They would make 19 more trips during the rest of his tenure, with a zenith from 1982–85.
You could point to his coaching career at Georgetown, his battle for equality for other Black basketball coaches, brazen coaching style or his career with the Boston Celtics. More than a legend, he was the voice in our ear everyday.”One of the most celebrated and polarizing figures in his sport, Thompson took over a moribund Georgetown program in the 1970s and molded it in his unique style into a perennial contender, culminating with a national championship team anchored by center Patrick Ewing in 1984.Georgetown reached two other title games with Thompson in charge and Ewing patrolling the paint, losing to Michael Jordan’s North Carolina team in 1982 and to Villanova in 1985.At 6-foot-10, with an ever-present white towel slung over his shoulder, Thompson literally and figuratively towered over the Hoyas for decades, becoming a patriarch of sorts after he quit coaching in 1999.One of his sons, John Thompson III, was hired as Georgetown’s coach in 2004.
John Thompson, the imposing Hall of Famer who turned Georgetown into a “Hoya Paranoia” powerhouse and became the first Black coach to lead a team to the NCAA men’s basketball championship, has died. John Thompson, the imposing Hall of Famer who turned Georgetown into … He loosened up, allowing the public to see his lighter side, but he remained pointed and combative when a topic mattered to him.A torch was passed in 2004, when John Thompson III became Georgetown’s coach. He could have remained in the high-school coaching ranks in Washington, D.C., winning games and influencing lives, but the college game needed someone strong enough to sledgehammer the status quo into rubble.Thompson was that man, 6' 10" and full of fierce conviction. He had 26 players drafted by the NBA.One of his honors -- his selection as coach of the U.S. team for the 1988 Olympics -- had a sour ending when the Americans had to settle for the bronze medal. They lost the ’82 national title game by a point, with a North Carolina freshman named Michael Jordan making the winning shot and Georgetown guard Fred Brown suffering a brain-lock turnover in the final seconds. ""Very sad news to wake up to on this cloudy morning," Mutombo "Georgetown University, the sport of basketball and the world has lost someone who I consider to be a father figure, confidant and role model," Ewing shared on Twitter. It was one hell of a tone setter, serving notice that the Hoyas were not backing down.Ewing finished that game with 23 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks, playing every bit as well as North Carolina standout junior James Worthy and fellow freshman Jordan. Two years later, Ewing led an 84-75 win over Houston in the title game. Legendary Georgetown basketball coach John Thompson Jr., who helped grow Big East basketball in the 1980s, has died at 78. He did it with an all-Black roster, which unsettled some white people. I find the question extremely offensive.”Born Sept. 2, 1941, John R. Thompson Jr. grew up in Washington, D.C. His father was always working — on a farm in Maryland and later as a laborer in the city — and could neither read nor write.“I never in my life saw my father’s hands clean,” Thompson told The Associated Press in 2007. At John Thompson, we believe that meeting people's career ambitions is the best possible guarantee for satisfying our customers' expectations. Georgetown basketball in its 1980s heyday was the toughest team on the block. No details were disclosed.“Our father was an inspiration to many and devoted his life to developing young people not simply on but, most importantly, off the basketball court. Thompson averaged 3.5 points in 74 games with Boston.
Join the John Thompson team Our established learning and development policy encourages employees to continuously … He was 78.His death was announced in a family statement released by Georgetown on Monday. It was a result so disappointing that Thompson put himself on a sort of self-imposed leave at Georgetown for a while, coaching practices and games but leaving many other duties to his assistants.Off the court, Thompson was both a role model and a lightning rod. More than a coach, he was our foundation. All Rights Reserved. “You’re hitting me in my soft spot,” Thompson said.