Louis Orr Has Passed Away at Age 64 (Report)
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Syracuse basketball legend Louis Orr has passed away at age 64, according to a report from CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein. Thoughts and prayers go out to Orr’s family, friends and loved ones.
Louie Orr was the first recruit to commit to Jim Boeheim when Boeheim began his Hall of Fame career as head coach of Syracuse basketball. Orr was a star at Withrow High School in Cincinnati Ohio and was one of the smoothest scorers to come through the Orange program. He teamed up with Roosevelt Bouie to form the Bouie ‘N Louie Show, compiling a record of 100-18 over four years. Orr averaged 12.2 points and 7.6 rebounds for his career, but took his game to the next level as a senior averaging 16.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists while shooting 57% from the floor earning him All-American honors. He shot 55% for his collegiate career. In total, Orr played in 116 games, starting 87.
Orr was selected in the First Round of the 1980 NBA Draft by the Indiana Pacers. He played two seasons with Indiana before spending six with the New York Knicks. He averaged 9.8 points and 3.7 rebounds per game during his NBA career, including a career high 12.7 points per game during the 1984-85 campaign.
Following his professional basketball career, Orr became an accomplished coach. He started as an assistant at Xavier before going to Providence for three years. He returned to Central New York to coach with Boeheim starting with the 1996-97 season and lasting for four total years. Orr got his first head coaching gig with Siena in 2000, where he led the Saints to a tie for the MAAC title in his first season. Orr would leave Siena for Seton Hall, earning Big East Coach of the Year recognition in the 2002-03 season. He would spend five seasons with the Pirates. After that, Orr would take the head coaching job at Bowling Green for a few seasons before becoming an assistant at Georgetown.
Orr was the Vic Hanson Medal of Excellence Award Winner in 1990, named to the Syracuse All Century Team in 2000 and was a Letterwinner of Distinction in 2006. Syracuse returned his jersey, along with teammate Roosevelt Bouie, in 2015.
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