Rolland Todd

Rolland Douglas Todd^[1] (born April 26, 1934) is a former player and coach in the National Basketball Association, and a former player in the American Basketball League, who also coached basketball at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). He was the first coach of the then-expansion Portland Trail Blazers, leading the team to a 29–53 record in its inaugural season (best of the three expansion clubs who entered the NBA that year); though was let go the next season when the team failed to improve. According to Sports Illustrated his nickname while coaching the Blazers was "Mod Todd".

Rolland Todd

Todd as a member of the Oakland Oaks in 1962.
Personal information
Born	(1934-06-26) June 26, 1934 (age 91) Tulare County, California, U.S.
Listed height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Career information
High school	Strathmore (Strathmore, California)
College	College of the Sequoias (1952–1953) Fresno State (1956–1957)
Playing career	1958–1962
Position	Guard
Coaching career	1964–1982
Career history
Playing
1958–1960	Buchan Bakers
1960	Akron Goodyear Wingfoots
1960–1962	San Francisco Saints / Oakland Oaks
Coaching
1964–1965	Cal State LA (assistant)
1965–1970	UNLV
1970–1972	Portland Trail Blazers
1975–1982	Santa Ana College

Early life

Todd grew up in Strathmore, California, the oldest of four children. He attended Fresno State College where he “was a star 6-4 guard at Fresno State in the mid-1950s, leading the Bulldogs to a 19-8 record and the California Collegiate Athletic Association championship as a senior in 1957-58.” His roommate and teammate for three years was Jerry Tarkanian. He attended graduate school at the University of Washington.^[2]

After graduating from Fresno State, Todd played for the Seattle, Washington based Buchan Bakers of the National Industrial Basketball League (NIBL) from 1958 to 1960.^[3][4][5] He briefly joined the Akron Goodyear Wingfoots in 1960 during their unsuccessful attempt to qualify as the team to represent the United States during the 1960 Summer Olympics.^[6]

Todd signed with the St. Louis Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in June 1960, but was placed on waivers before the start of the regular season.^[7][8] Todd reportedly signed with the Washington Tapers of the American Basketball League (ABL) in October 1961, but never joined the team and took a teaching job in Seattle, Washington.^[9] In December 1961, Todd signed with the San Francisco Saints of the ABL.^[10] On October 26, 1962, Todd signed with the Oakland Oaks of the ABL.^[11]

Career statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1960–61	San Francisco Saints	53	—	25.1	.380	.256	.752	4.1	3.7	—	—	8.2
1961–62	Oakland Oaks	24	—	30.5	.409	.292	.837	5.6	3.1	—	—	14.4
Career		77	—	26.8	.392	.270	.787	4.5	3.5	—	—	10.1

Source:^[12][13]