George Raveling, a Hall of Fame coach and Nike executive, passed away on Tuesday, September 2. He was 88.

Raveling’s family confirmed his passing in a social media post noting that he had “faced cancer with courage and grace.”

“There are no words to fully capture what George meant to his family, friends, colleagues, former players, and assistants — and to the world,” the family statement read. “He will be profoundly missed, yet his aura, energy, divine presence, and timeless wisdom live on in all those he touched and transformed.”

Born in Washington, D.C., Raveling played basketball at Villanova from 1957-60 leading the Wildcats to two NIT appearances. He averaged 12.3 points and 14.6 and was drafted by the Philadelphia Warriors in 1960 but never played in the NBA.

Raveling would become an assistant coach for Villanova from 1963-69. During this time, Raveling secured the original copy of the “I Have a Dream” speech by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. While working security at the 1963 March on Washington, he asked King for the copy of the speech and he was handed one of the most famous speeches in American history. He would donate the document to Villanova.

As coach for more than three decades, he served as an assistant coach at the University of Maryland making him the first Black coach in the history of the ACC (Atlantic Coast Conference). He then went on to become the  head coach at Washington State where he was the first Black head basketball coach in the Pacific-8 Conference (now the Pac-12) , Iowa and the University of Southern California. On three occasions, he was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year  and had a career record of 335-293 from 1972-94. Raveling was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015.

Of his many accomplishments, Raveling helped Nike to sign Michael Jordan to his first shoe deal. As a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball staff in 1984, he introduced Jordan to Sonny Vaccaro, a sports marketing executive at Nike, which would lead to the launch of the Jordan Brand, a multi-billion dollar partnership. Raveling  is portrayed by Marlon Wayans in the 2023 film “Air” that centers on early Nike and Jordan business relationship.

Raveling served as Nike's global basketball sports marketing director from 1994 until his passing.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver described Raveling as "a pioneering force" in helping basketball become an international sport.

"During his long and impactful tenure at Nike, George traveled the world -- mentoring multiple generations of players and coaches promoting the sport that defined his identity," Silver’s statement read. "He broke barriers as a college basketball coach and was a towering voice in our industry. I valued my friendship with George and admired how he led with poise, dignity and respect."