Bay Area

Al Attles Tribute Hall of Fame Celebration

Published

5 years ago

December 12, 2019

Come out and support one of Oakland’s finest, Alvin Attles Jr as he is honored for his Hall of Fame induction in Oakland, December 22, 2019.

An avid Warriors Legend & Community Ambassador, Attles is currently in his 59^th year with the Golden State Warriors organization (Al Attles’ current stint with the same team represents the longest active streak in NBA history). Attles, who celebrated his 83^rd birthday on November 7, 2019, joined the Warriors in 1960 (Philadelphia Warriors’ fifth-round draft choice) and has since been affiliated with the club in one capacity or another, building a unique relationship based on commitment, loyalty, and dedication.

Attles has many professional accomplishments to his name. In September 2019 it culminated with Attles being enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In 2018, Attles was named in ESPN’s Top 100 Most Influential Players of All-Time. In 2017, he was awarded the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2014, Attles was honored by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame with the John R. Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award – its second highest honor.

Attles is one of only six players in Warriors history to have his jersey retired (#16) – joining Rick Barry (#24), Wilt Chamberlain (#13), Tom Meschery (#14), Chris Mullin (#17), and Nate Thurmond (#42) – and remains one of the most publicly recognizable sports figures in the Bay Area. Each of these players are honored in the plaza of the new Chase Center in San Francisco. Attles is also the only player to have his number retired (#22) at his alma mater, North Carolina A&T University.

His endless contributions locally as a player, coach, executive, and civic leader resulted in his much deserved induction into the Bay Area Hall of Fame in 1993. In the summer of 2006, the newly refurbished outdoor basketball court at Lincoln Square Park in downtown Oakland was permanently renamed “Alvin Attles Court” in honor of the local legend and longtime Oakland resident. The Warriors recently named the courts at the Warriors practice facility at the Chase Center after Attles. Each year, the Warriors present the Alvin Attles Volunteer Award to the team employee who goes above and beyond in their efforts to serve the Bay Area community as part of the organization’s Helping Hands program.

In the latter stages of the 1969-70 NBA season, Attles was named head coach of the Warriors, replacing George Lee after 52 games. Attles spent the final two years of his playing career, 1969-70 and 1970-71, as a player/coach, becoming the second African-American to hold such a distinction. His 30-game stint as head coach to end the 1969-70 season proved to be the start of the longest head coaching run in Warriors franchise history. His 13-plus year tenure produced, among other highlights, the lone NBA Championship in the club’s West Coast history (1974-75) until the championship drought ended in 2015.

During his 13-year coaching fun, Attles guided the Warriors to six playoff berths, two division titles and amassed an overall 557-518 record, which ranks 25^th on the NBA’s all-time coaches winning list. One season after leading Golden State to the NBA title, he led the Warriors to a sparkling 59-23 record in 1975-76, the best mark in franchise history (that held for 40 years) and the top record in the NBA that season. He was also named head coach of the Western Conference All-Star team in 1975 and 1976. Attles completed his coaching career in 1982-83 to become the Warriors General Manager, heading the team’s basketball operations for three years.

One of the most aggressive and hard-nosed players in the league, Attles earned the unique nickname of “The Destroyer”, which appropriately described his mentality on the court. During his 11-year NBA career, he averaged 8.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 711 regular season games, which currently ranks fifth on the Warriors all-time games played list. Furthermore, Attles was involved in one of the most memorable games in NBA history on March 2, 1962 when he and teammate Wilt Chamberlain combined for 117 points against the New York Knicks, the most ever by a pair of players in league history. In that game, Attles has a perfect game as the second leading scorer tallying 17 points (8-8 FG, 1-1 FT), while Chamberlain netted an all-time NBA record 100 points. Attles retired from playing following the 1970-71 campaign to focus strictly on coaching – eliminating his dual role as player/coach.

A 1960 graduate of North Carolina A&T University, Attles earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Physical Education and History. He later added a Master’s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of San Francisco in 1983.

Al and his wife, Wilhelmina, reside in Oakland and have two adult children, Alvin III and Ericka. The Attles also have eight grandchildren and four great grandchildren.

In October 2018, Attles III formed Attles Center for Excellence (ACE) to honor his father’s legacy. The Oakland-based non-profit will officially launch at the end of 2019. The mission is to create the next generation of high performing citizens through engagement in innovative STEAM-focused programs and health and wellness initiatives. In 2020 ACE plans to launch a comprehensive after-school program for at-risk youth and a series of basketball camps, incorporating coding, the arts, and nutrition.

Malaika Bobino

Posts by Malaika Bobino

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Activism

Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

Published

11 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Bay Area

Glydways Breaking Ground on 14-Acre Demonstration Facility at Hilltop Mall

Glydways has been testing its technology at CCTA’s GoMentum Station in Concord for several years. The company plans to install an ambitious 28-mile Autonomous Transit Network in East Contra Costa County. The new Richmond facility will be strategically positioned near that project, according to Glydways.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Image of planned Richmond facility courtesy of Glydways.

