LSU hires Eric Musselman as Basketball Assistant

LSU hires Eric Musselman, son of former South Alabama coach, as basketball assistant

By Mike Herndon | [email protected]

on June 17, 2014 at 3:13 PM, updated June 17, 2014 at 3:30 PM







Eric Musselman was the head coach of the NBA's Golden State Warriors from 2002-04 and Sacramento Kings in 2006-07. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)Fernando Llano
Eric Musselman, the son of the late former South Alabama head coach Bill Musselman, has been hired as an assistant coach on Johnny Jones' men's basketball staff at LSU.

Musselman, 49, has spent the past two seasons as an assistant at Arizona State. He's been a head coach for two different clubs in the NBA, leading the Golden State Warriors from 2002-04 and the Sacramento Kings in 2006-07. He and his father, who coached the Cleveland Cavaliers from 1980-82 and Minnesota Timberwolves in 1989-91 before leading South Alabama to an NCAA tourney berth in 1997, became the first father-son head coach combo in NBA history.

"He brings a wealth of NBA and college experience that will be beneficial as we strive to continue to take LSU Basketball to new heights," Jones said on the school's website. "He will be involved in all aspects of our program."

LSU finished 20-14 last season, falling to SMU in the second round of the NIT.

"I really am excited to join the LSU family, a place that has such a storied athletic program, and help coach Jones and the staff continue to make strides," said Musselman. "It will be challenging to learn about another great conference as the SEC. Anytime you can join a program that has a Final Four appearance in the past decade and 20 NCAA Tournaments overall, you know great things can happen again. In talking with coach Jones, I am excited to get to work and help make it happen."


http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2014/06/lsu_hires_eric_musselman_son_o.html

 

Note:

At 5:00, he will be on 104.5 with Matt Moscona.......FYI

 

Going, going, gone. Home run of a hire.

 

This guy is a bball lifer, really knows the game. He won't be here long but hopefully he can help get us going.

 

was excited to hear this hire. guy sounds like he will be a huge asset. agree that he will not be around long....if so, probably because he becomes HC

 

Much better resume than JJ. Should have been hired as the head coach three years ago. This is the X + O guy that the program needed, but agree that he will not be at LSU very long. It never works out if the Chief Assistant has more knowledge and experience than the head coach. Just hope that Mr. Musselman can teach the team how to play defense while he's here.

 

It worked with Dale and Tex.

 

ABSOLUTELY, this news had me saying Hallalujeh, and at the same time... what tha'?!

Tremendous get by Johnny Jones, and the recruiting tandem of Jones and David Patrick continues to work wonders. Sounds like the back-story connections, coaching trees, and "family atmosphere" of the LSU staff continues to piece together an interesting story and a foundation to build on. Look, Musselman may not be here that long--agree--but, quality programs are built on coaching and that success, and success breeds opportunities. That's ultimately what all of the coaches and players want out of a 2-4 year commitment. I'll be very interested in how Musselman helps with the offense, as much as the defense, since he's known for his time at Golden State and some pretty "overachieving" systems. It will also be interesting to see what kind of recruiting impact he will have--sounds like in interviews, Johnny's striving to have each of his primary assistants do it "all". Not too many coaching staffs in the SEC have real NBA experience to talk about, and LSU now has got some of that to sell. Musselman comes across also as pretty upbeat and passionate about the opportunity with his own kids in their growing up years, where perhaps Baton Rouge will have some time to make a favorable impression. In any case, coaching in today's game is a short-lived phenomenon, so let's just enjoy it one season at a time.

Success on the court is ultimately about two things, the players and then the coaching, so I think as this summer of summer tourneys, recruiting heating up and players starting to work with coaches during the summer (new as of 2013), there's much to be optimistic about for LSU hoops. The latest report as of TODAY from Johnny seems upbeat:

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/arti...140630014/LSU-hoops-looks-some-impact-players-

I think more than ever, player development and system refinement, in this year will tell the tale of where this program is headed. Also, we now finally have confirmation about Brian Bridgewater being eligible. Hopefully he turns out to be a pleasant surprise after not being on the court for so long. We also can count on a roster at LSU that is set... LSUSPORTS.net shows pictures now of our new 2014 recruits on the site:

http://www.lsusports.net/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=5200&SPID=2166&SPSID=27829

Less talked about kids like Jaylen Patterson and Aaron Epps, join Big Elbert Robinson, and JUCO AA, Josh Gray, as new comers. More and more, this team starts to be all about Johnny Jones and David Patricks recruits, as the Trent Johnson era players are all gone.....