Bob Ferry obit

Longtime Washington general manager Bob Ferry dies at 84

Twice named NBA Executive of the Year, Ferry's Bullets made the playoffs in 13 of 17 seasons, won a title and reached The Finals three times.

 

He was not on the list.

Bob Ferry ran the Washington Bullets from 1973 to 1990, and the team made the playoffs 13 times in that 17-year span.

Former player and longtime general manager Bob Ferry has died at the age of 84, Washington Wizards head coach Wes Unseld Jr. announced Wednesday.

“Bob and his family are dear to my parents, the Unseld family, to the Wizards organization, and we just want to wish him and his family the best, and keep them in our thoughts and prayers,” Wizards coach Wes Unseld Jr. said Wednesday. “I know how difficult this time is. I just want to let them know we’re thinking about them, we care for them and we’ll be there for them.”

Ferry was a two-time executive of the year (1978-79, 1981-82) who led the then-Washington Bullets to the 1978 NBA title, one of three NBA Finals under his guidance. He led the Bullets to the playoffs 13 times in 17 seasons as GM.

Ferry is also the father of former Duke standout, NBA player and executive Danny Ferry.

The elder Ferry was the Bullets’ GM from 1973-1990, becoming the second general manager to hire two different Black coaches — K.C. Jones (1973) and Wes Unseld (1988).

Ferry was drafted No. 7 overall in the 1959 draft by the St. Louis Hawks. He averaged 9.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game in 10 seasons with the Hawks (1959-60), Detroit Pistons (1960-64) and Baltimore Bullets (1964-69).

Ferry is one of four GMs in league history with 700 wins, 13 playoff appearances, a championship and two Executive of the Year awards, which Ferry won in 1979 and 1982. The others are RC Buford, Jerry West and Jerry Krause.

A 6'8" center from Saint Louis University, Ferry was selected by the St. Louis Hawks with the seventh pick of the 1959 NBA draft. Ferry played ten seasons in the NBA with the Hawks, Detroit Pistons and Baltimore Bullets, scoring 5,780 points and grabbing 3,343 rebounds. After his playing career ended, he became an assistant coach and later general manager for the Bullets, winning an NBA Championship in 1978 and the NBA Executive of the Year Award in 1979 and 1982. He later had a brief stint on The NBA on NBC as an "Insider" alongside Peter Vescey in the early 1990s.