Willem Hendrik "Butch" (sometimes "Bill")[1] van Breda Kolff (October 28, 1922 – August 22, 2007) was an American basketball player and coach.

Butch was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, son of Dutch soccer player Jan van Breda Kolff.

In the four years (1946–50) van Breda Kolff played in the BAA and the NBA, he turned in a relatively unimpressive performance, shooting just .305 from the field, .669 from the line, and averaging 4.7 points in 175 contests.

The Lakers hired him in 1967, and in his first season guided the team to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics in six games.

Chamberlain picked up his fifth foul midway through the fourth quarter, and shortly thereafter asked out of the game with knee pain.

With backup center Mel Counts in the game, the Lakers cut a seven-point deficit to two points.

On May 19, van Breda Kolff resigned before he could be fired by Lakers owner Jack Kent Cooke.

He left the team ten games into the next season, stating in a 1984 Sports Illustrated article that he quit after being cursed at repeatedly by frustrated fans.

Van Breda Kolff coached the Phoenix Suns for the first seven games of the 1972–73 campaign before being fired and replaced by Jerry Colangelo.

[9] In 1996, van Breda Kolff coached the Tampa Bay Windjammers for the first six games of the 1996 United States Basketball League (USBL) season.

His second stint with the Flying Dutchmen lasted five seasons and ended after the 1993–94 season, which saw Hofstra win just nine games but also saw them go on a winning streak in the East Coast Conference tournament all the way to the final, which they won in what was Van Breda Kolff's final game as a head coach.

[12] Van Breda Kolff died August 22, 2007, at a nursing home in Spokane, Washington, after a long illness.