[1] Shue was one of the top guards of the early days of the NBA and an influential figure in the development of basketball.

[7]As a prospect in 1950, Shue was lightly recruited by University of Maryland's newly hired coach Bud Millikan.

After getting turned down by Loyola and getting wait listed by Georgetown after two underwhelming tryouts, Shue opted to instead play for Maryland.

[9]In his tenure with Maryland, Shue and Millikan led the school's team to new heights, including their first 20-plus win regular season (23 his senior year), their first appearance in national rankings (peaked at #13 in 1954), and entrance into the Atlantic Coast Conference.

On November 28, 1954, after just six games with the Warriors, Shue's player rights were sold to the New York Knicks,[12] after notifying then-owner Eddie Gottlieb that his paycheck was $10 short ($110.15 in 2022).

[15][16] On October 29, 1963, Shue was traded along with Paul Hogue to his hometown team, the Baltimore Bullets, for Bill McGill.

[18] In his first coaching stint, the then 35-year-old led the Bullets and took over a 4–21 team mid-season leading them to a dismal 16–40 record in the 1966–67 season.

[20] He guided the Bullets to the NBA Finals in 1971, but got swept by the Milwaukee Bucks led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson.

[4] Shue's seven seasons in Baltimore were also noted for the Bullets' rivalry with the New York Knicks, in which both teams faced each other in the NBA playoffs for five straight years from 1969 to 1973.

[23] On June 15, 1973, a week after his departure from the Bullets, Shue signed a two‐year contract to succeed Kevin Loughery as head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers.

[26] Shue was fired six games into the following season on November 4, 1977, having clashed with new owner Fitz Dixon[27] despite raising the expectations to a championship.

[29] The next season, Shue joined the newly relocated San Diego Clippers and surprised the league with a 43–39 record and a near-playoff berth.

[31] Shue finally agreed to head coach the Washington Bullets when he signed a three-year contract to succeed Dick Motta on May 27, 1980.

Shue's final head coaching assignment began on May 21, 1987, when he signed a three-year contract to return to the Clippers, which had relocated to Los Angeles three years earlier.

He succeeded Don Chaney and inherited a Clippers team which had an NBA-worst 12–70 record in an injury-riddled 1986–87 and had failed to qualify for the playoffs for eleven consecutive seasons.

[34] With the Clippers beginning 1988–89 at 10–28 and in the midst of an eleven-game losing streak, Shue was fired on January 19, 1989, and assistant Don Casey was promoted to replace him.

The Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat, that season's expansion entries, both earned their first-ever victories at the expense of the Clippers which had the same win total as the former at the time of the coaching change.

[40][41] After his final coaching position, Shue opted to move to California to become vice president of a mortgage business and work for a bank, while also serving as an analyst for ESPN on Continental Basketball Association games.

"[51] Throughout his coaching career, Shue was known for his mix of fundamental basketball and unconventional strategies, many of which went against the norms of the time, but were sometimes adopted in future generations.

"[59] Earl Monroe noted Shue's ability to get star players, like Monroe himself, to adapt their flashy skills to sound, fundamental team play (noting the perceived racial segregation in styles of play of the time).

"[61] Bill Walton wrote in his autobiography that Shue "was awesome, always so positive, upbeat, imaginative, and extremely creative.

"[62] In 1980, Sports Illustrated suggested that Shue "might be the reigning expert on the rehabilitation of players, judging from his penchant for taking in the league's rejects and wayward souls.

"[64] Although his lifelong tendency to seek out challenging situations to turn around resulted in fewer wins, trophies, and accolades as both a player and a coach; in 1987, he remarked, "I think when you come into any losing situation, the first thing you have to bring with you is a positive attitude, one that your players can begin to believe in.

"[65] In 1989, the Los Angeles Times stated, "Gene Shue has proven to be one of the best coaches the NBA has ever had.

[71] Shue's basketball career included over 40 years in the NBA, although split as player, coach, and executive.

In 1985, when asked about the effect of basketball on home life, Sandy Shue remarked, "People think he's got the most violent temper.