After graduating from West Catholic High School, he went to Saint Joseph's University. With the Hawks, he was a three-year starter. In 1961, Lynam was a key player on a Hawks team that advanced to the 1961 Final Four. The Hawks defeated Utah in a four-overtime game for third place. Lynam won the team MVP award after Jack Egan was expelled for his participation in the 1961 point shaving scandal. Lynam played with the Hawks until 1963. That year, he was named the MVP of the Big 5 in his senior year.
Coaching career
He began his coaching career with the Fairfield Stags in 1968 where he coached two years. In 1973, he took the reins at American University in 1973, where he coached for five years. He coached the Eagles to one finals appearance in the East Coast Conference tournament. In 1978, he returned to his alma mater. He coached St. Joseph's to an upset victory over #1 ranked DePaul by a score of 49–48 in the second round of the 1981 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. In their opening game his 9th seeded Hawks topped #8th seed Creighton 59-57. They would win their third tournament game over #5 seed Boston College 42-41 before falling to the National Champion, Indiana at a game on their home floor in Bloomington. Had they won that game Lynam's Hawks would have been in the Final Four at The Spectrum in their home town of Philadelphia. Lynam has also served as an assistant coach for several teams, most notably the Sixers and the Portland Trail Blazers, the latter for head coachMaurice Cheeks. When Cheeks was hired as Philadelphia's coach for the 2005–06 season, Lynam was named an assistant. During the preseason, however, he was forced to leave the team due to an undisclosed medical condition. In January, 2006, Lynam retired from coaching. However, on September 29, 2006 it was announced that Lynam, along with NBA hall of famer Moses Malone would be rejoining the 76ers as an assistant coach. In July 2010, The Oregonian reported that Lynam was among candidates for an assistant coaching job in Portland. On January 24, 2011, the Minnesota Timberwolves announced that Lynam would be joining the club as a part-time basketball operations consultant, evaluating pro personnel on the Wolves roster and throughout the NBA. Starting in the 2011–12 season, Lynam serves as a pre-game and post-game analyst for the Philadelphia 76ers on NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Personal
Lynam's daughter, Dei, is a former anchor/reporter for NBC Sports Philadelphia for the Sixers. She once served as a sideline reporter for 76ers telecasts. Now she helps call the 76ers G-League team, the Delaware Blue Coats games. He is also a grandfather to eight grandchildren. Lynam is known for his distinct Philadelphia accent.
