Ray Scott (basketball)

A 6'9" forward/center who played college basketball at the University of Portland, Scott was selected with the fourth pick of the 1961 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, and was a deadly shooter near the perimeter of the court. Scott had an 11-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the American Basketball Association (ABA), with the Pistons, Baltimore Bullets, and Virginia Squires.

Scott was promoted from assistant to head coach of the Pistons on October 28, 1972, succeeding Earl Lloyd after a 2–5 start.[1] Under his direction, the ballclub went 38–37 for the remainder of the 1972–73 campaign. He received the NBA Coach of the Year Award after guiding the Pistons to a then-franchise-best 52–30 regular season record in 1973–74. The team slumped to 40–42 in 1974–75. He was dismissed and replaced by assistant Herb Brown with the Pistons at 17–25 on January 26, 1976.[2] He was appointed men's basketball head coach at Eastern Michigan University just over six weeks later on March 10, 1976.[3] Over three seasons, he guided EMU to a 29–52 record. Eastern Michigan fired Scott in March 1979.

After his coaching career, Scott went into private business. He also has held the position of ambassador for children and families for the Wellspring Lutheran service agency in Michigan.[4] In February 2008, Scott was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.[4] In April 2008, during a celebration of the Pistons' 50th anniversary, he was named one of the "30 All-Time Pistons". In November 2017, Scott was inducted into the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame. The retired Scott is also an inductee into the Brooklyn and Hampton Roads, Va. Halls of Fame.After a long career with Colonial Life insurance company Scott settled in Michigan and is active in community affairs.