Brandon Chappell has been named Men’s Basketball Assistant Coach at The University of Texas, Head Coach Chris Beard announced Monday. Chappell brings nine years of collegiate coaching experience to the Longhorns’ staff, including serving as an assistant at UNLV last season.
Texas returns five rotational players from Chris Beard‘s first season in 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 registered its most victories in a season since 2013-14. Three of the five returning rotation players 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), who both led their former teams to wins in the NCAA Tournament last year. Texas also welcomes a four-man freshman class that is ranked as the No. 5 recruiting class in the country by Rivals and 247 Sports, featuring a pair of McDonald’s All-Americans in Dillon Mitchell and Arterio Morris.
Chappell worked as an assistant for 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 assisted in overhauling the roster with nine transfers and the team continually improved throughout the season, moving up 43 spots in the KenPom rankings. 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 Award, presented annually to the top first-year coach in Division I men’s college basketball by CollegeInsider.com.
“Brandon and I have known each other for almost a decade,” said UNLV head coach Kevin Kruger. “He is a close friend, 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 a seven-year span that Lamar reached the 20-win mark. Chappell also played a role in the development of David Muoka, who earned Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Year recognition during the 2020-21 season.
Chappell worked as an assistant coach at Arkansas-Fort Smith for one season in 2016-17. The Lions posted a 23-11 overall record, 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 that Kruger was an assistant coach in 2014-15. During Chappell’s time at NAU, the Lumberjacks set a school single-season record for wins (23-15 mark) and finished runner-up in the 2015 CollegeInsider.com tournament.
Chappell began his collegiate coaching career at Armstrong State (Savannah, Ga.) as an assistant coach in 2013-14. He worked with Nike Basketball Camps in Atlanta, Ga. in both 2012 and 2013.
“My relationship with Brandon goes back to when I was seven or eight years old in Port Arthur, and he has always been my big brother,” said former Texas star J’Covan Brown (2009-12) who is currently playing professionally in Israel. “He trained me when I was younger, and I’ve continued to work with Brandon throughout my pro career when I’ve come back home. Brandon is unique because he really understands people and he’s all about getting players out of the mud in their development. He pushes you to be better than you think you can be, both in basketball and life. Players respond to him in the gym, and I’m so happy to see him earn this opportunity to join our Longhorn family.”
A four-year letterwinner and two-time team captain at Lamar University (2003-07) while playing for legendary head coach Billy Tubbs, he still ranks among the school’s all-time leaders in three-pointers made (140) and three-point field goal percentage (.394) and was in the school’s top-10 in assists (241) at the conclusion of his collegiate career. Chappell went on to play 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, it means everything to me,” said 14-year NBA veteran and current ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins, 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 what path we each wanted to take. To see him continue to advance in the coaching profession, I’m very proud. He’s a guy who is extremely driven and wants to be the best at what he does. Brandon loves to get in the trenches with 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 coach.”
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 received his master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona University in 2016.
Chappell was a standout 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 high school teammates at Ozen with 2008 NBA Champion Kendrick Perkins (Boston Celtics).
