Gene Littles

Eugene Scape Littles (born June 29, 1943) is a retired American basketball player and coach. He played professional basketball for six years.

Gene Littles

Littles as a player at High Point University in 1968.
Personal information
Born	(1943-06-29) June 29, 1943 Washington, D.C.
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight	160 lb (73 kg)
Career information
High school	McKinley (Washington, D.C.)
College	High Point (1965–1969)
NBA draft	1969 / Round: 5 / Pick: 68th overall
Selected by the New York Knicks
Playing career	1969–1975
Position	Point guard
Number	23
Coaching career	1976–1995
Career history
As player:
1969–1974	Carolina Cougars
1974–1975	Kentucky Colonels
As coach:
1976–1977	Cleveland Cavaliers (assistant)
1977–1979	North Carolina A&T
1985–1986	Cleveland Cavaliers
1988–1990	Charlotte Hornets (assistant)
1990–1991	Charlotte Hornets
1994–1995	Denver Nuggets
Career highlights and awards
As coach: 2× MEAC regular season champion (1978, 1979) 2× MEAC Tournament champion (1978, 1979)
Career NBA playing statistics
Points	4,066 (9.0 ppg)
Rebounds	1,475 (3.3 rpg)
Assists	1,336 (3.0 spg)
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com
Career coaching record
NBA	44–111 (.284)
NCAA	40–15 (.727)

Littles played college basketball at High Point University, where he was the all-time leading scorer in High Point school history, and a NAIA All-American. Afterward Littles was selected in the 5th round of the 1969 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks and in the 1969 ABA Draft by the Dallas Chaparrals.[1] Littles opted to play in the American Basketball Association (ABA).

Littles played for five seasons with the Carolina Cougars (1969–74). He was named to the All-Rookie Team in 1970. He then played for one season (1974–75) with the Kentucky Colonels. With Kentucky, Littles was a member of the Colonels team that won the 1975 ABA Championship.

After his playing career, Littles got into coaching, and became an assistant with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Littles then served as the head basketball coach at North Carolina A&T from 1977 to 1979. Littles led the team to two straight MEAC Tournament Championships. He got his first taste of NBA head coaching when George Karl was dismissed at the end of the 1985–86 season. The Cavaliers next year hired Lenny Wilkens, however.

In 1990, Littles got a second NBA head coaching job, with the Charlotte Hornets—replacing Dick Harter. He lasted as season and a half with the recent-expansion Hornets, until he was replaced with Allan Bristow at the end of the 1990–91 season. Littles later became an assistant with the Denver Nuggets, and served as an interim coach during the 1994–95 season, in between Dan Issel and Bernie Bickerstaff.