Amir Abdur-Rahim (March 18, 1981 – October 24, 2024) was an American basketball coach and player who was the head coach of the South Florida Bulls men's basketball team.[1] Prior to coaching at USF, he was the head coach at Kennesaw State from 2019 to 2023, leading the Owls to the 2023 conference regular season and tournament titles and their first-ever berth in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.[2][3]
.jpg) Abdur-Rahim in 2023 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 18, 1981 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | October 24, 2024 (aged 43) Tampa, Florida, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 2000–2001 | Garden City CC |
| 2001–2004 | Southeastern Louisiana |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2006–2011 | Murray State (assistant) |
| 2012–2014 | Charleston (assistant) |
| 2014–2018 | Texas A&M (assistant) |
| 2018–2019 | Georgia (assistant) |
| 2019–2023 | Kennesaw State |
| 2023–2024 | South Florida |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 2011–2012 | Georgia Tech (dir. player development) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 70–82 (.461) |
| Tournaments | 0–1 (NCAA Division I) 1–1 (NIT) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| ASUN regular season (2023) ASUN tournament (2023) AAC regular season (2024) | |
| Awards | |
| Hugh Durham Award (2023) ASUN Coach of the Year (2023) AAC Coach of the Year (2024) | |
Playing career
editAmir Abdur-Rahim played at Joseph Wheeler High School in Marietta, Georgia.[4]
After one season at Garden City Community College, Abdur-Rahim transferred to Southeastern Louisiana where he was a three-time All-Southland Conference selection playing for Billy Kennedy.[5] He graduated seventh all-time in career points and second all-time in three-pointers made and steals.[2]
Coaching career
editAbdur-Rahim began coaching in 2006 serving as a graduate assistant at Murray State for two seasons under Kennedy before being promoted to a full-time assistant coach.[6] He stayed with the Racers until 2011, when he joined the staff at Georgia Tech as the director of player development for one season before becoming an assistant coach at the College of Charleston in 2012.[7] Abdur-Rahim reunited with Kennedy as an assistant coach at Texas A&M from 2014 to 2018 where he was on staff for two of the Aggies' Sweet 16 appearances.[8] In 2018, he returned to his home state to join Tom Crean's staff at Georgia.[9]
On April 18, 2019, Abdur-Rahim was named the head coach at Kennesaw State, replacing Al Skinner.[3][10] In the 2022–23 season, Abdur-Rahim led Kennesaw State to their first winning season in their Division I program history, with a record of 26–9. The Owls also won their first Atlantic Sun title and went to their first NCAA Division I tournament. As a result, he was named the 2023 ASUN Coach of the Year.[11]
On March 29, 2023, Abdur-Rahim was named the head coach of South Florida.[12] He replaced Brian Gregory. He led the program to their first Top 25 ranking in both the AP and Coaches' Poll and their first American Athletic Conference regular season title, as the team finished 25–8.[13] Abdur-Rahim was named a Naismith College Coach of the Year semifinalist, and a finalist for the Ben Jobe National Coach of the Year and the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year.[14][15]
Personal life and death
editAbdur-Rahim was born in Atlanta on March 18, 1981.[16] His father William was an imam while his mother Deborah was a Christian special education teacher, and Amir was one of 13 siblings.[17] His brother Shareef played 13 years in the NBA, and is the current president of the NBA G League.[2] Shareef is the father of Jabri Abdur-Rahim and of USF volleyball player Sami Abdur-Rahim.
On October 24, 2024, Abdur-Rahim died at Tampa General Hospital at the age of 43, from complications that arose during a medical procedure related to an undisclosed illness.[18][19][20] Following Abdur-Rahim's death, the student section in USF's Yuengling Center was named the "Amir Abdur-Rahim Student Section" and a permanent installation in the arena will be added as a tribute.[21]
Head coaching record
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kennesaw State Owls (ASUN Conference) (2019–2023) | |||||||||
| 2019–20 | Kennesaw State | 1–28 | 0–16 | 9th | |||||
| 2020–21 | Kennesaw State | 5–19 | 2–13 | 9th | |||||
| 2021–22 | Kennesaw State | 13–18 | 7–9 | T–4th (East) | |||||
| 2022–23 | Kennesaw State | 26–9 | 15–3 | T–1st | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| Kennesaw State: | 45–74 (.378) | 24–41 (.369) | |||||||
| South Florida Bulls (American Athletic Conference) (2023–2024) | |||||||||
| 2023–24 | South Florida | 25–8 | 16–2 | 1st | NIT Second Round | ||||
| South Florida: | 25–8 (.758) | 16–2 (.889) | |||||||
| Total: | 70–82 (.461) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
Source:[22]
References
edit- ^ "Kelly Names Amir Abdur-Rahim to Lead South Florida Men's Basketball Program". USF Athletics. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Amir Abdur-Rahim – Head Coach – Staff Directory". Kennesaw State University Athletics.
- ^ a b "Kennesaw State Announces Amir Abdur-Rahim as Men's Basketball Coach". Kennesaw State University Athletics.
- ^ "Cobb native Amir Abdur-Rahim hired as Kennesaw State men's basketball coach". April 18, 2019.
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim – Men's Basketball Coach". Murray State University Athletics.
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim – Men's Basketball Coach". College of Charleston Athletics.
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim – Men's Basketball Coach". Texas A&M University Athletics – Home of the 12th Man.
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim – Assistant Coach – Staff Directory". University of Georgia Athletics.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim named men's basketball coach at Kennesaw State". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. April 18, 2019.
- ^ "Abdur-Rahim named ASUN Coach of the Year". Marietta Daily Journal. February 27, 2023. Retrieved February 28, 2023 – via Yahoo! News.
- ^ "Kelly Names Amir Abdur-Rahim to Lead South Florida Men's Basketball Program".
- ^ "USF men's basketball ranked in Top 25 for first time in Bulls history". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved March 6, 2024.
- ^ "USF Basketball's Abdur-Rahim Named Semifinalist For Werner Ladder Naismith Men's College Coach Of The Year". USF Athletics. March 16, 2024. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
- ^ "USF Basketball's Amir Abdur-Rahim Named A Finalist for Jim Phelan and Ben Jobe National Coach of the Year". USF Athletics. March 19, 2024. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
- ^ "2023–24 South Florida Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). University of South Florida. p. 15. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim, A Man of the People". USF Athletics. March 18, 2024. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ Vivlamore, Chris (October 26, 2024). "Celebration of life service for Amir Abdur-Rahim to be held Sunday". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
- ^ "USF men's basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim dies at 43".
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim, South Florida Basketball Coach, Dies at 43". People.com.
- ^ "Bulls Nation Pays Tribute To Beloved Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim". USF Athletics. November 2, 2024. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
- ^ "Amir Abdur-Rahim". Sports Reference. Retrieved October 31, 2024.