Nike Exec and Hall of Fame Coach George Raveling Dies at …

George Raveling, the legendary basketball coach and longtime Nike exec, has passed away at 88.

In a touching Instagram post shared on his account today, Raveling’s family confirmed his courageous battle with cancer before passing away, surrounded by his loved ones, on September 1.

“There are no words to fully capture what George meant to his family, friends, colleagues, former players, and assistants—and to the world. He will be profoundly missed, yet his aura, energy, divine presence, and timeless wisdom live on in all those he touched and transformed,” the Raveling family wrote in a statement on social media.

After playing at Villanova University from 1957 to 1960, Raveling transitioned into coaching at his alma mater as an assistant in 1963. Six years later, he became the first Black coach in the ACC conference when he became an assistant coach at the University of Maryland. Raveling went on to become the head coach of Washington State, Iowa, and UC from 1972 to 1994 before retiring and becoming Nike’s global basketball marketing director.

One of the more significant moments from his career at Nike was him convincing Michael Jordan to sign with the sportswear brand in the mid-’80s. Jordan said in an interview in 2015 that while playing on the 1984 Olympics team with Raveling as an assistant coach, he would try and convince him to sign with the Swoosh.