Taylor "Tates" Locke (born February 25, 1937) is an American former

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

coach. Locke's only experience at the professional level was made possible by

Jack Ramsay John Travilla Ramsay (February 21, 1925 – April 28, 2014) was an American basketball coach, commonly known as "Dr. Jack" (as he held an earned doctorate). He was best known for leading the Portland Trail Blazers to the 1977 NBA championship, a ...

who brought him to 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 ...

as an assistant coach and chief scout beginning in 1975–76. When Ramsay's contract wasn't renewed the day after the Braves were eliminated by the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

from the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

, Locke was promoted and signed a two-year contract to succeed him as the franchise's fourth head coach three days later on May 6, 1976. He vowed to build "one hell of an aggressive basketball team." Once the 1976–77 season started, the Braves traded

Bob McAdoo Robert Allen McAdoo Jr. ( ; born September 25, 1951) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a five-time NBA All-Star and named the NBA Most ...

and

Tom McMillen Charles Thomas McMillen (born May 26, 1952) is an American politician, businessman, and retired professional basketball player. A Rhodes Scholar, McMillen represented Maryland's 4th congressional district from January 3, 1987 to January 3, 199 ...

to the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

and

Moses Malone Moses Eugene Malone (March 23, 1955 – September 13, 2015) was an American professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1974 through 1995. A cent ...

to the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

. Locke was also at odds with

Ernie DiGregorio Ernest DiGregorio (born January 15, 1951), also known as "Ernie D.", is an American former professional basketball player. He was named NBA Rookie of the Year in the 1973–74 season and shares the NBA rookie record for assists in a single game w ...

and

John Shumate John Henry Shumate (born April 6, 1952) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. Shumate grew up in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and played high school basketball at Thomas Jefferson High School. A 6'9" forward/center from the ...

. With the Braves at 16–30, games behind the Atlantic Division-leading

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

and in the midst of a five-match losing streak, he was fired and replaced on an interim basis by general manager Bob MacKinnon on January 25, 1977."Locke Is Dismissed as Braves' Coach," ''The Associated Press'' (AP), Tuesday, January 25, 1977.
Retrieved November 30, 2020 Prior to his Buffalo experience, Locke coached for

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

, where he hired a young assistant coach named

Bobby Knight Robert Montgomery Knight (born October 25, 1940) is an American former basketball coach. Nicknamed "the General", Knight won 902 NCAA Division I men's college basketball games, a record at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-ti ...

. Knight would later replace Locke when Locke left West Point. After West Point, Locke moved on to

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion of the state approximately northwest ...

, winning a MAC title in 1968–69. Locke would subsequently coach at

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enro ...

, but would be forced to resign as the result of an

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

investigation into recruiting violations. The violation resulted in the Tigers being put on NCAA probation. He later coached at

Jacksonville University Jacksonville University (JU) is a private university in Jacksonville, Florida. Located in the city's Arlington (Jacksonville), Arlington district, the school was founded in 1934 as a two-year college and was known as Jacksonville Junior College u ...

and took them to an NCAA berth and NIT berth. After assistant stints at UNLV and Indiana, Locke would accept the head coach vacancy at

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...

. In his first season, he doubled the win total of his predecessor; in his second season, the Sycamores finished the season at 14-14 (.500) and Locke would be named MVC Coach of the Year. Though achieving modest success, he resigned under pressure after five seasons. He later worked as a scout and assistant general manager for 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 movie ''

Blue Chips ''Blue Chips'' is a 1994 American sports drama film, directed by William Friedkin, written by Ron Shelton and starring Nick Nolte as a college coach trying to recruit a winning team. His players were portrayed by actors as well as real-life baske ...

'', starring

Nick Nolte Nicholas King Nolte (born February 8, 1941) is an American actor. He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for the 1991 film ''The Prince of Tides''. He received ...

, is said to be based on Locke's career. However, several midwestern college coaches claim to be the inspiration for the character.

Head coaching record

College

References

*Locke, Tates and Ibach, B. (1982). ''Caught in the Net'' utobiography Leisure Press.

External links