Jim Harrick
Encyclopedia
Jim Harrick is an American
former basketball
coach
who coached at Pepperdine University
, UCLA
, the University of Rhode Island
and the University of Georgia
over a combined total of 23 seasons.
, Harrick graduated in 1960 from Morris Harvey College, now known as the University of Charleston
. He is of Lebanese
ancestry. On November 20, 2009 Sally Lee Harrick, his wife of 49 years, died aged 70 from complications of scleroderma.
in Inglewood, California
where he served as an assistant coach from 1964–1969 and as head coach from 1970–1973. He was then hired as an assistant coach at Utah State
from 1974–1977. Harrick then spent two seasons as an assistant coach at UCLA from 1978–1979. His first collegiate head coaching job was at Pepperdine University
in 1979, where he led the school to four NCAA Tournament
appearances and was a conference coach of the year four times.
to assume head coaching duties after the firing of Walt Hazzard
. During the recruiting period before his first season, he recruited Don MacLean
which was the most significant recruit to commit to UCLA
in several years and helped start a revival of the basketball program. During the 1994–1995 season
, he led UCLA to the school's eleventh national championship
, its first since the 1974–75 season
. Shortly before the start of the 1996–97 season
, he was accused of falsifying receipts at a student-athlete recruiting dinner, although the NCAA exonerated Harrick of this offense. UCLA fired him for lying to university investigators. Harrick did not tell the athletic department accurately about who attended a recruiting dinner with a $1000 expense report from Monty's Steakhouse, where two extra current team members joined the table. He is the second-winningest coach in UCLA history, behind only John Wooden
.
. He coached the Rams
for two seasons (from 1997–99), where in both years they qualified for the NCAA Tournament. During the 1998 tournament
, the Rams upset Kansas in the second round and reached the Midwest Regional finals but were defeated by Stanford
79–77. In his second season, he managed to recruit Lamar Odom
and led the Rams to their first Atlantic 10 Conference title.
Actually Lamar was recruited in 1997,but was not able to play until the Fall semester of 1998.
. He served there for four seasons (1999–00 through 2002–03), leading the Bulldogs
to the NCAA tournament twice following a losing record. He resigned from his position and retired from coaching after several scandals during his reign at Georgia came to public light.
and helped develop basketball in China.
On June 13, 2006, Harrick accepted the head coaching position for the recently-created Bakersfield Jam
, a NBA Development League
expansion team. Harrick resigned for personal reasons in December 2007, after the Jam struggled to a 2–14 record.
He is now serving as a college basketball analyst for Prime Ticket, the Southern California affiliate of Fox Sports Net
.
At Georgia, Harrick's son, Jim Harrick, Jr., a Georgia assistant, got into trouble for paying $300 in expenses for one of his players, Tony Cole. He also gave an "A" to Cole, Rashad Wright
and Chris Daniels for a basketball strategy class even though they never attended the class. After the story broke, Georgia pulled out of the 2003 SEC Tournament and withdrew from postseason consideration. The school suspended Harrick, Jr. on February 28, 2003 and fired him five days later. Harrick, Sr. was suspended on March 10 and resigned on March 27 after being told his contract wouldn't be renewed.
An NCAA investigation not only substantiated the previously mentioned violations, but found that six players didn't pay for over $1,500 of long-distance telephone calls in December 2001, but Georgia didn't report the violations until July 2003. In 2004, the NCAA placed Georgia on four years' probation for the violations. It also forced the Bulldogs to vacate half of its wins from 2001–02 and all of its wins from 2002–03—30 games in all. Harrick, Jr. was slapped with a seven-year "show-cause" order for his role in the academic fraud, as well as telling two of the players involved to lie to the NCAA. The "show-cause" effectively blackballed him from the college ranks until 2011 at the earliest.
* Georgia vacated 11 wins in 2001–02 and all of its wins in 2002–03, as well as its share of the 2002 SEC East title and its 2002 NCAA Tournament appearance
, due to an academic fraud scandal. Official record for 2001–02 is 11–10 (0–6 SEC), official record for 2002–03 is 0–8 (0–5 SEC).
** Record at Georgia is 37–53 (3–30 SEC) without vacated games.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
former basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
who coached at Pepperdine University
Pepperdine University
Pepperdine University is an independent, private, medium-sized university affiliated with the Churches of Christ. The university's campus overlooking the Pacific Ocean in unincorporated Los Angeles County, California, United States, near Malibu, is the location for Seaver College, the School of...
, UCLA
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, the University of Rhode Island
University of Rhode Island
The University of Rhode Island is the principal public research university in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Its main campus is located in Kingston. Additional campuses include the Feinstein Campus in Providence, the Narragansett Bay Campus in Narragansett, and the W. Alton Jones Campus in West...
and the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
over a combined total of 23 seasons.
Biography
Born in Charleston, West VirginiaCharleston, West Virginia
Charleston is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is located at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers in Kanawha County. As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 51,400, and its metropolitan area 304,214. It is the county seat of Kanawha County.Early...
