Sports Odd & Ends
The recently concluded 2022-23 college basketball season saw nearly 20 Black head coaches being honored with Coach of the Year (COY) awards for their teams’ efforts.
Coach of the Year Honorees
The winners, in no particular order, are as follows:
- Jerome Tang, Kansas State: Naismith Men’s, Big 12
- Dawn Staley, South Carolina: Naismith Women’s, WBCA NCAA Division I National
- Kenny Blakeney, Howard: Coach John McLendon Award, Eastern College Athletic Conference, MEAC
- Larry Vickers, Norfolk State: HBCU National
- Jerry Stackhouse, Vanderbilt: Ben Jobe National, SEC Co-Coach
- Amir Abdur-Rahim, Kennesaw State (recently hired at South Florida): Hugh Durham Award as the nation’s top Division I mid-major college basketball coach at Kennesaw State, ASUN
- Shaka Smart, Marquette: Big East, AP
- Kelvin Sampson, Houston: NABC National, NABC District 24, USBWA, AAC
- Jeff Capel, Pittsburgh: ACC Men’s
- James Jones, Yale: Ivy League
- Zenarae Antoine, Texas State: All-Texas, Sun Belt
- Trelanne Powell, Tuskegee: SIAC
- Jay Butler, Virginia Union: CIAA
- Janice Washington, Lincoln (PA): CIAA WBB
- Niele Ivey, Notre Dame: ACC WBB
- Landon Bussie, Alcorn State and Donte Jackson, Grambling: SWAC MBB co-Coaches of the Year
- Alex Simmons, Gardner-Webb (recently hired as new Memphis HC): Big South
- Kenny Brooks, Virginia Tech: ACC WBB –WBCA COY finalist along with Ivey; led squad to the school’s first Final Four appearance
NBA Coach of the Month (December 2022)
Jacque Vaughn (Brooklyn Nets) is one of 11 Black head coaches in the NBA this season. After a 12-year playing career– the 27th overall pick by Utah in 1997–he is one of five NBA clubs with a member of the 2007 NBA champion San Antonio Spurs. He got into coaching as an assistant coach with San Antonio (2010-12), then became a head coach at Orlando (2012-15) and served as the Nets head coach for 10 games during the 2019-20 season, going 7-3, and guided the team to the playoffs.
Vaughn was elevated to acting head coach in November 2022, and Brooklyn removed the interim tag almost a week later. He earned his first Coach of the Month honor in December, leading the Nets to the winningest month in franchise history and the league’s best record for the month (12-1). According to Elias Research, his 30-10 start is the best 40-game start to a coaching tenure in franchise history, and during that stretch, Vaughn notched his 100th career win.
“I’m just doing my job on a daily basis,” Vaughn told the MSR after a win at Minnesota in March. “I appreciate the opportunity to see how long I can do this thing. I love being around the game. I love coaching.
“I love pushing the group and am fortunate to be around this game for a long time and want to continue as a coach at this time. I think I’ve been able to stay curious, and been able to adapt and to be interested in and,” he continued, “figuring out a solution and being versatile. I think that’s been a part of who I am and then forming relationships with my guys.”
HBCU Basketball HOF
For its inaugural Black College Basketball Hall of Fame, the 12 inductees from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are “basketball royalty,” according to a recent press release the following players and coaches who were honored:
Players: Dick Barnett, John Chaney, Cleo Hill, Sam Jones, Pee Wee Kirkland, Yolanda Laney, Earl Lloyd, Earl “The Pearl” Monroe and Willis Reed
Coaches: Clarence “Big House” Gaines, John McClendon, Vivian Stringer
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