 Fitzsimmons in 1974 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 7, 1931 Hannibal, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | July 24, 2004 (aged 72) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. |
| Listed height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) |
| Listed weight | 160 lb (73 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Bowling Green (Bowling Green, Missouri) |
| College |
|
| Position | Shooting guard |
| Coaching career | 1958–1996 |
| Career history | |
| As coach: | |
| 1958–1967 | Moberly Area CC |
| 1968–1970 | Kansas State |
| 1970–1972 | Phoenix Suns |
| 1972–1976 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 1977–1978 | Buffalo Braves |
| 1978–1984 | Kansas City Kings |
| 1984–1986 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 1988–1992, 1996–1997 | Phoenix Suns |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career coaching record | |
| NBA | 832–775 (.518) |
| Record at Basketball Reference | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame | |
Lowell Gibbs "Cotton" Fitzsimmons (October 7, 1931 – July 24, 2004) was an American college and NBA basketball coach. A native of Bowling Green, Missouri, he attended and played basketball at Hannibal-LaGrange Junior College in Hannibal, Missouri and Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas. He coached the Phoenix Suns three times, was named the NBA Coach of the Year twice, and is often credited as the architect of the Suns' success of the late 1980s and early to middle 1990s. Fitzsimmons won 1,089 games in his coaching career: 223 games at the junior college level, 34 at the Division I college level and 832 in the NBA.
On May 16, 2021, it was announced that Fitzsimmons was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The Class of 2021 enshrinement ceremony occurred on September 11, 2021.[1]