, Harrick graduated in 1960 from Morris Harvey College, now known as the University of Charleston
University of Charleston
The University of Charleston is a private university in Charleston, West Virginia, United States of over 1,300 students.-History:The school was founded in 1888 as the Barboursville Seminary of the Southern Methodist Church...
. He is of Lebanese
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
ancestry. On November 20, 2009 Sally Lee Harrick, his wife of 49 years, died aged 70 from complications of scleroderma.
College coaching career
Harrick's coaching career began at Morningside High SchoolMorningside High School
Morningside High is a public high school in Inglewood, California.-History:In 1951, the first two classes of students came to the Morningside Park area of Inglewood to attend the new Morningside High School. Incoming 9th graders came from the surrounding junior high schools, and a class of 10th...
in Inglewood, California
Inglewood, California
Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, southwest of downtown Los Angeles. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. Its population stood at 109,673 as of the 2010 Census...
where he served as an assistant coach from 1964–1969 and as head coach from 1970–1973. He was then hired as an assistant coach at Utah State
Utah State Aggies men's basketball
The Utah State Aggies are a Division I men's college basketball team that plays in the Western Athletic Conference, representing Utah State University. The Aggies have enjoyed an extremely high amount of success in recent years under head coach Stew Morrill...
from 1974–1977. Harrick then spent two seasons as an assistant coach at UCLA from 1978–1979. His first collegiate head coaching job was at Pepperdine University
Pepperdine Waves
Pepperdine Waves is the name given to the sports teams of the Pepperdine University.-See also:* Pepperdine Waves alumni* 2011-12 Pepperdine Waves men's basketball team...
in 1979, where he led the school to four NCAA Tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
appearances and was a conference coach of the year four times.
UCLA
In 1988, he returned to UCLAUniversity of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
to assume head coaching duties after the firing of Walt Hazzard
Walt Hazzard
Walter "Walt" Raphael Hazzard Jr. , also known as Mahdi Abdul-Rahman, was an American college, Olympic, and professional basketball player and college basketball coach...
. During the recruiting period before his first season, he recruited Don MacLean
Don MacLean (basketball)
Donald James MacLean is a retired American professional basketball player in the NBA. As a college player, he holds the distinction of being the all-time scoring leader of both the Pac-10 Conference and UCLA, although Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would have most likely attained both of those records had...
which was the most significant recruit to commit to UCLA
UCLA Bruins men's basketball
The UCLA Bruins men's basketball program, established in 1920, owns a record 11 Division I NCAA championships. UCLA teams coached by John Wooden won 10 national titles in 12 seasons from 1964 to 1975, including 7 straight from 1967 to 1973. UCLA went undefeated a record 4 times, in 1964, 1967,...
in several years and helped start a revival of the basketball program. During the 1994–1995 season
1994-95 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team
The 1994–95 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won the 1995 National Championship by beating Arkansas 89–78 for the school's 11th title. It was the first title since the 1975 Championship and since the retirement of head coach John Wooden....
, he led UCLA to the school's eleventh national championship
1995 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1995 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 16, 1995, and ended with the championship game on April 3 at the Kingdome in Seattle,...
, its first since the 1974–75 season
1974-75 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team
In head coach John R. Wooden's final game, the 1974–75 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won the team's tenth National Championship in twelve years over the Kentucky Wildcats , in the San Diego Sports Arena, San Diego, California....
. Shortly before the start of the 1996–97 season
1996-97 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team
The 1996–97 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team represented the University of California, Los Angeles in the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team finished 1st in the conference. The Bruins competed in the 1997 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, losing to the Minnesota...
, he was accused of falsifying receipts at a student-athlete recruiting dinner, although the NCAA exonerated Harrick of this offense. UCLA fired him for lying to university investigators. Harrick did not tell the athletic department accurately about who attended a recruiting dinner with a $1000 expense report from Monty's Steakhouse, where two extra current team members joined the table. He is the second-winningest coach in UCLA history, behind only John Wooden
John Wooden
John Robert Wooden was an American basketball player and coach. Nicknamed the "Wizard of Westwood", he won ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period — seven in a row — as head coach at UCLA, an unprecedented feat. Within this period, his teams won a record 88 consecutive games...
.
Rhode Island
After a one-year hiatus, Harrick returned to coaching by accepting the head coach position at Rhode IslandUniversity of Rhode Island
The University of Rhode Island is the principal public research university in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Its main campus is located in Kingston. Additional campuses include the Feinstein Campus in Providence, the Narragansett Bay Campus in Narragansett, and the W. Alton Jones Campus in West...
. He coached the Rams
Rhode Island Rams men's basketball
The Rhode Island Rams men's basketball team is a college basketball program that competes in NCAA Division I and the Atlantic Ten Conference representing the University of Rhode Island. The team is currently coached by Jim Baron, who is in his 10th year...
for two seasons (from 1997–99), where in both years they qualified for the NCAA Tournament. During the 1998 tournament
1998 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1998 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 12, 1998, and ended with the championship game on March 30 at the Alamodome in San Antonio,...
