James Francis Xavier O'Brien (born February 11, 1952)
is an American basketball coach who is currently senior advisor for the
Philadelphia 76ers. O'Brien was previously an assistant and head coach at both the college and NBA levels and was head coach at
Wheeling Jesuit from 1982 to 1987,
Dayton
Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...
from 1989 to 1994, the
Boston Celtics from 2001 to 2004, Philadelphia 76ers in 2004–05, and
Indiana Pacers from 2007 to 2011.
Early life and education
O'Brien is the son-in-law of Hall of Fame coach
Jack Ramsay. Born and raised in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
, O'Brien graduated from
Roman Catholic High School
, motto_translation = Faith and Knowledge
, accreditation = MSA
, nickname = The Cahillites
, conference = Philadelphia Catholic League
, colors = Purple & Gold
, yearbook ...
of Philadelphia in 1970 and
St. Joseph's University
Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a private Jesuit university in Philadelphia and Lower Merion, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1851 as Saint Joseph's College. Saint Joseph's is the seventh olde ...
in 1974. At St. Joseph's, O'Brien started on the
Hawks
Hawks are birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica.
* The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. This subfamily ...
basketball team for three seasons. He earned an
M.B.A.
A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as account ...
from the
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...
in 1981.
[Jim O'Brien](_blank)
, National Basketball Association, retrieved June 26, 2010.
Coaching career
O'Brien was also head coach at
Wheeling Jesuit University
Wheeling University (WU, formerly Wheeling Jesuit University) is a private Roman Catholic university in Wheeling, West Virginia. It was founded as Wheeling College in 1954 by the Society of Jesus (also known as the Jesuits) and was a Jesuit inst ...
from 1982 to 1987 and the
University of Dayton
The University of Dayton (UD) is a private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the nation and the second-largest private university in Ohio. The univ ...
from 1989 to 1994. He led the
Dayton Flyers
The Dayton Flyers are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Dayton of Dayton, Ohio. All Flyers intercollegiate sports teams participate at the NCAA Division I level. The football team competes in the Division I FCS non-schola ...
to the second round of the
NCAA tournament in his first season, after winning the Midwestern Collegiate Conference; however he led the Flyers to just 10 wins in his last two seasons at the school and was fired after the 1993–1994 season. O'Brien then served as an assistant coach to
Rick Pitino
Richard Andrew Pitino (born September 18, 1952) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach for Iona College. He was also the head coach of Greece's senior national team. He has been the head coach of several teams in NCAA ...
at the
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...
from 1994 to 1997 and then with the Boston Celtics from 1997 to 2001.
O'Brien was the head coach of the
Boston Celtics from
2001–
2004, replacing
Rick Pitino
Richard Andrew Pitino (born September 18, 1952) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach for Iona College. He was also the head coach of Greece's senior national team. He has been the head coach of several teams in NCAA ...
. He worked to rebuild the struggling Celtics and led them twice to the playoffs. During the 2003–04 NBA season, however, O'Brien consistently fought with Celtics' general manager
Danny Ainge
Daniel Ray Ainge ( ; born March 17, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and former professional baseball player who serves as an executive for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
A three-s ...
over short-term versus long-term goals. Ainge was looking to completely redo the roster, and traded Eric Williams and Tony Battie, two of O'Brien's favorite hardworking players in December 2003. As a result of the conflict, O'Brien shocked everyone in the Celtics community by resigning in January 2004.
He was hired as head coach of the
Philadelphia 76ers during the
2004–05 season. The 76ers made the playoffs in his one season as coach after missing the postseason the previous year, and although O'Brien had a multiyear contract, he was fired.
Billy King hired
Maurice Cheeks
Maurice Edward Cheeks (born September 8, 1956) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who serves as assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has also served as head coach of t ...
as head coach after Cheeks was fired by the
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...
.
''
The Indianapolis Star
''The Indianapolis Star'' (also known as ''IndyStar'') is a morning daily newspaper that began publishing on June 6, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It has been the only major daily paper in the city since 1999, when the '' Indiana ...
'' reported on May 31, 2007, that he would coach the Indiana Pacers. He replaced
Rick Carlisle
Richard Preston Carlisle ( ; born October 27, 1959) is an American basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has previously served as head coach of the Detroi ...
, who was fired after four years, when the team failed in 2006–07 to make the playoffs for the first time in a decade. On January 31, 2011, Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird relieved O'Brien of his coaching duties. He was replaced by assistant
Frank Vogel
Frank Paul Vogel (born June 21, 1973) is an American professional basketball coach. He previously served as the head coach for the Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Vogel also previ ...
on an interim basis, who remained as the Pacers' head coach until the
2015–16 season.
In the season, O'Brien was an assistant coach for the
Dallas Mavericks. After the season, O'Brien retired from the team to spend more time with family.
In 2016, O'Brien was hired by the Philadelphia 76ers as an assistant coach to
Brett Brown.
Broadcasting career
O'Brien was also an analyst for
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
's NBA coverage from 2005 to 2007.
Personal life
O'Brien's son, Jack O'Brien, is a noted internet comedian and podcast host.
Head coaching record
College
NBA
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Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
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, 48, , 24, , 24, , , , style="text-align:center;", 5th in Atlantic, , —, , —, , —, , —
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, style="text-align:left;",
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, style="text-align:left;",
, 82, , 49, , 33, , , , style="text-align:center;", 2nd in Atlantic, , 16, , 9, , 7, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost in
Conf. Finals
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, style="text-align:left;",
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, style="text-align:left;",
, 82, , 44, , 38, , , , style="text-align:center;", 3rd in Atlantic, , 10, , 4, , 6, ,
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Conf. Semifinals
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, style="text-align:left;",
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
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Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
, style="text-align:left;",
, 82, , 43, , 39, , , , style="text-align:center;", 2nd in Atlantic, , 5, , 1, , 4, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost in
First Round
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
, style="text-align:left;",
, 82, , 36, , 46, , , , style="text-align:center;", 3rd in Central, , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", Missed Playoffs
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
, style="text-align:left;",
, 82, , 36, , 46, , , , style="text-align:center;", 4th in Central, , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", Missed Playoffs
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
, style="text-align:left;",
, 82, , 32, , 50, , , , style="text-align:center;", 4th in Central, , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", Missed Playoffs
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
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References
External links
DatabaseBasketball.com: Jim O'Brien
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Jim
1952 births
Living people
American men's basketball coaches
American men's basketball players
Basketball coaches from Pennsylvania
Basketball players from Philadelphia
Boston Celtics assistant coaches
Boston Celtics head coaches
Dallas Mavericks assistant coaches
Dayton Flyers men's basketball coaches
Indiana Pacers head coaches
Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball coaches
Maryland Terrapins men's basketball coaches
New York Knicks assistant coaches
Oregon Ducks men's basketball coaches
Philadelphia 76ers assistant coaches
Philadelphia 76ers head coaches
Saint Joseph's Hawks men's basketball players
UNC Pembroke Braves basketball coaches
University of Maryland, College Park alumni
Wheeling Cardinals men's basketball coaches