GW Alum and Wizards Owner Abe Pollin Dies at 85

The Daily Colonial would like to extend its heartfelt condolences to the Pollin family on the passing of Abe Pollin (1923-2009) earlier today.  Pollin, a 1945 graduate of GW and a 2009 inductee to the school’s “Sports Business Hall of Fame, was synonymous with Washington Sports and Entertainment.  His 48 years of owning the Washington Wizards made him the longest tenured owner in the NBA.  Among his many achievements, his privately financed construction of the Verizon Center, changed the landscape of Washington D.C. and turned Chinatown into a lively downtown area.  Mr. Pollin had been in deteriorating condition the past several weeks and died on Tuesday with his family by his side.

Ash McDaniel wrote earlier today in the live blog for the men’s basketball game versus Princeton:

The fans at the Smith Center honored a moment of silence for alumnus Abe Pollin, who died today at age 85.

Pollin graduated from GW in 1945 and was the current owner of the Washington Wizards; at one point he also owned the Capitals and Mystics. Pollin brought the Baltimore Bullets to D.C. in 1973.

Before the Verizon Center was built, the neighborhood of Gallery Place and the district was abandoned. Pollin fought and eventually the city agreed to let him build there, but D.C. would not fund the venture. Pollin insisted that the stadium had to be in D.C. and said he would not consider moving the stadium to Baltimore because D.C. was his home. He self-funded a large portion of the project. The Verizon Center now hosts the Wizards, Mystics, Capitals as well as concerts and other sporting events.

Read the Wizards and Washington Sports and Entertainment press release to learn more about the life of Abe Pollin.