University of Alabama men’s basketball head coach Avery Johnson officially announced on Tuesday the hiring of Yasir Rosemond as assistant coach.
Rosemond, who replaces former associate head coach Bob Simon on the staff, comes to the Crimson Tide after spending the past two seasons at Georgia. The Atlanta, Ga., native also held coaching positions at Oregon, helping the Ducks reach the 2007 Elite 8, Samford and Seattle University during his 13-year coaching career.
“I am thrilled to have Yasir join our basketball staff as assistant coach,” Johnson said. “When paired alongside John Pelphrey, our associate head coach, and Antoine Pettway, who we feel is a rising star and has been elevated to the No. 2 position on our staff, we feel we have a dynamic trio in terms of recruiting. We understand that while each of us could take a lead with any recruit, it is a collaborative effort amongst the four of us. One of our goals in terms of recruiting is to continue to strengthen our position in the southern part of the country while also finding ways to open doors internationally. Yasir has some great ideas on how to help us accomplish those goals.
“Yasir has been a part of some very good staffs during his coaching career. He is very familiar with the SEC and has had great relationships with the players, coaches and support staffs. With the momentum surrounding the Alabama men’s basketball program and the tremendous support we receive from our athletics department and our donors, we feel that Yasir is going to be well-positioned to be very successful.”
Prior to his two seasons at Georgia, Rosemond worked at Samford from 2012-14, after spending the 2010-11 season as an assistant coach at Seattle University under head coach, Cameron Dollar.
Rosemond, a graduate of the University of Oregon, made his mark on the collegiate basketball landscape during his five seasons (2005-10) at his alma mater under head coach Ernie Kent. The first two of those years he was Director of Basketball Operations, the latter three serving as an assistant coach.
While on the Ducks’ coaching staff, Rosemond helped assemble a top-25 recruiting class in 2008 and also coached Aaron Brooks, a 2007 All-American and nine-year NBA veteran who currently plays for the Indiana Pacers.
“I am very excited to be a part of the Alabama men’s basketball program,” Rosemond said. “I would like to thank coach Johnson and athletics director Greg Byrne for allowing me this opportunity. I feel coach Johnson has turned the Crimson Tide into a program with an exciting future and I am looking forward to being part of something special. I can’t wait to hit the ground running.”
Before joining the staff at Oregon, Rosemond coached as an assistant for two seasons at Redlands Community College in El Reno, Okla., helping the team advance to the national junior college championship game in 2005.
Rosemond’s playing career included stops at Okaloosa-Walton Junior College in Florida for one season and also Butler (Kan.) Community College, where he redshirted. He then played at Oregon for two seasons before transferring to Seattle Pacific, where he competed for coach Ken Bone in his senior year.
During his four-year professional basketball career in Brazil, Rosemond found time to complete his bachelor’s degree in sociology from Oregon in 2003.
