Former Bradley men’s basketball player and head coach Stan Albeck died at the age of 89 on March 25.
A native of Chenoa, Illinois, Albeck launched his basketball career playing four seasons for the Braves between 1950 and 1955. After graduating, Albeck entered the coaching realm, where he worked his way up from the collegiate level to the NBA.
After working as an assistant for the American Basketball Association’s San Diego Conquistadors and Kentucky Colonels, Albeck served as the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers (1979-80), San Antonio Spurs (1980-83), New Jersey Nets (1983-85) and, perhaps most notably, the Chicago Bulls for the 1985-86 season.
In that lone season as head coach in Chicago, Albeck coached Michael Jordan in his second professional season. Unfortunately for Albeck and the Bulls, Jordan missed all but 18 games of that season, and the team finished 30-52. As a result, fellow BU alumnus and Bulls executive Jerry Krause fired Albeck.
That offseason, Bradley athletic director Ron Ferguson capitalized on the opportunity and brought on Albeck to lead the program he once played for. He took over for Dick Versace, who took an assistant coach position with the Detroit Pistons.
Over the course of the next five seasons, Albeck left a lasting mark on his alma mater.
“He was a delightful guy, very very loose and free with his time,” Bradley radio broadcaster Dave Snell said. “To work with him and watch his teams play was just a special treat because he turned this basketball program into a miniature NBA team.”
Upon Albeck’s return to campus, the work started almost immediately. After Versace led a talented Braves’ roster to a 32-3 record and NCAA Tournament win in 1986, many athletes from the squad were pondering transferring — including superstar Hersey Hawkins.
“They had maybe four, five players going to go elsewhere,” Snell said. “When Stan came, he told [Hersey] he knew what kind of player he was and that he would change the offense [around him] … And that’s what he did, and he turned Hersey into an All-American.”
In five seasons at the helm, Albeck coached BU to a 75-71 record, including a 26-5 mark in 1988. That ‘88 campaign was among the greatest in school history, capped off by the Braves sweeping the MVC regular season and tournament titles and Hawkins leading the nation with 36.4 PPG in his senior year.
While the win totals decreased in the subsequent seasons, the coach’s impact on the young men he coached did not. Albeck’s coaching style — laid back and offensive-minded — lent itself to entertaining basketball and happy players.
One beneficiary of that style was Curtis Stuckey, a guard for the Braves from 1989 to 1991. Stuckey, a Peoria native, played his first two years of college basketball at Drake before transferring back home.
“I was losing time,” Stuckey said. “I needed to come in and come in and play and try and make an impact right away, and Bradley was the right situation for me at the time.”
Stuckey entered the program following three straight seasons in which the Braves boasted the conference’s leading scorers — Hawkins for two seasons (27.1 PPG in ‘87 and 36.2 in ‘88) and Anthony Manuel (21 in ‘89).
Upon his arrival, Stuckey stepped into that leading scorer’s role. After leading the team with 23.7 PPG in 1989-90, Stuckey put Bradley back on top of the scoring list in 1990-91, posting 25.1 PPG to lead the Valley.
While that meant a lot for Stuckey on the court, it carried great weight off the floor as well.
“I had never been in a position where I was a leader,” Stuckey said. “I think [Stan] really just made me believe more in myself and my potential and abilities and my confidence level. That’s something that I carry on from that time; that I’m very positive and confident in myself, on the basketball court and in life. That’s something I feel like Stan helped instill in me.”
In Stuckey’s opinion, Albeck reopened the possibility for Peoria high school basketball players to play for their hometown school – a trend that has continued from the coach’s tenure through the 2006 Sweet Sixteen team and into the present day.
“He did a lot for the city, a lot for the school, a lot for a lot of players,” Stuckey said. “He’s the guy I think that started tapping back into the local talent … That was very valuable also, for players who wanted to stay home and had ambitions for playing for Bradley.”
That positive impact was felt by those who interacted with the coach in and out of Peoria, from Braves to broadcasters, to even basketball legends.
“Michael Jordan actually came to his basketball camp, and I had a chance to interview him,” Snell said. “He really liked Stan, so he came down here … It was like the NBA coming to Peoria, that was no question. And he was such a great guy. A lot of these coaches … other places, are really difficult to get to know and they’re paranoid about losing their jobs if they don’t win. Stan was just the opposite. He was happy-go-lucky and glad to be here.”
