MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The muscles and hustle behind “Press Virginia” are now the domain of Shaun Brown.
The Mountaineers basketball program announced the hiring of Brown on Tuesday, bring aboard a strength and conditioning coach who spent eight seasons in the NBA and helped Kentucky reach three Final Fours from 1992-97.
“Obviously, I’m excited about the opportunity to work with a future Hall-of-Famer in coach Bob Huggins and with West Virginia basketball,” Brown told the school’s website. “West Virginia’s style of play, especially with Press Virginia, is how I got my start in this and it certainly fits my niche.”
Brown trained the Wildcats during Rick Pitino’s pressing heyday, including the 1996 national championship team and the 1997 runner-up. He followed Pitino to the Boston Celtics where he spent six seasons, before joining the Toronto Raptors for two years.
Brown replaces the popular Andy Kettler, who recently left for Louisville after spending a decade under Huggins.
“Andy has established a heck of a culture here, and I anticipate this transition being as smooth as any place that I’ve been,” Brown said. “I don’t have to reinvent the wheel because I know these guys are accustomed to working hard and putting in time. The facilities are certainly top-notch, and I’m looking forward to getting there and working with the team and the staff.”
Brown arrives at West Virginia after five years at the University of Minnesota, where he worked under Pitino’s son Richard. He earned his first major-college job at Providence from 1989-92 and subsequently had three-year stints at Virginia and USC from 2006-2013.
“When I called people who I trust in this profession, the first name they all mentioned was Shaun Brown,” Huggins said.