Scotland and Britain basketball coach and television presenter

Born: 17 March, 1955

Died: 16 October, 2017

KEVIN Cadle, who has died aged 62, was arguably the most influential American basketball coach to ever arrive in the United Kingdom, before going on to find further fame in a second career as a television presenter.

He was born in Buffalo, in New York State, where living across the road from the Buffalo Bills' War Memorial Stadium made him a life-long fan. His prowess on the basketball court at high school won him a sports scholarship at Penn State, one of the leading basketball powers in the Big Ten conference, and set him off on his chosen career path.

Failing to make it into the professional NBA, Cadle went to Texas to begin his coaching career, as an assistant at Texas A&M University, before moving on to San Angelo, where he coached at San Angelo State, between 1979 and 1983.

Still only 28, very young for a head coach's position, he then crossed the Atlantic, to Falkirk, a place he had never even heard of. As journalist Paul New, who “ghosted” Cadle's biography, and who was sports editor of the Falkirk Herald, when Cadle arrived, remembered in a fine tribute to his friend: “Kevin's only previous experience of Europe had been a trip to Communist Poland, where he noted the bare shelves in shops. So, thinking all of Europe was the same, he brought a suitcase full of what he thought were essentials, such as toilet rolls to Falkirk.”

Scottish Basketball in 1983 was dominated by David Murray's MIM team, but Cadle's Team Solripe immediately began to challenge their dominance. In no time at all the attractive style of basketball he advocated was packing Coasters Arena, as the old Falkirk Ice Rink had become.

He wanted winners, and ripped into his players for celebrating a narrow cup final loss to MIM – he would never accept second-best. The following year, inspired by Bobby Kinzer, Falkirk beat MIM and Cadle had won the first of what would become a record 30 major British trophies.

His successes at Falkirk had the richer English clubs interested and, inevitably he moved south, to Manchester, then Kingston, continuing to build up his trophy-winning and general coaching credentials.

When David Holmes decided to turn Rangers into a multi-sports club, by absorbing the cash-strapped Kingston outfit and bringing them north to play in what was a British League, with the absorption of Rangers and MIM, Cadle returned to Scotland, to inflict more pain on Murray and MIM, a pain only eased when Murray, since he could not beat them, bought Rangers, and moved out of basketball.

Cadle returned to England, with the amalgamated Kingston/Guildford team, before his final club coaching role, with London Towers.

Along the way, he found time to coach both the Scotland and England national teams, and to lead Team GB's Olympic qualifying campaign in 1992, which saw them narrowly fail to reach the main Olympic Games tournament.

He established the (to use an Americanism) “winningest” coaching record in British Basketball history – 307 wins, 79 losses – and was the first coach to guide a British team to the knock-out stages of the European Cup. He was also named Coach of the Year six times.

Having won all there was to win in basketball, the “Alex Ferguson of British basketball” sought a new challenge and, having shown himself to be a natural in front of the TV cameras, he reinvented himself as Sky TV's go-to presenter for American sports, returning to his first love, American Football, where he found a new niche as a talking head.

He knew his stuff, he could explain the intricacies of the game to his British audience, and he was a fantastic interviewer, getting his big name guests to open up to his quiet questioning. He also became a sought-after motivational speaker, using the gifts which had made him such a successful basketball coach in other fields.

Jim Morrison, who captained the Rangers team under Cadle, said: “He was the best coach I played under, he totally changed my game and my attitude. But he became a friend, he kept in touch, with unexpected 'phone calls to see how I was doing. He was definitely, one of the good guys.”

Alton Byrd, a fierce rival as an MIM player in Scotland, later a colleague when he played under Cadle at Kingston said: “Kevin was all you could want in a coach and a friend. Our teams competed against each other in Scotland. And then I was offered the opportunity to play for him at Kingston and Guildford. Those record setting teams were the embodiment of Kevin’s personality. Tough, smart, connected, and focused.”

Many American basketball coaches have come to this country, most returned home. None made the impact Kevin Cadle did, or stayed around to influence so many. Paul New tells of how, visiting him on Tyneside to do some work on his autobiography, Cadle took the opportunity to conduct a coaching master-class for Morpeth Basketball Club. Such spontaneous acts ensure he is, rightly, a legend of the game in this country.

Kevin Cadle is survived by his wife Lorraine and Toia, his daughter from a previous relationship.

MATT VALLANCE