NEW YORK — Several weeks after Chuck Daly was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer on Feb. 9, Jack McCloskey, Don Casey, Bob Weinhauer and Bob Staak, whose coaching careers were knotted at the high school and college level in the Philadelphia-New Jersey area , arrived in Jupiter, Fla., to see their friend for what they knew would be the last time.

Daly's Hall of Fame fantasy-come-true journey began in 1955 on the sidelines at Punxsutawney (Pa.) High School, where he spent eight seasons before Vic Bubas hired him at Duke. Bucky Waters, who played for McCloskey at Collingswood (N.J.) High School and already a Blue Devil assistant, recommended Daly.

When Waters became West Virginia's head coach, and Tom Carmody took over Rhode Island, Daly recommended Hubie Brown, who had made a local name for himself at St. Mary's (Elizabeth, N.J.) before advancing to William & Mary as an assistant.