Since being named the new Pitt head basketball coach, the top priority for Kevin Stallings has been to assemble his coaching staff.
With the announcement last week that long time Pitt assistant Brandin Knight would not be returning, Stallings quickly moved on to complete his staff.
Friday, Stallings officially announced the additions of Tom Richardson and Jeremy Ballard to his coaching staff for the 2016-17 season Friday afternoon. In addition, Stallings will also bring on Dan Cage as director of basketball operations and Garry Christopher as strength and conditioning coordinator.
“I am thrilled with how our staff is coming together,” said Stallings. “Tom has been with me for many years and has always been a big part of our team’s development. Jeremy has a great reputation as a coach and as a recruiter. He will fit in nicely with the rest of our staff as we continue to build on the great tradition of Pitt basketball.”
Richardson comes to Pitt after spending the previous 13 seasons on Stallings’ staff at Vanderbilt. He was also on Stallings’ staff at Illinois State and is recognized in the coaching circles as an excellent shooting instructor.
Ballard has 12 years of experience as a Division I assistant coach. Last season he was an assistant to Dan Mueller at Illinois State. Prior to that, Ballard has had stops at VCU, Tulsa, Mercer and Colgate. He is considered a very good recruiter.
Cage spent the previous four seasons at Vanderbilt in the same capacity. He was a four-year letter winner (2003-07) at Vanderbilt. He helped the team to two Sweet Sixteen appearances and played in 125 career games. As a senior, he averaged 11.2 points per game.
Christopher also comes with Stallings from Vanderbilt, where he has spent the past three seasons. He played one season of college basketball at LaTourneau University before turning his attention to strength training and conditioning.
Stallings still has one spot to fill on his staff, but an announcement on that hire is expected this week.
This new staff is walking into a very nice situation as Pitt returns six of its top seven scorers from a team that went 21-12 and reached the NCAA Tournament a year ago.
