Syracuse men’s basketball standout and longtime coach Louis Orr died Thursday at the age of 64.
Orr’s No. 55 was retired by the Orange, as he played in four NCAA Tournaments and was named to the All-Big East First team in 1980.
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“We mourn the loss of an Orange legend – a player, a coach, and most importantly a great person who made everyone around him better,” Syracuse men’s basketball said in a statement on Twitter.
“Louis Orr’s memory will live in our hearts forever, and especially whenever we look up and see his No. 55 in the Dome rafters.”
Orr spent eight years in the NBA, playing two seasons with the Indiana Pacers, who selected him in the second round (29th overall) of the 1980 NBA Draft, and six with the New York Knicks.
After retiring from the NBA, Orr spent the next three-plus decades on the sidelines. He was an assistant coach for Xavier from 1991 to 1994, and then Providence for the next two seasons before returning to his alma mater as an assistant from 1996 to 2000.
Orr got his first head coaching gig with Siena, coaching the Saints for just one season before leaving for Seton Hall for the same position. In his five seasons with the Pirates, he twice made it to March Madness, as well as the NIT one year. He also was named the Big East Coach of the Year in 2003.
Orr took a year off before heading to Bowling Green for the next seven years. He was named the MAC Coach of the Year in 2009 and was there until 2014. From 2017 to 2022, Orr was an assistant with Georgetown.
“I’ve lost a great friend,” Hoyas head coach and former Knicks teammate Patrick Ewing tweeted Friday. “Someone who has been in my life since I was 22 years old. We developed a friendship and a brotherhood. He was always someone I could talk to – we would talk about life, we would talk about basketball, we would talk about family.
“Louis Orr will be truly missed and he will forever be part of this Hoya program.”
In his head coaching career, Orr finished with an even .500 record, going 201-201, and participated in two NCAA Tournaments and two NITs.
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