Thompson was born and raised in Washington D.C. and it was in his hometown where he would build a dynasty in the 1980s.
John Thompson Jr., the Hall of Fame basketball coach and Georgetown legend who became the first Black head coach to win an NCAA championship, has died, his family said on Monday. Thompson was 78. “Our father was an inspiration to many and devoted his life to developing young people not simply on, but most importantly, off the basketball court,” the family said in a statement. “He is revered as a historic shepherd of the sport, dedicated to the welfare of his community above all else.” A cause of death was not immediately given. He would have turned 79 on Wednesday. Thompson, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006, reached the NCAA tournament 20 times with the Hoyas, capped by the 1984 national championship. He retired after the 1998-99 season with a 596-239 record in 27 seasons at Georgetown. Thompson was born and raised in Washington D.