The Richmond Standard

Glydways, developer of microtransit systems using autonomous, small-scale vehicles, is breaking ground on a 14-acre Development and Demonstration Facility at the former Hilltop Mall property in Richmond, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) reported on social media.

Glydways, which released a statement announcing the project Monday, is using the site while the mall property undergoes a larger redevelopment.

“In the interim, Glydways will use a portion of the property to showcase its technology and conduct safety and reliability testing,” the company said.

The new Richmond development hub will include “over a mile of dedicated test track, enabling Glydways to refine its solutions in a controlled environment while simulating real-world conditions,” the company said.

Visitors to the facility will be able to experience on-demand travel, explore the control center and visit a showroom featuring virtual reality demonstrations of Glydways projects worldwide.

The hub will also house a 13,000-square-foot maintenance and storage facility to service the growing fleet of Glydcars.

“With this new facility [at the former Hilltop Mall property], we’re giving the public a glimpse of the future, where people can experience ultra-quiet, on-demand transit—just like hailing a rideshare, but with the reliability and affordability of public transit,” said Tim Haile, executive director of CCTA.

Janet Galvez, vice president and investment officer at Prologis, owner of the Hilltop Mall property, said her company is “thrilled” to provide space for Glydways and is continuing to work with the city on future redevelopment plans for the broader mall property.

Richmond City Manager Shasa Curl added that Glydways’ presence “will not only help test new transit solutions but also activate the former Mall site while preparation and finalization of the Hilltop Horizon Specific Plan is underway.

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Alameda County

Last City Council Meeting of the Year Ends on Sour Note with Big Budget Cuts

In a five to one vote, with Councilmembers Carroll Fife and Janani Ramachandran excused, the council passed a plan aimed at balancing the $130 million deficit the city is facing. Noel Gallo voted against the plan, previously citing concerns over public safety cuts, while Nikki Fortunato-Bas, Treva Reid, Rebecca Kaplan, Kevin Jenkins, and Dan Kalb voted in agreement with the plan.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Oakland City Council voted on a plan to balance the $130 million deficit at their last regular meeting of 2024. The plan reduces police spending by $25 million, temporarily closes two fire stations, and guts the cultural arts programs. iStock photo.

By Magaly Muñoz

In the last lengthy Tuesday meeting of the Oakland City Council for 2024, residents expressed strong opposition to the much needed budget cuts before a change in leadership was finalized with the certification of election results.

Oakland police and fire departments, the ambassador program, and city arts and culture will all see significant cuts over the course of two phases.

Phase 1 will eliminate two police academies, brown out two fire stations, eliminate the ambassador program, and reduce police overtime by nearly $25 million. These, with several other cuts across departments, aim to save the city $60 million. In addition, the council simultaneously approved to transfer restricted funds into its general purpose fund, amounting to over $40 million.

Phase 2 includes additional fire station brownouts and the elimination of 91 jobs, aiming to recover almost $16 million in order to balance the rest of the budget.

Several organizations and residents spoke out at the meeting in hopes of swaying the council to not make cuts to their programs.

East Oakland Senior Center volunteers and members, and homeless advocates, filled the plaza just outside of City Hall with rallies to show their disapproval of the new budget plan. Senior residents told the council to “remember that you’ll get old too” and that disturbing their resources will only bring problems for an already struggling community.

While city staff announced that there would not be complete cuts to senior center facilities, there would be significant reductions to staff and possibly inter-program services down the line.

Exiting council member and interim mayor Bas told the public that she is still hopeful that the one-time $125 million Coliseum sale deal will proceed in the near future so that the city would not have to continue with drastic cuts. The deal was intended to save the city for fiscal year 2024-25, but a hold up at the county level has paused any progress and therefore millions of dollars in funds Oakland desperately needs.

The Coliseum sale has been a contentious one. Residents and city leaders were originally against using the deal as a way to balance the budget, citing doubts about the sellers, the African American Sports and Entertainment Group’s (AASEG), ability to complete the deal. Council members Reid, Ramachandran, and Gallo have called several emergency meetings to understand where the first installments of the sale are, with little to no answers.

Bas added that as the new Alameda County Supervisor for D5, a position she starts in a few weeks, she will do everything in her power to push the Coliseum sale along.

The city is also considering a sales tax measure to put on the special election ballot on April 15, 2025, which will also serve as an election to fill the now vacant D2 and mayor positions. The tax increase would raise approximately $29 million annually for Oakland, allowing the city to gain much-needed revenue for the next two-year budget.

The council will discuss the possible sales tax measure on January 9.