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NCAA Basketball: 10 college assistants poised to become head coaches

By Joey Loose

ATLANTA, GA - NOVEMBER 13: head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils holds his left knee after falling to the floor during a timeout against the Kentucky Wildcats during the 2012 State Farm Champions Classic at Georgia Dome on November 13, 2012 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - NOVEMBER 13: head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils holds his left knee after falling to the floor during a timeout against the Kentucky Wildcats during the 2012 State Farm Champions Classic at Georgia Dome on November 13, 2012 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – APRIL 29: Mike Miller #13 of the Memphis Grizzlies in Game Five of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 29, 2014 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – APRIL 29: Mike Miller #13 of the Memphis Grizzlies in Game Five of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 29, 2014 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

10. Mike Miller – Memphis

Miller spent nearly two decades in the NBA, winning a pair of titles with the Miami Heat after being drafted by the Magic in 2000. His coaching career only just began last season with Memphis, but there’s precedent for someone like him. In recent years, we’ve seen NBA names like Avery Johnson, Penny Hardaway, and Jerry Stackhouse nabbing college head coaching jobs. Most of these guys lacked any college coaching experience, but that’s exactly what Miller is racking up with the Tigers.

He was still playing with the Denver Nuggets two years ago, but now Miller is an essential part of Hardaway’s staff at Memphis. He helped bring aboard big time recruits like Precious Achiuwa and Boogie Ellis in recent weeks. He’s garnering collegiate experience after a long NBA career. Next season will be just his second year as an assistant, so it may be premature for a big time program to name him head coach. However, his NBA pedigree cannot be ignored combined with the recruiting prowess in his young coaching career.

This former NBA Rookie of the Year is going to continue to bring in bright players to Memphis. He’ll be instrumental in coaching shooting wherever he ends up after his success from long-range on the NBA stage. Very recently, he was a complete unknown following his playing career, but he’s already shown that he can recruit and help build a team, and that will be enough for a school to open their checkbooks in the coming years. Whether Miller will make a great head coach remains to be seen, as fellow NBA players like Eddie Jordan and Chris Mullin clearly fizzled out.

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