USC Men’s Basketball has announced the addition of Earl Boykins to the coaching staff, Head Coach Eric Musselman announced. These two reunite after coaching together at Arkansas, along with Musselman coaching Boykins when he was an assistant coach for the Orlando Magic and the head coach for the Golden State Warriors.
“We are so excited to welcome Coach Boykins to the Trojan Family,” Musselman said. “Earl will make an instant impact with our program. Having coached Earl in the NBA twice and having him on staff at Arkansas, we are super excited to add a coach who knows our system and culture. He also played in the NBA for 13 years, which adds another coach on staff who brings professional experience for our student-athletes.”
Boykins, a 13-year NBA veteran who played two seasons for the Los Angeles Clippers, comes back to Los Angeles after a four-year stint with the Miners at UTEP. Boykins was recognized as one of the top assistant coaches in the country as he was invited to the TopConnect Basketball Symposium in 2024. Over his four seasons with the program, he helped the Miners post winning seasons in three of those seasons. Not only that, but Boykins was also a part of the 2023-24 coaching staff that guided the Miners to the Conference USA Championship game for the first time since 2011. That same season, the Miners led the nation in steals and forced turnovers per game, which also broke the previous numbers in UTEP’s record books.
Before arriving in El Paso, Boykins was on Coach Musselman’s staff at the University of Arkansas, where he spent two seasons as the director of student-athlete development from 2019-21. His first season with the program was shortened due to COVID-19, but Boykins was on staff with the Razorbacks when they made their Elite Eight run in 2021. He also had another coaching stop at Douglas County High School in Colorado for five seasons, where he took the team from a 0-19 record to making the playoffs in his last three seasons.
Boykins transitioned to coaching after a 13-year career in the NBA. The undrafted free agent posted a career total of 2,092 assists and 5,791 points along the way. Boykins, the second shortest player in NBA history, started his career with the New Jersey Nets before moving on to the Orlando Magic, Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Warriors, Denver Nuggets, Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks, Charlotte Bobcats, Washington Wizards and Houston Rockets. He also spent a year playing for Virtus Bologna in the Italian League from 2008-09, where he led the team to the EuroChallenge Cup Championship.
Before his career in the NBA, Boykins was a standout player at Eastern Michigan University. During his career, he earned All-America Honorable Mention honors, received the 1998 Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award, which is given to the nation’s best player under 6 feet tall, was named the 1997 USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year, and landed on the All-MAC First Team twice. If that all wasn’t enough, Boykins was the second-leading scorer in the country during his senior season, averaging 26.8 points per game while helping the Eagles make two NCAA Tournament appearances. These accolades landed him in Eastern Michigan’s Hall of Fame and resulted in the Eagles retiring his number.
“I am extremely excited to join the Trojan Family and help these young men develop as both athletes and people,” Boykins said. “I have a point of view that others don’t have, as I played for Coach Musselman and coached with him at Arkansas. I also bring a unique perspective to the staff, as I can communicate with our athletes from both the collegiate and professional player’s standpoint, as well as from the coach’s perspective. Coming to USC is a new adventure that I am excited to go on.”
https://usctrojans.com/news/2025/5/30/earl-boykins-joins-usc-mens-basketballs-coaching-staff
