Maccabi Tel Aviv assistant Guy Goodes and ex-Great Britain guard Nate Reinking have been confirmed as Joe Prunty’s assistant coaches for EuroBasket.
Goodes, who applied for the head coach position, has worked under former Russia coach David Blatt at the Israeli club for a number of years and is regarded as one of the best young coaches in the Euroleague.
While American-born Reinking, who retired following last summer’s Olympics, will hold his first coaching position after enquiring about a number of US college openings this off-season.
“I am very excited to join the coaching staff of the British National Team and to be the assistant of Joe Prunty, a veteran NBA coach,†said Goodes. “I am extremely motivated and will do everything in my power to help the team succeed and reach new achievements.â€
Added Reinking: “I have a deep passion and love for the GB family and look forward to working hard as we head toward our goals at EuroBasket 2013.â€
Boston Celtics video co-ordinator Kwame Graves-Fulgham – currently working with the NBA team at summer league in Orlando – will serve as a third assistant coach in charge of advance scouting and analysis, as well as player development. He previously worked with Prunty at the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Other than the retention of the team’s Head of Science and Medicine, Mark Gillett, and physio Fraser McKinney, it represents a complete overhaul of Chris Finch’s staff from 2012.
“I feel great about the staff we have assembled,†said Prunty. “We are extremely well-rounded and each member brings a unique coaching background to our staff. The individual strengths of each coach will complement one another very well. It is an honour to be working with these coaches.
“Guy is a well-respected coach and brings an outstanding knowledge of the game of basketball, while Kwame brings that special blend of on-court coaching and teaching abilities as well as film work that makes him invaluable.
“It is a pleasure to see Nate Reinking continue his career with the GB family following his retirement from playing for Great Britain last year. He brings with him excellent experience of our players and understands exactly what they are going through so is a fantastic addition to the coaching team.â€
Prunty is expected to name his initial squad for training camp later this month. However it is understood that long-time captain Drew Sullivan has opted against playing in Slovenia, with Joel Freeland and Pops Mensah-Bonsu also thought to be unlikely to feature this summer.
However MVP has learnt that London Lions’ Orlan Jackman is among those invited to camp in Staffordshire.
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