Every interview with Don Nelson is an interview worth
reading. The winningest coach in NBA history, who officially retired this year
and will be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame on Sept. 7, provided
another series of signature gems in describing his life in retirement.
Nelson, 72, shared some of his many post-NBA hobbies and
ventures with Mark Emmons of the San Jose Mercury News.
He described his shaved-ice shop in Maui, the 22-acre farm where he grows koa
and olive trees, and the coffee beans he brews into "Nellie's
Coffee."
"We put it in a contest with 19 entries and finished
fourth," Nelson is quoted as saying. "So we make the fourth-best
coffee on Maui."
Deadpan comments like this one are why the NBA and those who
cover it will miss Nelson. The small-ball style and point-guard position he
popularized may remain, but few will ever mimic his wit.
