Bill Fitch Wife: Who Is JoAnne Nelson-Fitch? Hall Of Fame Celtics Coach Dies At 89

Bill Fitch was married to his wife JoAnne Nelson-Fitch, however, she was his second wife. There is no information available about his first wife at the moment.

Fitch first met JoAnne aka Joni in 1979 when she worked for United Airlines as a flight attendant. He recalled his memories of their first meeting after she died at the age of 65 to ovarian cancer.

“I met her at the flight where she was a flight attendant. “She jolted me awake and offered me coffee,” he explained. “This was back in the days when teams flew commercially. I wasn’t in the mood for coffee.”

He regarded her as if she were former Cavaliers guard John Warren, who was attempting to shoot at the wrong basket.

They did, however, have a brief conversation. A few months later, he ran into her at a restaurant. They went on a few dates and eventually married.

Fitch stated that it had been a year since his divorce.

According to Fitch, Joni was diagnosed with Stage 4 ovarian cancer in 2006. She underwent several difficult operations, as well as arduous chemotherapy and other treatments.

“Even when she was sick, she never felt sorry for herself,” Fitch said. “She was a lot tougher than she appeared.” He described how she asked him a question that sounded like a suggestion about his game.

he was a lovely person well-received by everyone including his ex-wife.

Bill Fitch, the Hall of Fame Celtics coach, had a net worth of $3 million at the time of his death. Though no official announcement about his wealth has been made, we can assume that the former coach amassed a fortune during his coaching career.

In 2016, the Hall of Fame inducted Fitch with an honorary bench surrounding a statue of James Naismith and other granite benches honoring great coaches.

Throughout his career, he has coached several American basketball teams, including the Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets, New Jersey Nets, and Los Angeles Clippers.

After a disastrous season in 1996–97, Fitch was fired by the Los Angeles Clippers on April 20, 1998. He never coached again after that. He stayed at home to care for his sick wife and fill the void left by the coaching carer.

Bill Fitch had three daughters with his ex-wife, the names of whom have not yet been revealed. Lisa, one of her daughters, is a point guard for the women’s basketball team at Ohio University.

She is also the one who was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years ago; fortunately, she is now cancer-free.

Lisa had previously coached women’s basketball at the University of Akron, Wright State University, and Walsh University, as well as several high schools.

According to Fitch, she’s given up coaching and is now studying to be a nurse. Marcy Ann Coville is another daughter who announced the news of his death via Indiana’s Rick Carlisle.

We don’t have any further information on his daughters.