Despite playing basketball at three different high schools, Bill Hanzlik still stood out and had many options for playing at the next level. He chose Notre Dame where he played for four years and earned an engineering degree. Bill helped the Fighting Irish get to their first Final Four where they lost in the semifinals. He was also part of the 1980 Men’s Olympic basketball team that never made it to Russia because of the US boycott. He was drafted 20th overall in the 1980 NBA Draft and played for two years in Seattle until he was traded to Denver. Bill went to the playoffs every year he wore a Nuggets uniform. When he became their head coach in 1997, it was quite the opposite: his team won just 11 games, a record that is currently tied for 4th worst NBA regular season record. He was fired after one season.
During his playing and coaching days, Bill started and grew the Gold Crown Foundation. What began as a basketball camp for 150 girls has grown into a multitude of camps in a variety of sports for thousands of young people. While Gold Crown is Bill’s passion and mission, he also loves his long-time gig as an analyst for the Nuggets on Altitude TV.