[4] Wilkens won the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award for the 2010–11 NBA season.

[7] At Boys High School, Wilkens was a basketball teammate of longtime Major League Baseball star Tommy Davis, and played for coach Mickey Fisher.

In honor of his collegiate accomplishments, Wilkens was one of the inaugural inductees into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.

Wilkens was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers before the start of the next season in a highly unpopular trade, and the SuperSonics fell to 26–56 without his leadership on the court.

With Seattle, he led the league in assists in the 1969–70 season, and at the time of his retirement was the NBA's second all-time leader in that category, behind only Oscar Robertson.

He resigned as coach following the 1992–93 season, after the Cavs were swept by the Chicago Bulls in the second round of the playoffs.

[14] In June 2000, Wilkens signed a four-year, $20 million dollar contract to become head coach of the Toronto Raptors, replacing Butch Carter.

[15] In his first season at the helm, he led the Raptors franchise to their first playoff series win, defeating the New York Knicks in the first round.

Wilkens and the team parted ways after a disappointing and injury riddled 2002-03 season where they finished with a 24-58 record.

[16] The Hall of Famer was named head coach of the New York Knicks on January 15, 2004 after the team started 15-24 under Don Chaney.

During his stint as GM, he drafted future All-Star Xavier McDaniel and hired Head Coach Bernie Bickerstaff.

On November 29, 2006, Wilkens was hired as vice chairman of the SuperSonics' ownership group,[19] and was later named the Sonics' President of Basketball Operations on April 27, 2007.