Mo Williams, who played over a dozen seasons in the NBA, has left his coaching job at Alabama State University to be a head coach at Jackson State University. Get the full story from Khari Thompson at the Mississippi Clarion Ledger below.
Alabama State basketball coach Mo Williams, who played 14 seasons in the NBA and won an NBA title with the Cleveland Cavaliers, is returning home to be the next coach at Jackson State, according to a report Monday from Stadium’s Jeff Goodman.
The news comes three days after JSU announced that Wayne Brent would retire at the end of the season. Brent went 117-155 with two winning seasons among his nine at JSU. Brent joined JSU in 2013 after an assistant coaching stint at Ole Miss and a noteworthy career as a high school coach in the Jackson-area, winning four state titles in six years at Callaway.
A JSU spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment.
It would be the second high-profile former athlete now coach at Jackson State, joining football coach Deion Sanders, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Williams, a Jackson native, starred at Murrah, the same high school as JSU athletics director Ashley Robinson. Williams was selected as a McDonald’s All-American during his senior year in 2001.
Williams played at Alabama where he played under Mark Gottfried. and averaged 13.1 points and 4.2 assists in two seasons with the Crimson Tide. He was named 2002 SEC Freshman of the Year and was a third-team all-SEC selection in 2003.
The Utah Jazz selected Williams with the 47th overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. He played with seven different teams over his decade-plus long career, including multiple stops with the Jazz and Cavaliers.
Several career milestones were reached with the Cavaliers, including a selection to the 2009 NBA All-Star Game and winning the 2016 NBA championship as a member of the Cavaliers with LeBron James. The 2016 Cavaliers were the first team in NBA history to come back from a 3-1 deficit in an NBA Finals.
Williams retired in 2017 and began his coaching career as an assistant under Gottfried at Cal State Northridge from 2018-20 before taking the Alabama State job.
Williams’ coaching record is 14-35 with a 10-23 conference record. Alabama State was 8-24 when he took over the program after the 2019-20 season . The Hornets’ last winning season was in 2015.
