coaches goings and comings

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SoCalHoops Coaching News

Coaching Tidbits: Comings &
Goings Around SoCal--(May 13, 2001)

Here's the latest news (and even some completely unsubstantiated gossip) about some of the coaches in and around SoCal at the high school and college level:

Coming & Going: Brahmas' Get New Coach: Nogales loses a coach and Diamond Bar gains one--Diamond Bar HS has named Bob Withers the school's new boys' basketball coach Friday. Diamond Bar has only had one coach in its 20-year history, Bill Murray, who stepped down at the end of the season. Withers, 47, coached the boys' basketball team at Nogales High in La Puente since 1990, and he coached Nogales to a 195-71 record, four Sierra League championships and three CIF quarterfinal playoff appearances. His 1995 team advanced to the CIF Southern Section Division 1-A championship game, losing to Mater Dei. Withers lives in Diamond Bar and two of his three children attend the school: a daughter is one of 28 valedictorian candidates this year, and son, Ricky played for the Brahmas' freshman basketball team this year.

Going To Alabama: Bob Thornton, who played basketball at UC Irvine and the NBA and was an assistant coach at Cal State Fullerton and Chapman, has been named coach of the National Basketball Development League's team in Huntsville, Alabama. As a player, Thornton averaged 8.7 points and 5.7 rebounds in four seasons at Irvine. He then was drafted by the New York Knicks in the fourth round of the 1984 NBA draft and played for the Knicks, Philadelphia, Minnesota, Utah and Washington for nine seasons, and then moved to Europe where he played for Italian pro teams for three years. He then coached as an assistant at Chapman from 1997-98, and then moved to Fullerton for the 1998-99 season. Following his stint at Fullerton, Thornton moved to a head coaching job in the CBA, leading the Quad City Thunder this past season until the league folded. The Development League will start in November with teams in eight cities in the Southeastern U.S., including Huntsville. The league will initially run a 56-game schedule, and given all of the players who are coming out of college, both seniors and underclassmen, not to mention high school players, there will be a lot of talent available for the NBADL.

Leaving: Grant Loses Coach: No, we're not talking about Howie Levine. . . he's going to be there until they have to wheel him out after rigor mortis sets in (just kidding Howie). . .We're talking about the girls head coach: The LA Times reported this past week that Steve Brumwell, who helped to build the LA City Section girls Grant Lancers into one of the stronger teams in the region has resigned "for personal reasons" and will seek a coaching job closer to his home in the Antelope Valley. Brumwell, who coached various levels of boys' and girls' sports at Grant for 19 years, was 139-77 in nine seasons and guided the Lancers to the last two Sunset Six League championships and a semifinal appearance in the Championship playoffs in 2000.

Leaving the Country?: We have not had any confirmation of this, but rumor has it that former Chaminade Coach Jeff Young is considering several overseas coaching jobs. . . no word on where, but that's the word on the street. Young led Chaminade to a Southern Section Division III title and was instrumental in helping several of his players reach the Division I level, including most recently four year starter, Scott Borchart (6'-9" Sr. PF) who will play next year at Santa Clara University. Young resigned at the end of the season.

Still Looking: Orange Coast College is reportedly still looking for a coach. According to an account in several local papers, the search for a men's coach at Orange Coast has been reopened because of a lack of applicants, according to OCC AD Fred Hokanson. The full-time position is for a coach and physical education instructor. While Hokanson said several qualified candidates were interviewed he didn't feel there were enough qualified candidates to make a decision. Interested applicants are urged to contact OCC at (714) 432-5766.