Will Weaver (basketball)
Will Weaver (born c. 1984)[1] is an American professional basketball coach who is the assistant coach for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He serves as an assistant coach for the Australian national basketball team.[2][3]
| Houston Rockets | |
|---|---|
| Position | Assistant coach |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | c. 1984 (age 36–37) Austin, Texas |
| Nationality | American |
| Career information | |
| College | Texas |
| Coaching career | 2006–present |
| Career history | |
| As coach: | |
| 2006–2010 | Texas Longhorns (assistant) |
| 2010–2012 | Sam Houston State (assistant) |
| 2013–2016 | Philadelphia 76ers (assistant) |
| 2016–2018 | Brooklyn Nets (assistant) |
| 2018–2019 | Long Island Nets |
| 2019–2020 | Sydney Kings |
| 2020–present | Houston Rockets (assistant) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Coaching career
Texas Longhorns (2007–2011)
Whilst completing a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Texas at Austin, Weaver started getting involved in the university's basketball program from a coaching perspective. After helping run camps at the university, he was presented with the opportunity of a role in the university's Longhorn program. When he completed his bachelor's degree, he continued onto a Master of Education and joined the Longhorns first as a graduate assistant and then as a special assistant.[4][5]
Sam Houston State (2011–2013)
After completing his Master of Education, Weaver moved east to Huntsville, Texas and joined the Sam Houston State University basketball program as an assistant coach. Whilst there, he started forging connections within the basketball world, most notably with Sam Hinkie who at the time was the assistant general manager for the Houston Rockets and who would later become general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers.[4][5]
Philadelphia 76ers (2013–2016)
Shortly after joining the Philadelphia 76ers and before hiring future head coach Brett Brown, Hinkie offered a job as an assistant coach to Weaver. After joining the club, Weaver initially worked as a video coordinator before becoming Brown's special assistant for his last two seasons with the club.[4][5]
Brooklyn Nets (2016–2018)
After helping through the rebuilding phase the 76ers went through when Hinkie was hired, Weaver was noted as a someone with experience with rebuilding a club and running a development program and was thus hired by the Brooklyn Nets. Through his two years at the club, Weaver served as the special assistant to head coach Kenny Atkinson.[4][5]
Long Island Nets (2018–2019)
After Ronald Nored, former head coach of the Nets' NBA G League affiliate club the Long Island Nets, announced he was leaving the G League club, Weaver was brought in to replace him.[4][5] In his single season with the club he led them to win their conference final but were unable to win the league final against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. After recording Long Island's best season performance since joining the League in 2016, Weaver was awarded the NBA G League Coach of the Year Award.[6]
Sydney Kings (2019–2020)
On March 22, 2019, Weaver was announced as the new head coach of the Sydney Kings of the National Basketball League (NBL).[7] In his first season with the club, the Kings were minor champions for the first time in over a decade and made it through to the grand final series. However, after three games the Kings indicated they did not wish to proceed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and lost the series to the Perth Wildcats.[8][9]
Houston Rockets (2020–present)
On November 30, 2020, Weaver was hired by the Houston Rockets as an assistant coach after finishing as runner-up for the Oklahoma City Thunder head coaching job.[10][11]
National Team Career
In 2014 Weaver mentioned to former head coach of the Australian national basketball team Brett Brown that he was interested in an international coaching experience, Brown connected him with his successor Andrej Lemanis who appointed him as assistant coach of the team for the 2014 FIBA World Cup. Since then he's remained with the team and has helped coach at the 2016 Olympics and at multiple other events.[4]
References
- Dowd, Tom (July 23, 2018). "Will Weaver Ready to lead Long Island Nets". NBA.com. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
- Matt Encarnacion (5 February 2020). "Weaver ready to juggle Kings and Boomers gigs". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
- Agencies (29 November 2019). "Sydney Kings coach Will Weaver keen to assist Brett Brown with Boomers". The Australian. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
- "Will Weaver ready to lead Long Island Nets". Brooklyn Nets.
- "Long Island Nets Name Will Weaver Head Coach". Long Island Nets.
- "Will Weaver named 2018-19 NBA G League Coach of the Year | Sydney Kings". www.sydneykings.com.
- "Sydney Kings appoint Will Weaver as new Head Coach | Sydney Kings". www.sydneykings.com.
- "Remaining NBL Grand Final Series Games Cancelled | NBL". nbl.com.au. NBL. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- "Perth Wildcats Crowned NBL20 Champions | NBL". nbl.com.au.
- "Rockets Announce Additions to Coaching Staff". NBA.com. November 30, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- Matt Logue (4 December 2020). "How the Sydney Kings have helped Will Weaver edge closer to his NBA head coaching dream". news.com.au. Retrieved 18 January 2021.