Nate McMillan
Encyclopedia
Nathaniel "Nate" McMillan (born August 3, 1964 in Raleigh, North Carolina
) is a retired American professional basketball
player and current head coach of the NBA
's Portland Trail Blazers
. Prior to his coaching stint with the Blazers, McMillan was head coach of the Seattle SuperSonics
for five years, after succeeding Paul Westphal
in 2000.
, where he went unnoticed by major college scouts. After a brief basketball career at Chowan College in Murfreesboro, North Carolina
, he returned to Raleigh to play for Jim Valvano
at North Carolina State University
, before entering the NBA. McMillan helped lead NC State to a first place tie in the Atlantic Coast Conference
regular season in 1985, and the Elite Eight
in both the 1985 and 1986 NCAA Championship Tournaments.
) the NBA rookie record for assists in a single game with 25. McMillan was known for his superb defense, leading the NBA in steals per game for the 1993-94 season and being named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team for the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons. McMillan was also known for his balanced play, which led to four career triple-doubles. Known as "Mr. Sonic" for his 19 years of service to the team, his #10 jersey was retired by the Sonics. He was also known to be one third of the "Big Mac" team of the Seattle SuperSonics in the late 80's and early 90's, the others being Xavier McDaniel
and Derrick McKey
.
After 19 years with the Seattle organization, McMillan left Seattle on July 7, 2005 to become the head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers. He took over a team riddled with cap problems
and off-the-court drama, but has steadily calmed the waters in Portland.
McMillan was an assistant coach under Mike Krzyzewski for the US national team in the 2006 FIBA World Championship
and in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, winning bronze and gold medals, respectively. He is also a member of the National Junior College Basketball Hall of Fame, due to his All-American performance at Chowan.
On December 5, 2009, McMillan ruptured his right Achilles tendon
while scrimmaging with the Trail Blazers during practice. McMillian coached much of the season in a protective boot after surgery and led the team to 50 wins in spite of an historic number of injuries to his key players.
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|67||38||29||.567|| align="center" |5th in Pacific||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||45||37||.549|| align="center" |4th in Pacific||5||2||3||.400
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||40||42||.488|| align="center" |5th in Pacific||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||37||45||.451|| align="center" |5th in Pacific||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||52||30||.634|| align="center" |1st in Northwest||11||6||5||.545
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Semifinals
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||21||61||.256|| align="center" |5th in Northwest||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||32||50||.390|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||41||41||.500|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||54||28||.659|| align="center" |1st in Northwest||6||2||4||.333
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||50||32||.610|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||6||2||4||.333
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||48||34||.585|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||6||2||4||.333
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
|-class="sortbottom"
| align="left" |Career
| ||887||458||429||.516|| ||34||14||20||.412
. His son Jamelle McMillan is also a successful basketball player, and played as a guard for the Arizona State Sun Devils.
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
) is a retired American professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player and current head coach of the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
's Portland Trail Blazers
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
. Prior to his coaching stint with the Blazers, McMillan was head coach of the Seattle SuperSonics
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington that played in the Pacific and Northwest Divisions of the National Basketball Association from 1967 until 2008. Following the 2007–08 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, and now plays as...
for five years, after succeeding Paul Westphal
Paul Westphal
Paul Westphal is a retired American basketball player and current head coach of the National Basketball Association's Sacramento Kings. Westphal has had a storied career in the NBA, both as a player and as a coach. As a player, he won an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics in the 1974 NBA...
in 2000.
Early life and college career
McMillan grew up in the heart of North Carolina's basketball country and attended Raleigh's Enloe High SchoolEnloe High School
The William G. Enloe GT/IB Center for the Humanities, Sciences, and the Arts, more commonly called Enloe High School , is a Wake County public magnet, Gifted & Talented, and International Baccalaureate high school located in east Raleigh, North Carolina. The school is named after William Gillmore...
, where he went unnoticed by major college scouts. After a brief basketball career at Chowan College in Murfreesboro, North Carolina
Murfreesboro, North Carolina
Murfreesboro is a town in Hertford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,045 at the 2000 census. Murfreesboro is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region.-Geography:Murfreesboro is located at ....
, he returned to Raleigh to play for Jim Valvano
Jim Valvano
James Thomas Anthony "Jim" Valvano , nicknamed Jimmy V, was an American college basketball coach.While the head basketball coach at North Carolina State University, he won the 1983 NCAA Basketball Tournament against high odds...
at North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
, before entering the NBA. McMillan helped lead NC State to a first place tie in the Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
regular season in 1985, and the Elite Eight
Elite Eight
The term Elite Eight, or less commonly called "Great Eight", refers to the final eight teams in the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship or the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship; and, thus, represents the national quarterfinals. In Division I, the Elite Eight consists of the...
in both the 1985 and 1986 NCAA Championship Tournaments.
NBA career
McMillan was drafted by the Sonics with the 30th pick in the 1986 draft. He would spend his entire NBA career in Seattle. During his 12-year playing career, McMillan put up career averages of 5.9 points, 6.1 assists and 1.9 steals. He still shares (with Ernie DiGregorioErnie DiGregorio
Ernest DiGregorio is a retired American National Basketball Association player.DiGregorio played on the 1968 Rhode Island champions at North Providence High School....
