Hundreds mourn 'Dream Team' coach Daly

A host of basketball greats were among the hundreds who turned out Wednesday to mourn Chuck Daly, Hall of Fame coach of the original US Olympic "Dream Team" and two Detroit NBA championship teams.

"He was a wonderful, wonderful human being and a great mentor, a great friend," said former Pistons star guard Isiah Thomas.

Thomas and former Pistons Bill Laimbeer, Rick Mahorn and Joe Dumars were among the pallbearers at Daly's funeral, giving a sad send-off to the coach who guided Detroit to back-to-back titles in 1989-90.

Billy Cunningham and Rollie Massimino, close friends who played on those Pistons teams, were on hand as was former Daly assistant Rick Carlisle, now coach of the Dallas Mavericks who faced an elimination playoff game later Wednesday.

"Missing this was not an option," said Carlisle, who was headed Denver later for Dallas's game against the Nuggets.

Daly, 78, died Saturday at his home in Jupiter, Florida, after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Daly went 638-437 in 14 seasons as an NBA coach and had a massive impact on the game - both as coach of the physical and fight-prone "Bad Boys" Pistons of the late 1980s and as leader of some of basketball's most storied players.

After guiding the Pistons to back-to-back crowns, Daly was selected to coach the 1992 US Olympic squad in Barcelona, the first Games to feature NBA talent.

His "Dream Team" featured superstars Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan and Karl Malone and is considered the greatest team ever assembled.

"It's not a good day," said Laimbeer, his eyes reddened. "But it's also a day of celebration because everybody got up and spoke about what a great man Chuck was. And they were right."

"Coach. Daddy Rich. Prince of pessimism. Hall of Famer. Champion," Daly's daughter, Cydney, said. "He went by many different names to many people, but there was only one person who called him daddy."