Florida Tech men’s basketball head coach Billy Mims has announced the promotion of Joey James to the position of Associate Head Coach.
“I am very excited to be able to reward Joey for his outstanding commitment to the success of our program by promoting him to the role of Associate Head Coach,” stated Mims. “Joey is one of the most talented assistant coaches in the Sunshine State Conference (SSC), and I’ve been blessed to have him on the sidelines with me.”
“He is one of the few in the SSC with collegiate head coaching experience and has been an integral part of our success over the past few seasons. This promotion and a new title is well deserved.”
James will enter his sixth season on Tech’s sideline in the 2024-25 season. In his first five seasons with the Panthers, James has helped lead Tech to a 63-57 overall record, a 32-48 record in the SSC, and four SSC Tournament appearances, including two semifinal appearances in the 2020-21 and 2022-23 seasons.
“I am extremely grateful for this promotion to Associate Head Coach,” said James. “I would like to give a special thanks to Coach Mims and Director of Athletics Jamie Joss for presenting me with this opportunity. I look forward to continuing my work with Coach Mims and developing scholar-athletes that excel both in the classroom and on the court.”
During his time with the Panthers, he has helped guide five different scholar-athletes to All-SSC recognition, including two two-time all-conference honorees in Sesan Russell ’23 (All-SSC First Team in 2020-21, Second Team in 2022-23) and Sean Houpt ’23 (All-SSC Newcomer Team in 2020-21, Second Team in 2022-23).
Before coming to Florida Tech, James served five years as the head men’s basketball coach at NCAA DII Concordia-St. Paul. He made an immediate impact on the Golden Bear basketball program when he was hired by CSUP in 2014.
James led the team to an 11-win turnaround and the third-most wins in a single season in program history with a 19-11 overall finish in his first season with Concordia in 2014-15. The team also set a program record for most NSIC wins with a 14-8 conference record in his debut season. The 11-win improvement was a team record and the best improvement in the NSIC in the 2014-15 season. Over his five seasons in St. Paul, James guided the Golden Bears to a 52-96 record.
Prior to joining Concordia’s sidelines, James spent a season as the interim head coach at his alma mater, the University of South Dakota, where he had been an assistant coach for 11 seasons before the interim appointment. James played for the Coyotes from 1997-99.
In his interim season, James and the Coyotes went 12-18 overall and 6-8 in the Summit League. USD reached the NCAA Division II Tournament in each of his first five seasons as an assistant, including a Sweet 16 appearance in the 2004-05 season. In his 12 total seasons as a USD coach, the program produced a 225-137 (.622) record. James was involved in all aspects of USD basketball and helped lead the team to seven straight 20-plus win seasons, to go along with two conference championships.
James began his collegiate career as a player at Iowa Western Community College. After averaging 15 points as a sophomore at Iowa Western, he transferred to South Dakota where he averaged eight points as a junior in his first year with the Coyotes, leading the team to a 19-8 season. During James’ senior season, South Dakota finished 23-7, won the North Central Conference championship, and reached the NCAA Tournament.
James graduated from South Dakota in 2001 with a degree in recreational science. He earned his master’s degree in athletic administration from USD in 2003.
A native of Winter Haven, Florida, James lived in the area until age nine when his family moved to Bellevue, Nebraska. His parents and family have since moved back to the Sunshine State and currently reside in the Melbourne area, where James lives with his wife Marla and kids, Crew and Teagen.
