HoopDirt.com news sponsored by Dr. Dish
UCF men’s basketball head coach Donnie Jones made another summer addition to his staff, announcing on Friday the hiring of Ricardo Greer as the Knights’ new Director of Player Development.
Greer brings with him a wealth of basketball experience to UCF, having played collegiately at Pittsburgh from 1997-2001, for the Dominican Republic national team from 1999-2009, and professionally in Europe for the last 14 years.
“He brings great experience,” Jones said. “Ricardo’s been overseas playing internationally and was a terrific college player at Pitt. He brings a great mentality about what it takes to compete at a very high level. Bringing that knowledge to our staff and sharing his expertise with the players will make him a great asset to the program.”
An All-Big East honoree during both his junior and senior seasons at Pitt, Greer was highly regarded as one of the most versatile players in the league. He led the Panthers in both scoring and rebounding as a senior and as a junior was the only player in the Big East to rank in the top 15 in scoring, rebounds, assists, and steals.
A team captain for the Dominican Republic national team as well as for Pittsburgh, Greer began gaining valuable international experience in 1999, playing for his home country.
Following his time at Pitt, Greer began what ended up as a very successful professional career. He played for various top level teams throughout Europe, including teams in France, Ukraine, Croatia and Great Britain.
Greer was named First Team All-League in the French Pro-A league three times, is a five-time French Pro-League All-Star and won the Pro A League MVP in 2010. He also led his teams to championships in 2005 and 2008, earning Finals MVP honors for the first title.
“It’s an incredible opportunity. I’m really excited to come here and help the team, help the program, help the university,” Greer said. “I’m fortunate Coach Jones gave me the opportunity and I’m looking forward to it.”
Greer earned his bachelor’s degree in social sciences from Pittsburgh. He and his wife Misty have two children; Ricardo Jr. (RJ) and Maddison.
http://www.ucfknights.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/090415aaa.html
