KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Former Oregon coach Ernie Kent has joined the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) as associate executive director. Kent was president of the NABC in 2011-12.
An outstanding player as one of coach Dick Harter’s “Kamikaze Kids” at Oregon, Kent began his coaching career in Saudi Arabia from 1980-87 before returning to the United States. He was an assistant coach at Colorado State and Stanford before becoming the head coach at Saint Mary’s (Calif.) in 1991.
Kent was named the first African American head coach at his alma mater in 1997 and is the winningest head coach in Ducks’ history with a 235-174 won-lost record in 13 seasons. He guided Oregon to five NCAA tournament berths (2000, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008), reaching the Elite Eight in 2002 and 2007, and two postseason berths in the National Invitation Tournament (1999 and 2004). His 2002 team won the Pac-10 championship, the first for the Ducks since 1939.
Most recently, Kent was vice president for men’s basketball for Fishbait Marketing and is also a men’s college basketball commentator with the Pac-12 network.
“Ernie Kent has been an outstanding college coach and, for the past year, has interacted with the NCAA and NABC in marketing college basketball with NCAA and NABC corporate partners,” NABC Executive Director Jim Haney said. “He will be a great asset for the NABC with his passion for coaching, student-athlete welfare and the good of the game. We are thrilled to have him on our staff.”
