Former Sacramento Kings legend Mike Bibby is coming home. Sacramento State Director of Athletics Mark Orr announced today that Bibby has been named the 17th head men’s basketball coach in program history.
Bibby, who spent half of his 14-year NBA career with the Sacramento Kings, returns to the city where he became a fan favorite while helping the Kings to multiple playoff appearances in the early 2000s. A first team all-American, Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year and the No. 2 overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, Bibby helped Arizona to a 1997 NCAA national championship.
“Since 2001, Sacramento has felt like home to me,” Bibby said. “The people, the fans and the passion they have for the city and their teams is unmatched. I have always felt that passion, and will always be thankful for how I was embraced. Sacramento State is no different. After seeing the campus, and meeting with President Wood and Mark Orr, their vision for the University and program was something I shared. We are going to build, we are going to develop, and we are going to win.”
Recently, Bibby had assistant coaching stops with the Puerto Rican National Team, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Memphis Grizzlies summer league teams, and the NBA G-League Ignite. He coached 25 players who received collegiate scholarships during his time as head coach at Shadow Mountain High School (2014-19) in Phoenix, Ariz. During his six seasons at Shadow Mountain (five as head coach), he coached the team to five state championships, a 157-21 overall record, a 72-game winning streak, and a six-year home winning streak.
“I’m ecstatic to announce Mike Bibby as the new head coach of Sacramento State men’s basketball, and welcome him back to the community of Sacramento,” Orr said. “Mike will recruit talented student-athletes and develop a team culture that embodies success both on and off the court. I am convinced that Mike will pour every ounce of his energy into Sacramento State and engage the entire Sacramento region. I could not be more excited about the future of our program.”
As an NBA player, Bibby appeared in over 1,000 career games, finishing with averages of 14.7 points, 5.5 assists and 1.2 steals during a 14-year run that began in 1998 with the Vancouver Grizzlies, and concluded in 2012 with the New York Knicks. He averaged better than 13 points in each of his first 11 seasons, including a seven-year stint with the Sacramento Kings (2001-08).
During those seven seasons, he averaged 17.6 points and helped the Kings to the franchise’s most successful era. That included three straight Western Conference semifinal appearances, and a conference final in 2002. It was Bibby that hit the game winner in Game 5 of the 2002 conference final to give the Kings a 3-2 lead over the Los Angeles Lakers. Among franchise leaders, he remains fifth in 3-pointers made (775), sixth in assists (2,580) and seventh in steals (584).
“Mike Bibby’s basketball expertise, love for Sacramento, and passion for developing student-athletes perfectly align with our goals for Hornet basketball,” said Sacramento State President Luke Wood. “His leadership and vision will elevate our program to new heights and inspire our community to rally behind Sac State basketball.”
A native of Phoenix, Bibby spent two highly decorated seasons at Arizona (1996-98), where he helped the program to its lone national championship in 1997. He was the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year in 1997, and a consensus first team All-American and Pac-10 Player of the Year in 1998 after averaging 17.2 points, 5.7 assists and 2.4 steals. He had his No. 10 jersey retired by Arizona.
After his senior season at Shadow Mountain High School in 1996, he was named Mr. Basketball USA, McDonald’s All-American and first team All-American.
Bibby graduated with a bachelor’s degree (multidisciplinary studies) from UNLV in 2017. He and his wife, Darcy, have four children – Michael, Janae, Mia and Nylah.
