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William John "Billy" Cunningham (born June 3, 1943) is an American former professional basketball player and coach.In 1965, Cunningham joined the Philadelphia 76ers as a sixth man and played well enough to be named to the NBA All-Rookie Team.Cunningham is well-known for coaching the 76ers to the 1983 NBA Championship. Cunningham also played on the powerful 1967 Sixers championship team (featuring Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer, Chet Walker, and Luke Jackson).In 1972, he joined the Carolina Cougars of the ABA. In his first ABA season, Cunningham made the All-ABA First Team and was named the ABA MVP. In 1974, Cunningham returned to the 76ers, where he played until he suffered a career-ending injury early in the 1975-76 season. For his career, Cunningham scored 16,310 points and grabbed 7,981 rebounds in both the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the American Basketball Association (ABA).After his playing days were done, he became the head coach of the 76ers on November 4, 1977, and built a great team featuring the likes of Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks, Andrew Toney, Moses Malone, and of course Julius Erving. He led Philadelphia to 3 Atlantic Division Titles in 1978, 1981, and 1983. He reached the 200, 300, and 400-win milestone faster than any coach in NBA history. In his most successful season as coach, Cunningham coached the 1982-83 76ers to a 65-17 record and won an NBA Championship with a dominating 12-1 march through the playoffs. Upon his retirement, his 454 wins as a head coach were the 12th best in NBA history.Elected to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (1986), All-NBA First Team (1969, 1970, 1971), Four-time All-Star, One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).