James Francis Boylen (born April 18, 1965) is an American 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 ...
coach. He was the coach of the
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...
of 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). Previously, Boylen served as head coach for the
University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...
, coaching the program from 2007 to 2011 before being fired on March 12, 2011. The Utah job was his first head coaching position after spending over a decade as an assistant at both the NBA and NCAA levels. He replaced
Ray Giacoletti
Raymond Bryan Giacoletti (born April 14, 1962) is a retired men's basketball coach, having served as head coach at Drake University, and The University of Utah. He played collegiate basketball at Minot State University in North Dakota from 1980 to ...
, who was fired from Utah on March 3, 2007. Prior to joining Utah, Boylen spent two years at
Michigan State University
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...
(MSU) as assistant coach under
Tom Izzo
Tom Izzo (, ); born January 30, 1955) is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Michigan State University since 1995. On April 4, 2016, Izzo was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Izzo has led the Spart ...
.
College career
Boylen was born in
East Grand Rapids, Michigan
East Grand Rapids is a city in Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 10,694.
The city is part of the Grand Rapids metropolitan area and is surrounded by Grand Rapids and Grand Rapids Township, ...
in 1965 and attended the
University of Maine
The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the Flagship universities, flagshi ...
, where he was a captain during both his junior and senior seasons. As a senior, he earned First Team All-North Atlantic Conference honors after averaging 21 points per game. That same year, he finished runner-up in the conference Player of the Year voting to Northeastern's
Reggie Lewis
Reginald C. Lewis (November 21, 1965 – July 27, 1993) was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's Boston Celtics from 1987 to 1993.
Early life
Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Lewis attended high schoo ...
. Boylen earned a bachelor's degree in business from Maine in 1987.
Coaching history
Early years
Boylen began his coaching career as an assistant under Michigan State head coach
Jud Heathcote
George Melvin "Jud" Heathcote (May 27, 1927 – August 28, 2017) was an American basketball player and coach. He was a college basketball head coach for 24 seasons: five at the University of Montana and nineteen at Michigan State University H ...
. He would stay there from 1987 to 1992 before accepting a position with the
NBA
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 St ...
's
Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...
. As an assistant coach with the Rockets, Boylen would help coach the team to win two NBA championships. After his 11-year stint with Houston, Boylen became an assistant coach with the
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...
and then the
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...
. After 13 years of coaching in the NBA, he returned to Michigan State as an assistant with the Spartans. As
Tom Izzo
Tom Izzo (, ); born January 30, 1955) is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Michigan State University since 1995. On April 4, 2016, Izzo was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Izzo has led the Spart ...
's top assistant, he helped lead Michigan State to a 45–23 record in two years, including two NCAA appearances.
Utah
On March 27, 2007, Boylen was named the head coach at the
University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...
.
In his first season, Boylen brought more consistency to the Utes, guiding them to their first winning record in two years and their first postseason berth since reaching the
NCAA tournament in
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
. While there were some struggles, including two losses to
BYU
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day S ...
for the second consecutive year, Utah did manage to beat instate rival
Utah State
Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...
and earned a surprising victory on the road at
Cal. The Utes also stunned
New Mexico
)
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, seat = Santa Fe
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, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
in the first round of the 2008 Mountain West tournament, all but killing the Lobos' chances of gaining an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Boylen's Utes finished his inaugural season with an 18–15 mark, defeating UTEP in the first round of the
2008 College Basketball Invitational before losing to eventual champion
Tulsa
Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...
.
In his second season, Boylen turned the Utes into
Mountain West Conference
The Mountain West Conference (MW) is one of the collegiate athletic conferences affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) (formerly I-A). The MW officially began operations o ...
champions, guiding them to a 21–9 regular season record (12–4 in the Mountain West) and winning the conference tournament. The Utes were then given a fifth seed in the
NCAA tournament but were upset by the
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
squad with two future NBA players (
Jordan Hill and
Chase Budinger
Chase Andrew Budinger (born May 22, 1988) is an American professional volleyball player and former professional basketball player. He was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the 44th overall pick in 2009 NBA draft after playing three years of c ...
).
After graduating several key players from the 2008–09 team, Utah struggled in Boylen's third season, regressing to a losing record and finishing in the bottom-half of the Mountain West Conference. Their 17 losses marked their second worst total in the last 20 years with only the 2007 Utes having more on the season.
In Boylen's fourth season, the Utes went 13–18. The program fired him on March 12, 2011.
San Antonio Spurs
On June 28, 2013, Boylen was hired by the
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...
as an assistant coach for the 2013–14 season. Boylen won his third NBA championship after the Spurs defeated the
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Southe ...
4–1 in the
2014 NBA Finals.
On June 2, 2015, Boylen and
David Vanterpool
David Vanterpool (born March 31, 1973) is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He most recently served as an assistant coach for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). During his playing career, he ...
were named to
Canada men's national basketball team
The Canadian men's national basketball team represents Canada in international basketball competitions since 1923. They are overseen by Canada Basketball, the governing body of basketball in Canada. The team's head coach is Nick Nurse and its ge ...
.
Chicago Bulls
On June 17, 2015, Boylen was named associate head coach of the
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...
.
On December 3, 2018, the Bulls promoted Boylen to head coach when
Fred Hoiberg
Fredrick Kristian Hoiberg (born October 15, 1972) is an American college basketball coach and former player. He has served as the men's head basketball coach at the University of Nebraska since 2019. Hoiberg grew up in Ames, Iowa, and played coll ...
was relieved of his duties after a 5–19 start to the
2018–19 season.
On August 14, 2020, the Bulls fired Boylen after a 39–84 record in two seasons without a playoff appearance. His .317 winning percentage was the second worst in franchise history (minimum 100 games) behind
Tim Floyd
Tim Floyd (born February 25, 1954) is a former American college basketball coach, most recently the head coach at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). He was formerly the head coach of several teams in the NCAA and the NBA. Floyd is also kn ...
(.205).
On October 20, 2021, the
USA Basketball
USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States in FIBA and the men's and women's national basketball teams in the United States Olympi ...
announced that Boylen had been selected head coach for
USA Basketball World Cup qualifying team to play in November window.
Head coaching record
NBA
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Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
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Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
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References
External links
University of Utah bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boylen, Jim
1965 births
Living people
American men's basketball coaches
American men's basketball players
Basketball coaches from Michigan
Basketball players from Michigan
Chicago Bulls assistant coaches
Chicago Bulls head coaches
College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
Golden State Warriors assistant coaches
Houston Rockets assistant coaches
Indiana Pacers assistant coaches
Maine Black Bears men's basketball players
Michigan State Spartans men's basketball coaches
Milwaukee Bucks assistant coaches
People from East Grand Rapids, Michigan
Utah Utes men's basketball coaches