Doug Moe, Brooklyn-born NBA coaching legend, dead at 87

Legendary Nuggets coach and Brooklyn native Doug Moe died Tuesday at the age of 87. 

Moe spent a decade coaching in Denver, during the franchise’s most successful time period, while having coached in San Antonio and Philadelphia. Moe had a successful career on the court as well, earning three All-Star nods in the ABA from 1968 to 1970 and won a championship with the Oakland Oaks in 1969. 

Moe grew up in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn and recalled playing at Foster Park in an article published by the New York Times in 1984. He credited spending his youth playing basketball in the borough for his understanding of the game.

”After school and on Saturdays, we would play there until dark,” Moe said. ”I would play against guys a lot older and they would beat the heck out of me. But I learned a lot.”

The Nuggets described Moe as a “one-of-a-kind leader and person who spearheaded one of the most successful and exciting decades in Nuggets history.”

Moe served as head coach with the Nuggets from 1980-1990 and won 432 games, the franchise record for most wins until Michael Malone broke it in 2024. The Nuggets made the postseason in nine straight years during his tenure as head coach. 

“He will forever be loved and remembered by Nuggets fans and his banner commemorating his 432 career victories as head coach will hang in the rafters to forever honor his incredible legacy,” the team said in a statement. “The organization’s thoughts are with Doug’s wife Jane, his son David and all of his family and loved ones who are hurting in this moment.”

Moe got his coaching start as an assistant under his former University of North Carolina teammate Larry Brown in 1972 when he was the coach of the ABA Carolina Cougars. 

The Brooklyn native received his first head coaching job in 1976 with the Spurs, where Moe spent the next four seasons before taking the Nuggets job. 

After his dismissal in 1990, Moe’s next coaching gig didn’t come until 1992 during a brief stint as the head coach of the 76ers. He would return to Denver in the early 2000s as a special consultant and assistant coach from 2002-2008. 

“It’s a sad day in Denver,” former Nuggets player Bill Hanzlik wrote on X. “Just learned one of the Absolute Best, Doug Moe has passed away peacefully holding the hand of his wife Jane Moe this morning. God Bless you BIG STIFF from your No Hoper Hanz.”