Tex Winter

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Lore & Background

Winter was born near Wellington, Texas, 15 minutes after twin sister Mona Francis. He grew up in an unpainted shack during the Dust Bowl. His father died from an infection after being speared by a marlin while fishing. Winter moved to Huntington Park, California in 1936. He was a ball boy for Loyola University of Los Angeles (now Loyola Marymount University), studying coach Jimmy Needles's reverse action offense. Winter attended Compton Junior College, Oregon State University, and the University of Southern California. He served as a Navy pilot during World War II. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011.

In Their Own Story

The foundation of Winter's coaching philosophy was laid during his college years and military service. At Oregon State in 1942, he transferred as a "basketball transfer," surprising the track coach who didn't realize they had acquired a top pole vaulter. While serving in Wisconsin during late fall 1943-44, Winter played guard for Marquette University under W. S. "Bill" Chandler, earning a varsity letter; he would later replace Chandler as head coach there in 1951. After the war, returning to USC from 1946 to 1947, he learned the fundamentals of Sam Barry's center-opposite offense. Winter saw similarities between Barry's system and the reverse action offense he had watched at Loyola. In March 1947, United Press named him an honorable mention All-Pacific Coast Conference guard, and in April, he received USC's Ernie Holbrook memorial trophy as the team's most inspirational player.

Reader's Guide

Winter was a head coach in college basketball for 30 years, including 15 years at Kansas State University, where he went to the NCAA Final Four twice (1958 and 1964), won eight conference titles, and had nearly a 70 percent winning percentage. He was voted United Press college Coach of the Year in March 1958 and was Big Eight Coach of the Year three consecutive seasons (1957–1960) and again in 1967–68. He was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (2010), Kansas State Athletics Hall of Fame (1991), USC Athletics Hall of Fame (2003), PAC-12 Hall of Honor (2003), Kansas Sports Hall of Fame (1997), and Compton Community College Athletics Hall of Fame (2012). In 2003, Kansas State fans voted him the Kansas State basketball coach of the century.

Did You Know?

• Winter was an outstanding pole vaulter and was considered a candidate for the 1944 U.S. Olympic team, which was cancelled due to World War II.
• In 2002, after the Lakers won their third consecutive NBA championship, the team made rings honoring Winter, with a design of several triangles on the front.
• The National Basketball Coaches Association (NBCA) created the Tex Winter Assistant Coach Lifetime Impact Award in 2016, presented annually in his honor.
• Winter received the John Bunn Award for lifetime achievement from the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998.
• Winter's brother Ernest was a Navy pilot who became the first pilot to walk out of China after his plane was shot down, walking over 600 miles.