Bryant Lamonica Stith (born December 10, 1970) is an American former professional
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
player who played in the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
(NBA). He is currently a men's assistant basketball coach at
University of North Carolina Greensboro
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand-al ...
.
Playing career
College career
Stith was the
Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Basketball Rookie of the Year
The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Men's Basketball Rookie of the Year is an award given to the freshman basketball player in the Atlantic Coast Conference voted by members of the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association as the most outstanding fre ...
in 1989. He finished his career in 1992 as Virginia’s all-time leading scorer with 2,516 points. Stith earned first-team All-ACC honors three times and was named the Most Valuable Player of the 1992 National Invitation Tournament.
During Stith's time at Virginia, the Cavaliers compiled four 20-win seasons, three NCAA appearances and the 1992 National Invitation Tournament championship.
Professional career
A 6'5" (1.96 m)
shooting guard
The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...
, Stith was selected from the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
with the 13th overall pick by the
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...
in the
1992 NBA draft
The 1992 NBA draft took place on June 24, 1992, at Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Oregon. The draft is considered to be one of the deepest in NBA history. The top three picks (Shaquille O'Neal, Alonzo Mourning, Christian Laettner) were considere ...
. Stith played only 39 games in his rookie season, but would play (and start) all 82 games next season (1993–94) averaging 12.5 points per game. Stith later on struggled with injures in his career with the Nuggets. Stith played eight seasons with the team before being traded to the
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...
. He was also traded to the
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...
and to the
Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...
along with
Andre Miller
Andre Lloyd Miller (born March 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player and the current head coach for the Grand Rapids Gold. Miller has played professional basketball for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers, Phil ...
for
Darius Miles
Darius LaVar Miles (born October 9, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player.
The , forward was selected directly out of high school by the Los Angeles Clippers with the 3rd overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft. He was a Firs ...
. He retired before ever playing for the Clippers.
International career
He played for the
US national team in the
1990 FIBA World Championship
The 1990 FIBA World Championship was the 11th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Argentina from 8 to 19 August 1990. The final phase of the competition was held at the Luna Pa ...
, winning the bronze medal.
Coaching career
After the close of his NBA career, Stith became the head coach of the Brunswick (VA) High School Bulldogs. The team won state championships in 2011, 2012, and 2013.
[Brunswick wins third straight state championship - Richmond Times Dispatch - Richmond VA]
/ref>
In 2013, Stith was hired as an assistant at Old Dominion University
Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia with ...
to work under his former Virginia head coach Jeff Jones.
In 2022, he moved from Old Dominion to Mike Jones's coaching staff at UNC Greensboro
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand-al ...
.
Personal
Stith's sons, Brandan and B. J., committed to play basketball at East Carolina University
East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university, public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina.
Founded on March 8, 1907, as a Normal school, teacher training school, East ...
in 2013 and the University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
in 2014, respectively. After one year at East Carolina, Brandan transferred to Old Dominion to play for his father who is ODU's assistant coach.
B. J. played one year at the Virginia before also transferring to Old Dominion University
Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia with ...
to play for his father, and with his brother. He sat out the 2015–16 season and played three years for the Monarchs.[http://pilotonline.com/sports/college/b-j-stith-transferring-from-u-va-to-old-dominion/article_8ce5774a-61d9-5d20-a77d-f1125a81b6e0.html]
Since retiring from the NBA, Stith has been involved in NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
, in which he owns a team with race car driver and fellow Emporia native, Hermie Sadler
Herman Marion Sadler III (born April 24, 1969) is a candidate for the newly redrawn Virginia State Senate District 17 and was a former American professional stock car racing driver, announcer, professional wrestling promoter, and autism advocate ...
.
In 2007, he was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame honors athletes, coaches, administrators, journalists and other contributors to athletics. Many of the more than 350 inductees since 1972 were born in Virginia or enjoyed success in college, professional, amateur or ...
.
References
External links
NBA.com profile
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stith, Bryant
1970 births
Living people
American men's basketball coaches
American men's basketball players
Basketball coaches from Virginia
Basketball players from Virginia
Boston Celtics players
Cleveland Cavaliers players
Denver Nuggets draft picks
Denver Nuggets players
Goodwill Games medalists in basketball
High school basketball coaches in the United States
NASCAR team owners
Old Dominion Monarchs men's basketball coaches
Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball)
People from Emporia, Virginia
Shooting guards
United States men's national basketball team players
Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball players
1990 FIBA World Championship players
Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games