Dale Brown Dies at Age 90, Hall of Fame MCBB HC Led LSU to 2 Final Fours

LSU men's basketball head coach Dale Brown, who led the Tigers to the 1981 and 1986 Final Fours, four SEC titles, 13 NCAA tournament appearances and 448 wins during his 25 seasons at the helm, has died at the age of 90.

LSU made the announcement on Friday. Brown's family released a statement as well.

"We have lost the most loving and most loved man any of us has ever known. Dale Brown always put others first. He always led with the heart. He was always a great humanitarian before anything else. Dale long ago fell in love with Louisiana. And the people of Louisiana loved him right back. We are forever grateful for that."

The university also released a video after news of his passing.

On Wednesday, Brown was named the 2027 recipient of the Los Angeles Athletic Club John R. Wooden Legends of Coaching Award.

Basketball Hall of Famer, NBA legend and ex-LSU star Shaquille O'Neal offered a message to his beloved coach after news of the award broke.

"He made me one of the best basketball players ever," O'Neal said in part. "Daddy Dale — we call you 'Daddy' for a reason. I love you and congratulations. I am so proud of you, Coach."

Brown coached O'Neal from 1989-1992 before the big man went to the NBA and enjoyed an illustrious career. Their relationship was covered extensively in the 2015 SEC Storied documentary, "Shaq and Dale."

Per Gray Louisiana of FOX 8 WVUE-TV, Brown initially met O'Neal while leading a basketball clinic at a West Germany military base in 1984. Their relationship grew from there, and O'Neal eventually joined LSU a few years later.

O'Neal spoke with Khalid Salaam of Esquire in 2015 about what Brown meant to him.

"Away from the court he's a father figure, leader, and a motivator. His coaching style is one of belief, it wasn't all about plays all the time, it's about belief that you can get things done. When I was there we played some big games. We beat Arizona when they were No. 1, we beat Loyola Marymount, beat UNLV, lost to Duke twice. It wasn't about execution, it was about his speeches. I only ever played for two other coaches like that, and that's Phil Jackson and Pat Riley."

In addition to O'Neal, Brown coached numerous NBA players, including Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, Jerry Reynolds, John Williams and Rudy Macklin.

On the court, Brown turned around a program that fell on hard times. From 1954-1972, LSU only had four winning seasons. LSU barely got there in three of them, going two games over .500 in that trio of campaigns.

Brown turned the team around, though. The Tigers notably went 31-5 (17-1 in SEC) in 1980-81 and made the Final Four. That LSU team ran off a 26-game winning streak during the regular season.

Brown's 1985-86 LSU team was the first-ever double-digit seed to make the Final Four. The No. 11 seed scored an upset over No. 1 Kentucky in the Elite Eight to earn the distinction.

Brown stands as the winningest coach in LSU men's hoops history. He was also second on the SEC list behind Kentucky's Adolph Rupp when he retired in 1997.