I mentioned in today’s blog that this would be announced today – here’s the official statement from St. Louis on the hiring of Calbert Cheaney as an assistant:
Calbert Cheaney, former Indiana University three-time All-American, National Player of the Year and 13-year NBA veteran, has been named an assistant coach on Jim Crews’ staff at Saint Louis University.
Cheaney comes to SLU after spending the past two seasons as Director of Operations/Internal and External Player Development at Indiana under head coach Tom Crean.
“I have had a great appreciation for Calbert as a player and person ever since I met him during his sophomore year in high school,” Crews said. “He is of high character and has a great combination of work habits and work ethic. Calbert is very good at transferring his knowledge to the players he coaches, and he will fit in well with our coaching staff and players. We are excited to welcome him into the program.”
“I have known Jim Crews for a long time, and I’m eager to work with him and the rest of the SLU staff,” Cheaney said. “This is a great coaching situation to step into, and I look forward to adding to SLU’s recent success. I appreciate the SLU department of athletics welcoming my family into theirs.
“It is bittersweet to leave Indiana,” Cheaney said. “Learning and building relationships with Coach Crean, the IU staff and the players was an unbelievable experience. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
“Calbert played an invaluable role in the success we enjoyed the last two years and we are excited for what the future holds for him and his family,” Crean said. “He brought a great deal to us and in turn, I think he gained valuable insight into the profession during his time at IU. He has come to have a strong desire to return to the floor coaching and can do so with someone he trusts and respects in Jim Crews. He will do an outstanding job and there is no doubt in my mind that he has a tremendous future coaching at any level.”
An Evansville, Ind., native, Cheaney starred at Indiana from 1989-93 under Bob Knight. A three-time All-American, Cheaney is the Big Ten’s all-time leading scorer with 2,613 career points. In his four seasons with the Hoosiers, he led IU to a remarkable 105-27 record and the NCAA Tournament all four years, including a Final Four appearance in 1992.
As a senior in 1992-93, Cheaney averaged 22.4 ppg and 6.2 rpg and garnered virtually every national player of the year accolade, including the Naismith College Player of the Year honor and the John R. Wooden Award. For his career, Cheaney averaged 19.8 ppg and 5.2 rpg and shot 55.9 percent from the field. He holds the Indiana University record for field goals made with 1,018.
Cheaney was the sixth player chosen in the 1993 NBA Draft by the Washington Bullets, beginning an NBA career that spanned 13 seasons with Washington, Boston, Denver, Utah and Golden State. He appeared in 825 regular-season games and amassed career averages of 9.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg and 1.7 apg.
Prior to returning to Bloomington to work with Crean, Cheaney served two seasons on the staff at Golden State, where he played in his final three NBA seasons. He was a special assistant in the front office in 2009-10, and in 2010-11 he was an assistant coach under fellow IU grad Keith Smart.
At Indiana, Cheaney was a key part of the Hoosiers squad that advanced to the Sweet 16 in each of the last two seasons.
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