Brightman unexpectedly left his role following an altercation with UCLA Bruins coach John Wooden during a 1956 game and struggled to return to the collegiate ranks.

[1] He had a short stint playing baseball as a catcher with the Cleveland Indians organisation as a 17-year-old before his career was ended when he injured his shoulder.

[2] Brightman played 58 games for the Boston Celtics of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) during the league's inaugural 1946–47 season.

[1] Brightman saw an improvement when he recruited the O'Brien twins, Johnny and Eddie, after playing them in a semiprofessional baseball game in Wichita, Kansas, in 1950.

[1][3] Brightman was ahead of his time by eschewing the methodical pace used by most collegiate teams and encouraging his players to perform at an ultra-fast tempo.

[1] Three days later, Brightman abruptly resigned from his $8,000 per year role as Seattle's head basketball and baseball coach.

[1] He denied any link to his incident with Wooden but instead indicated that he had secured a deal to coach a semiprofessional baseball team in Canada.

[1] Elgin Baylor, who was to join the Chieftains the following season, alleged that Brightman was drunk during the game and forced to resign.

[1] Brightman left the job by late 1956 and moved to Long Beach, California, to run a restaurant and then worked at a Douglas Aircraft Company plant.

[1] He unsuccessfully applied for the head coaching position of the Washington State Cougars in 1958 but was beaten by his former Madigan Generals teammate, Marv Harshman.

[1] Brightman coached basketball at Garden Grove High School and sold automobiles to make an income while earning his degree.

[1] He was named head coach for the San Francisco Saints of the American Basketball League (ABL) for the 1961–62 season.