Former Spider standouts Ryan Butler and Kevin Smith have been hired as Director of Basketball Operations.
“I am thrilled to welcome Ryan Butler and Kevin Smith back to our program,” head coach Chris Mooney said. “Both of them had great college basketball careers and had a tremendous impact on Richmond Basketball. They always have represented Richmond in the best way and will continue to do so. I’m proud of the progress they have made in their careers and feel lucky to be working with them again.”
Butler is a 2010 Spider graduate who was a four-year starter and finished his career helping the Spiders to the Atlantic 10 title game, an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament and a Top-25 finish as a senior. The Richmond, Va. finished his career fifth at Richmond in steals and three-pointers made.
“I’m thankful Coach Mooney gave me the opportunity to return to Richmond and be a part of the staff last year, and even more thankful to move into the operations position. It is very special to have played under Coach and a great experience to now work for him.”
Smith, a 2011 Richmond graduate, was a teammate of Butler’s for three years. The three-year starter helped lead the Spiders to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments, back-to-back Top-25 finishes, the 2011 Atlantic 10 Championship and the 2011 Sweet 16. The Murfreesboro, Tenn. native was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team as a senior.
“I feel extremely privileged to come back to a place that I love to call home now,” Smith said. “I feel as though I’m back with family and am happy that I’m able to be here to be apart of Richmond Basketball.”
Butler spent this past season as Richmond’s video coordinator and Smith has played professional basketball since graduating from Richmond in May of 2011, playing the 2011-12 season for Takamatsu Five Arrows in Japan and the 2012-13 season for Albacomp in Hungary.
Butler and Smith’s former teammate Dan Geriot was hired as an assistant for former Spider Associate Head Coach Kevin McGeehan at Campbell. Kevin Hovde, another teammate of Butler and Smith, is an assistant coach at Columbia.
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