA champion and ...

over the Golden State Warriors.

Playing career

Born and raised in Jersey City, New Jersey, Boylan played basketball at St. Mary High School. He started his college career at Assumption College in

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then a strong NCAA Division II program before transferring to

Marquette University Marquette University () is a private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Established by the Society of Jesus as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, it was founded by John Martin Henni, the first Bishop of the diocese of M ...

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. His older brother, Mike, had enjoyed an outstanding basketball career at Assumption. He was Division II Player of the Year as a senior and among the school's all-time scoring leaders. Jim started at point guard his first two years at Assumption, 1973–1977, leading the team to a third-place finish in the national championship tournament both seasons. Following his sophomore season he transferred to Marquette University in Division I. He played point guard at Marquette, where he helped the Warriors win the 1977 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament (Marquette's only championship) by scoring 14 points in the National Championship Game versus the

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

Tar Heels. After leading Marquette in assists in his junior and senior season, Boylan was drafted in the fourth round (68th overall) in the 1978 NBA draft by the

Buffalo Braves The Buffalo Braves were an American professional basketball franchise based in Buffalo, New York. The Braves competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division from 1970 ...

, who became the San Diego Clippers after the 1977–78 season. Boylan played for the Tucson Gunners in the

Western Basketball Association The Western Basketball Association was formed in 1978 and played for one season during 1978–79. Organized by Larry Cregar, a former assistant coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and American Basketball Association (ABA), and real ...

during the 1978–79 season. He was named a second team All Star, and he helped the Gunners with the WBA championship. However, Boylan never played an NBA game. He headed to Europe instead, having a short pro career. He played for Alviks BK of Stockholm, Sweden in the 1979–80 season.

Coaching career

Boylan began his coaching career as a

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

in Switzerland from 1982 to 1986 and led Vevey Basket to its first championship in its 30-year history. At age 31, he moved back to the States becoming an assistant under Jud Heathcote at Michigan State University from 1986 to 1989. Boylan then took over head coaching duties at the

University of New Hampshire The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire. It was founded and incorporated in 1866 as a land grant college in Hanover in connection with Dartmouth College, m ...

, succeeding Gerry Friel. UNH fired Boylan after three dismal seasons in the spring of 1992. In 1992 Boylan entered the NBA as a video coordinator and advance scout for the Cleveland Cavaliers. In 1997, he moved over to the

Vancouver Grizzlies The Vancouver Grizzlies were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Vancouver. They were part of the Midwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was established in 1995, along w ...

, serving as an assistant under Brian Hill and later Lionel Hollins. In 2001, Boylan became a member of Frank Johnson's coaching staff in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, and remained working for the Phoenix Suns under Johnson's successor

Scott Skiles Scott Allen Skiles Sr. (born March 5, 1964) is an American former basketball coach and player. He coached the Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic. A first-round draft pick out of Michigan State University, Skiles played ...

. After Skiles was fired in 2002, Boylan worked with Terry Stotts for the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...

during the

2003–04 NBA season The 2003–04 NBA season was the 58th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Detroit Pistons defeating the Los Angeles Lakers 4–1 in the 2004 NBA Finals. Events This was the last season for the original two-div ...

. In 2004, Boylan became lead assistant to Skiles, who had taken over as head coach of the

. On December 27, 2007, after the firing of Scott Skiles, Jim was named the interim coach for the Bulls for the remaining season. Boylan was not retained at the conclusion of the season after compiling a 24–32 record with the Bulls. On May 14, 2008, he was hired as an assistant to Scott Skiles by the

. When Skiles resigned in January 2013, Boylan became head coach of the Bucks. The team went 22–28 under his guidance and made the playoffs, but were swept in the first round by the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The club plays its home games at FT ...

. At the end of the season, the Bucks decided not to give Boylan a new contract.Milwaukee Bucks Seek New Head Coach
/ref> Instead, Boylan would be hired by the Cleveland Cavaliers later on in the same year. He would later on be a part of the 2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers squad to earn an NBA Finals championship over the 73–9 Golden State Warriors.

Head coaching record

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boylan, Jim 1955 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Sweden American expatriate basketball people in Switzerland American men's basketball players Assumption Greyhounds men's basketball players Atlanta Hawks assistant coaches Basketball players from Jersey City, New Jersey Buffalo Braves draft picks Chicago Bulls assistant coaches Chicago Bulls head coaches Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coaches College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Continental Basketball Association coaches Marquette Golden Eagles men's basketball players Michigan State Spartans men's basketball coaches Milwaukee Bucks assistant coaches Milwaukee Bucks head coaches New Hampshire Wildcats men's basketball coaches Phoenix Suns assistant coaches Sportspeople from Jersey City, New Jersey Vancouver Grizzlies assistant coaches Vevey Riviera Basket coaches Vevey Riviera Basket players Western Basketball Association players Point guards Alviks BK players