Scott Skiles

Scott Skiles
Born	(1964-03-05) March 5, 1964 United States
Occupation(s)	Basketball player, coach
Years active	1986–1996 (player), 1997–2016 (coach)
Known for	NBA record for most assists in a single game (30 assists)

Scott Allen Skiles Sr. (born March 5, 1964) is a retired American basketball player and coach. Throughout his coaching career, he served as the head coach for the Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks, and Orlando Magic. Selected in the first round of the NBA draft from Michigan State University, Skiles spent ten seasons in the NBA playing as a point guard. He holds the league record for the most assists in a single game, dishing out 30 assists during his fifth NBA season and second year with Orlando. That same season, he earned the 1990–91 NBA Most Improved Player Award.

High school and college

In 1982, Skiles propelled Plymouth High School to victory in the Indiana State Championship by scoring 39 points in a double overtime thriller. That year, he led the entire state in scoring with an average of 29.3 points per game and set school records for points scored in both home (53) and away (56) games. By the end of his high school career, he became Plymouth’s all-time leading scorer with 1,788 points—a record that remained unbroken until 2005. His jersey number 22 was retired by the school in 1992.

At Michigan State University, Skiles was named a First Team All-American during his senior year, also earning recognition as the Big Ten Conference Player of the Year and leading scorer. He graduated as MSU’s all-time top scorer with 2,145 points and still holds the Spartans’ single-season scoring record of 850 points. During his collegiate years, Skiles encountered legal troubles including a dismissed cocaine charge, a guilty plea for marijuana possession, and a DUI arrest which resulted in a 15-day jail sentence. Additionally, he served a short jail term for violating parole during his final season.

NBA career

The Milwaukee Bucks selected Skiles with the 22nd overall pick in the 1986 NBA draft. Over a decade-long career, he played for several teams: Bucks (1986–87), Indiana Pacers (1987–89), Orlando Magic (1989–94), Washington Bullets (1994–95), and Philadelphia 76ers (1995–96).

Milwaukee Bucks

Skiles made his NBA debut on November 11, 1986, facing off against the Indiana Pacers. In that game, he contributed 2 rebounds and 5 assists during a 102–94 victory. His rookie season consisted of just 13 games coming off the bench, where he averaged 3.8 points and 3.5 assists per contest.

Indiana Pacers

On June 21, 1987, Skiles was traded to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for a second-round draft pick in 1989. During the 1987–88 season, he appeared in 50 games with limited playing time, averaging 4.4 points and 3.5 assists per game. The following year saw increased involvement as he played in 80 games with 13 starts, posting averages of 6.8 points and 4.9 assists while playing under 20 minutes per game.

Orlando Magic

Skiles was chosen by the newly formed Orlando Magic during the 1989 NBA Expansion Draft. Initially serving as backup point guard, he averaged 7.7 points and 4.8 assists across 70 games while playing about 20.9 minutes per contest. The next season (1990–91), Skiles earned a starting role and achieved career-best numbers: 17.2 points and 8.4 assists per game over nearly 34.4 minutes in 79 appearances. On December 30, 1990, he set an NBA record by recording 30 assists in a single game against the Denver Nuggets, breaking the previous record of 29 assists. This accomplishment contributed to him receiving the NBA Most Improved Player Award that year.

In the following season (1991–92), his statistics slightly declined to averages of 14.1 points and 7.3 assists over 75 games amid decreases in shooting efficiency and other performance metrics. The subsequent year marked a resurgence as Skiles posted career highs with an average of 15.4 points along with leading the league at 9.4 assists per game while starting every contest and logging nearly 40 minutes per game.

During the full slate of games in the 1993–94 season, his production dropped to averages of 9.9 points and 6.1 assists as he lost his starting position midway through to emerging star Penny Hardaway. To free up salary cap space after this season, Skiles was traded to the Washington Bullets during the offseason.

Washington Bullets

During the 1994–95 season with the Washington Bullets, Skiles averaged 33.5 minutes across 62 games, all of which he started. His performance saw an uptick, with scoring and assists increasing to 13.0 and 7.3 per game, respectively.

Philadelphia 76ers

Skiles spent the 1995–96 season with the Philadelphia 76ers, appearing in just 10 games. His output dropped to 6.3 points and 3.8 assists per game while averaging 23.6 minutes, starting in nine contests.

PAOK

In 1996, following recovery from a significant shoulder injury, Skiles signed a lucrative one-year deal worth over $1 million with Greek club PAOK based in Thessaloniki. Despite lofty expectations, the season was disrupted by injuries and contractual disagreements involving key teammates. Battling his own injury issues and tensions with coach Michel Gomez, Skiles sought to be released. Instead of granting his request, PAOK president Lakis Alexopoulos removed Gomez and appointed Skiles as head coach. Under his guidance, PAOK achieved a winning record and unexpectedly secured third place in the Greek League’s '96-'97 campaign, earning qualification for the following season’s Euroleague.

Assistant coach

Skiles returned to the NBA for the 1997–98 season as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Suns, before being elevated to head coach in 1999.

Phoenix Suns

With Skiles at the helm, Phoenix posted a .595 winning percentage and reached the playoffs twice over three seasons, including a notable first-round upset against the reigning champions San Antonio Spurs in 2000.

