Ken McDonald (basketball)

Kenneth Michael McDonald (born March 4, 1970) is an American professional basketball coach, currently working as a special assistant coach at the University of Tennessee. He previously served as a head coach with the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League and at Western Kentucky University.

McDonald spent from 2004 to 2008 at Texas under Rick Barnes. He previously worked as an assistant at Western Kentucky under Dennis Felton, from 1998–2003, helping the Hilltoppers reach the NCAA tournament during his final three seasons with the program.[1] McDonald has one daughter, Ella, born January 28, 2008.

On January 6, 2012, Western Kentucky University released McDonald from his contract, citing lackluster attendance and a 5–11 start to the 2011–12 season. The firing came after a controversial game the previous night, which allowed Louisiana–Lafayette a game-winning shot with six players on the court during overtime. The error was discovered immediately after the game. Coach McDonald and athletic director Ross Bjork contested the results at the scorer's table. However, officials declined to review the incident due to NCAA rules. He was replaced by assistant coach Ray Harper in interim, who was eventually named head coach moving forward.[2][3]

In September 2013, he was promoted from assistant to head coach of the Austin Toros.[4] On July 27, 2015, he signed a contract extension with the now Austin Spurs.[5]

On April 12, 2018, McDonald was hired as an assistant coach for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane men's basketball team, working under head coach Frank Haith.[6]