MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Charleston native James Long led Davidson Day School to a North Carolina State High School Championship with a 24-7 record this past winter. It was the kind of job that Long favored over others when his phone rang during the offseason from prospective programs.
But a call from his hometown team, The University of Charleston, was too good of an opportunity to pass up. Long was officially hired as the new UC men’s basketball coach on Monday.
“It was a no-brainer. I wouldn’t have left for anything else right now,” Long said on the Citynet Statewide Sportsline. “I had said no to a couple things. We had it rolling. They are great kids and I love them to death. I am always going to stay in touch with them and care about them. But this is home and it is a national championship job. It is one of the best jobs in the country.”
Long’s West Virginia roots run deep. The former WVU guard and video coordinator became a head coach for the first time at WVU-Tech in 2019.
“It really gives me chills man, every part of it, looking across at the Capitol today. Someone asked me last night what is was going to feel like going out against West Virginia State, and it really hit me there. Wow, I am going to be coaching against West Virginia State that I grew up watching, every time.
“I have seen it in my head a thousand times. It is my dream job. I just can’t even put it into words. It just means so much to me.”
@ucwv_athletics has named James Long as their new head basketball coach. Long, a Charleston native, joined tonight’s episode of Sportsline to talk about his new opportunity in his hometown. pic.twitter.com/wsVtK6avsN
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) May 7, 2024
Long takes over for Dwaine Osborne, who recently became an assistant coach at Division I Youngstown State. Osborne led the Golden Eagles to the NCAA Atlantic Region Championship game in March.
“The way people speak about Coach Osborne, he had a real impact. I want to make sure I am doing that as well.”
Several Mountain East Conference teams have shined on the national stage in recent years with Fairmont State and West Liberty advancing to the NCAA Division II title game since 2017.
“When you look at the MEC, it is one of the best leagues in the country. A year ago, we were watching West Liberty in the national championship. You know the success they have had. Coach TK [Tim Koenig] at Fairmont is incredible. Coach [Daniel] Mondragon did an incredible job at D&E. I know that program is still going to be rolling. Coach [Todd] May had an incredible year at Concord. Coach [Bryan] Poore at State, Coach [Bob] Bolen at Glenville, all down the line. It is a great league.”
Long must quickly assemble a roster with returning players and transfer portal additions.
“The portal window is small. A kid can be in the portal and gone within a week. Especially at this point in the year, I think for kids, it is getting close to crunch time and they want to make a decision. You just have to be as transparent as possible and get to know each other as quickly as possible.”
Long has been the head coach of the WVU alumni basketball team Best Virginia in The Basketball Tournament for the last three summers. It is uncertain if he will continue leading that team when they compete in the Pittsburgh Regional in July.
“The best thing about TBT is the time you get to spend with people that you wouldn’t get any other way. I just need to see what makes sense for the University of Charleston. It is priority number one and it means everything to me.”