Pat Williams, former Bulls general manager and a co-founder of the Orlando Magic and someone who spent more than a half-century working within the NBA, died Wednesday from complications related to viral pneumonia, the Magic announced.
Williams was 84.
He started his NBA career as business manager of the Philadelphia 76ers in 1968 and then was hired at the age of 29 by the nascent Bulls franchise as general manager.
In 1969 as general manager, in rebuilding the roster, he acquired Chet Walker from the 76ers. He drafted Norm Van Lier, then immediately traded him to the Cincinnati Royals, but then reacquired him in 1971. In the four years with the team, with coach Dick Motta, the Bulls made the playoffs each season.
Williams cited legendary White Sox owner and promotional genius Bill Veeck as a mentor. With the Bulls he invested in promotions and grew the attendance each season. His most lasting creation is the beloved team mascot Benny the Bull, who made his first appearance for the team in 1969.
He later had stints as general manager of the Atlanta Hawks and the 76ers — helping the franchise win a title in 1983.
A few years later, Williams was involved in starting the process of bringing an NBA team to Orlando. The league’s board of governors granted an expansion franchise in 1987, and the team began play in 1989. He was general manager in Orlando until being promoted to senior vice president in 1996.
“Pat Williams simply brought magic to Orlando,” Orlando Magic Chairman Dan DeVos and CEO Alex Martins said in a joint statement. “His accomplishments will always be remembered. Armed with his ever-present optimism and unparalleled energy, he was an incredible visionary who helped transform the world of sports in multiple ways. From bringing the Magic to Orlando, to transforming sports marketing and promotions, he was always ahead of the curve.”
Williams never stopped pushing for more in Orlando, either. He spoke often about why he wanted the city to get a Major League Soccer franchise — it eventually did — and as recently as last year was trying to build momentum to get a Major League Baseball franchise for the city.
Baseball was Williams’ first sporting love; he played at Wake Forest. He signed to play in the Philadelphia Phillies’ organization in 1962, eventually became a front-office worker and was picked as the Minor League Executive of the Year by The Sporting News in 1967.
“He loved a challenge, and when he moved our family to Orlando to start the Magic, he was full of excitement and energy that he displayed every day,” Williams’ family said in a statement. “We all grew up believing that anything is possible because of his unwavering enthusiasm for what he was passionate about. Those who attended the games, saw him at church, or spent time with him in a social setting know that he never met a stranger and was always quick with an encouraging word. He was a giver, a teacher, the ultimate cheerleader, and he was a lifelong learner.”
Williams was at one time dubbed the “king of the lottery,” given the success he and the Magic had when he showed up to represent the club at the league’s annual event to determine who gets the No. 1 pick. Lottery luck fell his way three times, bringing Shaquille O’Neal, Anfernee Hardaway and Dwight Howard to Orlando.
“Most teams have a trophy case full of trophies,” Williams once told The Associated Press. “We have a case filled with pingpong balls.”
His cases were filled with far more than those. Williams wrote more than 100 books and ran 58 marathons, including the Boston Marathon 13 times. Diagnosed in February 2011 with multiple myeloma, Williams became an avid fundraiser for cancer research and sat on several boards for cancer groups throughout the country, including the Board of Directors for the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.
He also was a motivational speaker, often addressing groups on leadership, teamwork and the mental challenge that comes after being diagnosed with cancer, among other topics.
Williams was born in Philadelphia and raised in Wilmington, Delaware. He was honored with the John W. Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012 by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was a member of the Delaware Sports Hall of Fame, the Magic’s Hall of Fame as a member of its inaugural class in 2014, and the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame.
“The Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award was created to honor colleagues like Pat Williams who has demonstrated his enthusiasm for the game of basketball throughout his life,” Hall of Fame Chairman Jerry Colangelo said in 2012, when Williams received the honor. “Pat not only made a major impact in his leadership to cultivate the Chicago Bulls organization and bring a championship to the Philadelphia 76ers, but he invested an incredible effort to bring a successful franchise to Central Florida.”
Williams is survived by his wife Ruth and 19 children, 14 of whom they adopted from foreign countries.
“Pat forever changed the sports landscape in Orlando,” DeVos and Martins said. “He shined a light on what those who called Orlando home already knew — that Central Florida was a fabulous place to live, work and play. We all owe him a debt of gratitude and he will certainly be missed, but never forgotten.”
Memorial arrangements were still pending as of Wednesday night, the Magic said.
Pat then moved to basketball as the business manager for the Philadelphia 76ers, followed by a GM gig with the Chicago Bulls, where he’d invent a mascot he named “Benny the Bull” pic.twitter.com/qTucO1QloE
— Hardcourt History (@HardcourtHstory) December 31, 2023
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