Help with pronunciation:
Chappell shuh-PELLE (as Dave Chappelle)
AUSTIN, TX – Brandon Chappell has been named assistant men’s basketball coach at the University of Texas, head coach Chris Beard announced Monday. Chappell brings nine years of college coaching experience to the Longhorns staff, including as an assistant at UNLV last season.
Texas returns five players in rotation from Chris BeardUT’s first season at Austin, when the Longhorns posted a 22-12 mark, ranked No. 25 in the final AP poll and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Round of 32. UT won its first NCAA Tournament game since 2014 and recorded its most wins in a season since 2013-14. Three of the five players in the returning rotation have earned All-Big 12 conference recognition, including Timmy Allen (second team), Marcus Carr (third team) and Christian bishop (honorable mention).
The Longhorns add a pair of transfers in Tyrese Hunter (Iowa State) and Sir’Jabari Rice (New Mexico State), both of whom led their former teams to victories in the NCAA Tournament last year. Texas also hosts a four-man freshman class that is ranked the No. 5 recruiting class in the nation by Rivals and 247 Sports, with a pair of McDonald’s All-Americans in Dillon Mitchell and Arterio Morris.
Chappell worked as an assistant to first-year head coach Kevin Kruger at UNLV during the 2021-22 season. Chappell helped the Runnin’ Rebels to 18 wins (18-14 record), the most for UNLV in four years. The team went 10-8 in Mountain West Conference action, exceeding preseason expectations with a fifth-place finish in the regular season league standings.
Chappell helped revamp the roster with nine transfers and the team steadily improved throughout the season, moving up 43 spots in the KenPom standings. Bryce Hamilton (first team), Royce Hamm Jr. (honorable mention) and Donovan Williams (sixth man of the year) earned All-Mountain West recognition, while Kruger was one of 15 finalists for the Joe B. Hall, awarded annually to the top freshman coach in Division I men’s college basketball by CollegeInsider.com.
“Brandon and I have known each other for almost a decade,” UNLV head coach Kevin Kruger said. “He’s a close friend, a great coach and an even better person.”
Prior to his time in Las Vegas, Chappell spent four seasons (2017-21) as an assistant coach under Tic Price for his alma mater, Lamar University. He helped the Cardinals to a 20-13 record in the 2018-19 campaign, marking the first time in seven years that Lamar reached the 20-win mark. Chappell was also instrumental in the development of David Muoka, who won Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Year recognition in the 2020-21 season.
Chappell worked as an assistant coach at Arkansas-Fort Smith for one season in 2016-17. The Lions went 23-11 overall, swept the Heartland Conference regular season and tournament titles and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament.
He spent two years at Northern Arizona University (2014-16), serving as a graduate assistant and recruiting coordinator during the same time Kruger was an assistant coach in 2014-15. During Chappell’s time at NAU, the Lumberjacks set a single-season school record for wins (23-15) and finished second in the 2015 CollegeInsider.com Tournament.
Chappell began his college coaching career at Armstrong State (Savannah, Georgia) as an assistant coach in 2013-14. He worked with Nike Basketball Camps in Atlanta, Georgia in 2012 and 2013.
“My relationship with Brandon dates back to when I was seven or eight years old in Port Arthur, and he was always my big brother,” said former Texas star J’Covan Brown (2009-12) who currently plays professionally in Israel. . “He trained me when I was younger, and I continued to work with Brandon throughout my professional career when I came home. Brandon is unique because he really understands people and he wants to get players out of the mud in their He pushes you to be better than you think, both in basketball and in life Players respond to him in the gym, and I’m so happy to see him win this opportunity to join our Longhorn family.
A four-year letter winner and two-time team captain at Lamar University (2003-07) while playing for legendary head coach Billy Tubbs, he still ranks among the leaders of all school time in three points (140) and three points. field goal percentage (.394) and was in the school top 10 in assists (241) at the end of his college career. Chappell then played professionally for five years (2007-12) with BBC Bayreuth, TV Langen and Licher Basket Baerans in the Pro-A German Basketball League.
“Watching Brandon go through this journey means everything to me,” said Kendrick Perkins, a 14-year NBA veteran and current ESPN analyst, whose relationship dates back to when Perkins and Chappell were both six years old. “I can still remember sitting on the back porch many years ago with Brandon, and we shared a conversation about the path we each wanted to take. To see him continue to progress in the coaching profession , I’m very proud. He’s a guy who’s extremely driven and wants to be the best at what he does. Brandon likes to get in the trenches with the players, and he never allows the guys he works with to be satisfied. He always wants more for his players, and that’s what you want from a manager.”
A native of Beaumont, Texas, Chappell earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration-marketing from Lamar University in 2006. Following his playing career, James earned his master’s degree in educational leadership from Northern Arizona University in 2016.
Chappell stood out on the basketball court at Ozen High School in Beaumont, where he helped guide the Panthers to the Class 4A state title game. He was a high school teammate at Ozen with 2008 NBA champion Kendrick Perkins (Boston Celtics).
The Brandon Chappell File
Hometown
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Beaumont, TX
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Education
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Lamar University, BA, Business Administration-Marketing, 2006;
Northern Arizona University, MA, Educational Leadership, 2016
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Chappell’s training experience
Years
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School
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Position/Title
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2021-22
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UNLV
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Coach’s Assistant
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2017-21
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lamar
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Coach’s Assistant
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2016-17
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Arkansas-Fort Smith
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Coach’s Assistant
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2014-16
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Northern Arizona
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Graduate Assistant, Recruitment Coordinator
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2013-14
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State of Armstrong
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Coach’s Assistant
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