, the Rams upset Kansas in the second round and reached the Midwest Regional finals but were defeated by Stanford
Stanford Cardinal men's basketball
The Stanford Cardinal Men's Basketball team represents Stanford University, located in Stanford, California, United States. The school's team currently competes in the Pacific-12 Conference. The team has won 13 conference championships , the last in 2004, and one NCAA championship, in 1942...
79–77. In his second season, he managed to recruit Lamar Odom
Lamar Odom
Lamar Joseph Odom is an American professional basketball forward with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association.-Early life:...
and led the Rams to their first Atlantic 10 Conference title.
Actually Lamar was recruited in 1997,but was not able to play until the Fall semester of 1998.
Georgia
After the season, he left URI to become the head coach at the University of GeorgiaUniversity of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
. He served there for four seasons (1999–00 through 2002–03), leading the Bulldogs
Georgia Bulldogs men's basketball
The Georgia Bulldogs basketball program is the men's college basketball team representing the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia. Established in 1891, the team has competed in the Southeastern Conference since its inception in 1932...
to the NCAA tournament twice following a losing record. He resigned from his position and retired from coaching after several scandals during his reign at Georgia came to public light.
Later career
After Georgia, Harrick worked as a scout for the NBA's Denver NuggetsDenver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are a professional basketball team based in Denver, Colorado. They play in the National Basketball Association . They were founded as the Denver Rockets in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association, and became one of that league's more successful teams...
and helped develop basketball in China.
On June 13, 2006, Harrick accepted the head coaching position for the recently-created Bakersfield Jam
Bakersfield Jam
The Bakersfield Jam is an expansion franchise of the National Basketball Association Development League that began play in 2006-07. It plays its home games at the newly-built Jam Events Center in Bakersfield, California, United States, which had been built as their practice facility...
, a NBA Development League
NBA Development League
The NBA Development League, or NBA D-League, is the National Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. Known until summer 2005 as the National Basketball Development League , the NBA D-League started with eight teams in the fall of 2001...
expansion team. Harrick resigned for personal reasons in December 2007, after the Jam struggled to a 2–14 record.
He is now serving as a college basketball analyst for Prime Ticket, the Southern California affiliate of Fox Sports Net
Fox Sports Net
The Fox Sports Regional Networks, or simply Fox Sports Net , are a collection of cable TV regional sports networks in the United States owned and operated by News Corporation.- Beginnings :...
.
Controversy
Harrick was investigated at UCLA and fired for filing false expense reports. Harrick says he has a letter from the NCAA exonerating him from any wrong-doing regarding this incident.http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2482986At Georgia, Harrick's son, Jim Harrick, Jr., a Georgia assistant, got into trouble for paying $300 in expenses for one of his players, Tony Cole. He also gave an "A" to Cole, Rashad Wright
Rashad Wright
Rashad Wright is an American professional basketball player who graduated from the University of Georgia and was selected by the Indiana Pacers with the final pick of the 2004 NBA Draft. He currently plays for PAOK in Greece....
and Chris Daniels for a basketball strategy class even though they never attended the class. After the story broke, Georgia pulled out of the 2003 SEC Tournament and withdrew from postseason consideration. The school suspended Harrick, Jr. on February 28, 2003 and fired him five days later. Harrick, Sr. was suspended on March 10 and resigned on March 27 after being told his contract wouldn't be renewed.
An NCAA investigation not only substantiated the previously mentioned violations, but found that six players didn't pay for over $1,500 of long-distance telephone calls in December 2001, but Georgia didn't report the violations until July 2003. In 2004, the NCAA placed Georgia on four years' probation for the violations. It also forced the Bulldogs to vacate half of its wins from 2001–02 and all of its wins from 2002–03—30 games in all. Harrick, Jr. was slapped with a seven-year "show-cause" order for his role in the academic fraud, as well as telling two of the players involved to lie to the NCAA. The "show-cause" effectively blackballed him from the college ranks until 2011 at the earliest.
Head coaching record
2002 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 2002 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 65 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 12, 2002, and ended with the championship game on April 1 in Atlanta, Georgia...
, due to an academic fraud scandal. Official record for 2001–02 is 11–10 (0–6 SEC), official record for 2002–03 is 0–8 (0–5 SEC).
Awards
- 1999: Atlantic 10 Tournament Championship (Rhode Island)
- 1995: NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship (UCLA)
- 1995: National Coach of the Year (Naismith, NABC)
- 1992, 1995-1996: Pac 10 Conference Championship (UCLA)
- 1992, 1995-1996: Pac 10 Coach of the Year (UCLA)
- 1990: Morris Harvey College-University of CharlestonUniversity of CharlestonThe University of Charleston is a private university in Charleston, West Virginia, United States of over 1,300 students.-History:The school was founded in 1888 as the Barboursville Seminary of the Southern Methodist Church...
Golden Eagle Sports Hall of Fame - 1981-1983, 1985-1986: West Coast Athletic Conference Championship (Pepperdine)
- 1982-1983, 1985-1986: West Coast Athletic Conference Coach of the Year (Pepperdine)
- 14-Time NCAA Division I Tournament
- Winning Percentage: 451-227 (.665)