LeMoyne-Owen coach Bonzi Wells hires former Memphis basketball star Willie Kemp as assistant
LeMoyne-Owen basketball coach Bonzi Wells announced Tuesday the addition of former Memphis basketball star Willie Kemp as an assistant coach.
Kemp, who spent last season under Tigers coach Penny Hardaway as a graduate assistant, replaces former Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins on the Magicians' staff. In July, Hollins agreed to join the Houston Rockets' coaching staff.
"I'm honored to have been given the invitation to sit at the table with the likes of coach Bonzi Wells and the rest of the LeMoyne-Owen men's basketball organization," Kemp said in a press release.
Kemp played four seasons at Memphis (2006-10) after a stellar high school career at Bolivar Central. He was part of the Tigers' 2008 team that reached the national championship game, where it lost to Kansas. Kemp remains eighth all-time at Memphis in made 3-pointers with 162.
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Kemp spent several years playing professionally overseas before breaking into the coaching profession as a non-faculty coaching assistant at Collierville High School in 2020. Last season, he became a graduate assistant at his alma mater.
Earlier this year, Kemp founded Beyond The Game 901, a business geared toward coaching and developing young talent in Memphis and the Mid-South.
LeMoyne-Owen finished 16-12 in its first season with Wells at the helm.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: LeMoyne-Owen coach Bonzi Wells hires Willie Kemp as assistant
