Tim Floyd is in his third season as USC's head men's basketball coach and 20th season of head coaching at the collegiate and NBA levels.
He has had great success during his 14 seasons at the college level, going 285-155 (.648). In nine of his first 14 seasons, Floyd has taken his team into the postseason (NCAA-6, NIT-3). He also has aided the development of student-athletes at each stop, as 12 players in his 14 years have made it to the NBA, including three players that did not even play high school basketball.
Floyd, 53, served as a college head coach at Idaho, New Orleans and Iowa State before NBA head coaching stints with the Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Hornets.
"Tim Floyd has turned our program around in a short time," said Trojan athletic director Mike Garrett. "His knowledge of the game, enthusiasm and relationships he has established with the players, fans and alumni has allowed the USC basketball program to make great strides in a short time. People really like Tim and want to play for him; add to that his background in the NBA and it makes playing at USC in our great new facility, the Galen Center, a very attractive option. We are so glad to have Tim here to lead us into a promising new era." "There is a wealth of talent to recruit in the Los Angeles area, much more than at any of the college jobs I've had," said Floyd. "And with USC's tremendous national reputation, the pieces are in place for USC to be successful at the national level."
His first head coaching job was at Idaho, where he went 35-25 (.583) in two seasons (1987-88). In his first season, the Vandals posted their first winning record in four seasons (after three straight last place Big Sky Conference finishes). His 1988 squad was the winningest Idaho team in five years and posted its best league finish in six years.
He then was the head coach at New Orleans for six years (1989-94), posting a 127-58 (.686) mark. During his tenure, UNO advanced to post-season play five times, including NCAA tourney appearances in 1991 and 1993, and won four regular season conference titles. His teams averaged 21 wins a season. He was one of just four Division I coaches to have won four conference championships in their first five years at a school. He was twice named his conference's Coach of the Year (American South in 1989 and Sun Belt in 1993).
Floyd then went to Iowa State for four years (1995-98), going 81-47 (.633). He was the only Cyclone coach to ever post three consecutive 20-win seasons and lead the team to three straight NCAA Tournament first round victories. Iowa State rose to No. 4 in the rankings in 1997 and three of his teams finished in the Top 20.
Iowa State won a then-school record 23 games in his 1995 debut season, getting into the NCAA tourney's second round and spending 11 consecutive weeks in the AP Top 25. His 1996 squad bettered that as it won 24 games and captured the school's first-ever Big Eight Tournament championship. That season, he was the Big Eight Coach of the Year and the runner-up for AP National Coach of the Year. His 1997 team went 22-9 and advanced to the NCAA's Sweet Sixteen.
Floyd moved to the NBA as the Bulls' director of operations in the summer of 1998. But soon after when head coach Phil Jackson stepped down and Michael Jordan departed, Floyd took over as head coach for portions of four years (1999-2002) as the club began a major rebuilding process with a young roster. Floyd was hired at a time when the NBA was getting younger and the Bulls wanted a coach who had a track record of developing young players. In fact, two of Floyd's Bulls teams were among the youngest ever in the NBA.
After coaching the Bulls, Floyd took the coaching experience and valuable lessons he learned in Chicago with him to the NBA's Hornets. In his one season as the New Orleans' head coach (2004), he led them to a 41-41 record, and a trip to the playoffs.
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