Chicago Bulls

After a two-year break from coaching, Skiles took over as head coach of the Chicago Bulls in 2003. He emphasized improving the young squad’s defensive capabilities and achieving greater consistency. During his tenure, Chicago led the NBA with a .422 opponent field goal percentage and set a franchise record by holding opponents under 100 points for 26 consecutive games. These accomplishments earned him the NBA Eastern Conference Coach of the Month award in January 2005.

The Bulls finished the 2006 season at 41–41, clinching the seventh seed but falling to the Miami Heat in six games. The following year, they improved to a 49–33 record, swept Miami in the opening playoff round but were eliminated by top-seeded Detroit Pistons in six games.

Despite strong preseason expectations for 2007–08, Chicago stumbled out to a 9–16 start, leading to Skiles’ dismissal by GM John Paxson on December 24, 2007.

Milwaukee Bucks

On April 21, 2008, Skiles was named head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. The team struggled through a 34–48 campaign during the 2008–09 season, impacted significantly by injuries to key players Michael Redd and Andrew Bogut, though GM John Hammond publicly expressed confidence in Skiles.

In his second season, Skiles developed a youthful core featuring Bogut and Brandon Jennings. The midseason acquisitions of John Salmons and veteran Jerry Stackhouse strengthened the roster further. Defying predictions that placed them last in the Eastern Conference, Milwaukee’s solid defensive play led to several impressive victories. After Bogut suffered a severe arm injury on April 3, 2010, Skiles guided the team to an important win over Phoenix and secured a playoff berth by defeating Chicago. The Bucks ended with a 46–36 record—their first winning season in seven years—and Skiles finished as runner-up for NBA Coach of the Year honors.

Skiles’ time with Milwaukee concluded on January 8, 2013, when both parties agreed to part ways.

Orlando Magic

On May 29, 2015, the Orlando Magic named their former point guard Skiles as the franchise’s 12th head coach. However, after completing one season, he stepped down on May 12, 2016, explaining that he felt he was "not the right head coach" for the team.

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Milwaukee | 13 || 0 || 15.8 || .290 || .214 || .833 || 2.0 || 3.5 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 3.8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Indiana | 51 || 2 || 14.9 || .411 || .300 || .833 || 1.3 || 3.5 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 4.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Indiana | 80 || 13 || 19.6 || .448 || .267 || .903 || 1.9 || 4.9 || 0.8 || 0.0 || 6.8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Orlando | 70 || 32 || 20.9 || .409 || .394 || .874 || 2.3 || 4.8 || 0.5 || 0.1 || 7.7 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Orlando | 79 || 66 || 34.4 || .445 || .408 || .902 || 3.4 || 8.4 || 1.1 || 0.1 || 17.2 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Orlando | 75 || 63 || 31.7 || .414 || .364 || .895 || 2.7 || 7.3 || 1.0 || 0.1||14.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Orlando | 78|| 78|| 39.6|| .467|| .340|| .892|| 3.7|| 9.4|| 1.1||0.0||15.4 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Orlando

|82||46||28.1|| .429|| .412|| .878||2.3||6.1||0.6||0.0||9.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | Washington 
|62||62||33.5|| .455|| .421|| .886||2.6||7.3||1.1||0.1||13.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | Philadelphia 
|10||9||23.6|| .351|| .441|| .800||1.6||3.8||0.7||0.0||6.3

|- class="sortbottom"

| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career 
|600||371||28.0|| .435|| .379|| .889||2.5||6.5||0.8||0.0||11.1

Playoffs

|- |style="text-align:left;"|1994 |style="text-align:left;"|Orlando |2||0||11.5||.500||.000||1.000||0.5||1.5||0.0||0.0||4.5 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center" colspan="2"| Career |2||0||11.5|| .500||| .000|||1.000|||0..5|||1..5|||0..0|||0..0|||4..5

Head coaching record

|-

| style="text-align:left;" |1999–2000 Phoenix Suns season 
| style="text-align:left;" |
|62 |40 |22 |— |style="text-align:center"|3rd in Pacific Division 
|9 |4 |5 |— 
|style="text-align:center"| Eliminated in 2000 NBA Playoffs#Conference Semifinals 
|- 
| style="text-align:left;" |2000–01 Phoenix Suns season 
| style="text-align:left;" |
|82 |51 |31 |— |style="text-align:center"|3rd in Pacific Division 
|4 |1 |3 |— 
|style="text-align:center"| Exited in 2001 NBA Playoffs#First round 
|- 
| style="text-align:left;" |2001–02 Phoenix Suns season 
| style="text-align:left;" |
|51 |25 |26 |— (resigned) 
|- 
|- 
|- 
|- 
|- 
|- class=“sortbottom”

Quotes

• In 2003, when questioned about ways for Eddy Curry to enhance his rebounding skills, Skiles simply answered: "Jump."
• Concerning the altercation involving Charlie Villanueva and Anderson Varejão, Skiles commented: "I hope an inquiry is initiated to identify the sniper who hit Varejao. It seemed like there was some dramatization involved."

See also

• List of National Basketball Association career free throw percentage leaders
• List of National Basketball Association players with most assists in a game

External links

• Career statistics at basketball-reference.com