) the NBA rookie record for assists in a single game with 25. McMillan was known for his superb defense, leading the NBA in steals per game for the 1993-94 season and being named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team for the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons. McMillan was also known for his balanced play, which led to four career triple-doubles. Known as "Mr. Sonic" for his 19 years of service to the team, his #10 jersey was retired by the Sonics. He was also known to be one third of the "Big Mac" team of the Seattle SuperSonics in the late 80's and early 90's, the others being Xavier McDaniel
Xavier McDaniel
Xavier Maurice McDaniel , nicknamed the X-Man, is a retired American National Basketball Association player who, at 6 ft 7 in, played both small forward and power forward, and former head coach of the Riders Slamball team.-College:While at Wichita State, McDaniel was the first person to...
and Derrick McKey
Derrick McKey
Derrick Wayne McKey is a retired American basketball player who played the most part of his NBA career between the small forward and the power forward positions.-Early life and college career:...
.
Coaching career
After retiring in 1998, McMillan stayed with the Seattle franchise, earning a place as an assistant coach. He held this role until 2000, when he was named interim coach of the Sonics. Although the team missed the playoffs during his first year as coach, he provided a major turnaround after the franchise got off to a miserable start that year, and he was hired as head coach for the next 2001-02 campaign. McMillan led the clubs to the playoffs in his second year before back-to-back mediocre seasons. In his final year as Sonics coach, McMillan led the team to a Northwest Division title 2005.After 19 years with the Seattle organization, McMillan left Seattle on July 7, 2005 to become the head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers. He took over a team riddled with cap problems
NBA Salary Cap
The NBA salary cap is the limit to the total amount of money that National Basketball Association teams are allowed to pay their players. This limit is subject to a complex system of rules and exceptions and as such is considered a "soft" cap....
and off-the-court drama, but has steadily calmed the waters in Portland.
McMillan was an assistant coach under Mike Krzyzewski for the US national team in the 2006 FIBA World Championship
2006 FIBA World Championship
The 2006 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Japan from August 19 to September 3, 2006. It was co-organised by the International Basketball Federation , Japan Basketball Association and the 2006 Organizing Committee...
and in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, winning bronze and gold medals, respectively. He is also a member of the National Junior College Basketball Hall of Fame, due to his All-American performance at Chowan.
On December 5, 2009, McMillan ruptured his right Achilles tendon
Achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon , also known as the calcaneal tendon or the tendo calcaneus, is a tendon of the posterior leg. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius and soleus muscles to the calcaneus bone.- Anatomy :The Achilles is the tendonous extension of 3 muscles in the lower leg:...
while scrimmaging with the Trail Blazers during practice. McMillian coached much of the season in a protective boot after surgery and led the team to 50 wins in spite of an historic number of injuries to his key players.
Head coaching record
|-| align="left" |SEA
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington that played in the Pacific and Northwest Divisions of the National Basketball Association from 1967 until 2008. Following the 2007–08 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, and now plays as...
| align="left" |
|67||38||29||.567|| align="center" |5th in Pacific||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||45||37||.549|| align="center" |4th in Pacific||5||2||3||.400
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
2002 NBA Playoffs
The 2002 NBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2001–02 season. This would be the final postseason that held a best-of-5 first-round series; next year's postseason would see those series expanded to a best-of-7 format...
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||40||42||.488|| align="center" |5th in Pacific||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||37||45||.451|| align="center" |5th in Pacific||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |SEA
| align="left" |
|82||52||30||.634|| align="center" |1st in Northwest||11||6||5||.545
| align="center" |Lost in Conf. Semifinals
2005 NBA Playoffs
The 2005 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2004–05 season.The San Antonio Spurs, the number two ranked team in the Western Conference, won the 2005 NBA Playoffs by defeating the defending champions, the Detroit Pistons, 4-3 in the NBA Finals...
|-
| align="left" |POR
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
| align="left" |
|82||21||61||.256|| align="center" |5th in Northwest||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||32||50||.390|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||41||41||.500|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||—||—||—||—
| align="center" |Missed Playoffs
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||54||28||.659|| align="center" |1st in Northwest||6||2||4||.333
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
2009 NBA Playoffs
The 2009 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2008–09 season. The playoffs started on April 18, 2009 with ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||50||32||.610|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||6||2||4||.333
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
2010 NBA Playoffs
The 2010 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2009–10 season. The playoffs started on April 17, 2010 with ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
|-
| align="left" |POR
| align="left" |
|82||48||34||.585|| align="center" |3rd in Northwest||6||2||4||.333
| align="center" |Lost in First Round
2011 NBA Playoffs
The 2011 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2010–11 season. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs, all seeded 1 to 8 in a tournament bracket, with all rounds in a best-of-seven format. The 2011 NBA Playoffs began on...
|-class="sortbottom"
| align="left" |Career
| ||887||458||429||.516|| ||34||14||20||.412
Personal life
McMillan lives in West Linn, OregonWest Linn, Oregon
West Linn is a city in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States. Now a prosperous southern suburb of Portland, West Linn has a history of early development, prompted by the opportunity to harvest energy from nearby Willamette Falls. It was named after Senator Dr. Lewis Fields Linn of Ste...
. His son Jamelle McMillan is also a successful basketball player, and played as a guard for the Arizona State Sun Devils.
See also
- List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
- List of National Basketball Association players with most assists in a game