East St. Louis native Cuonzo Martin (Lincoln, Class of 1991) will take time out of his recruiting schedule to help friend and fellow coach Tim Fuller and Harris-Stowe State University on Saturday.
Martin, who just completed his first year as head basketball coach at the University of California, guided his team to an 18-win season.
Martin is already turning heads at Cal on the recruiting front, landing one of the top power forwards in the country in 6’11 Ivan Rabb out of Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland. In addition, the recruitment of Rabb by Martin has sent a message to UCLA and USC and the rest of the Pac-12 Conference that the coach from East St. Louis is making his mark in keeping in-state talent at Cal, despite its high academic standards.
Prior to taking the Cal job, Martin coached the Tennessee Volunteers from 2011-2014, despite not having much support from the toothless supporters in Knoxville, in my opinion. Prior to that, he also had an impressive run in the prestigious Missouri Valley Conference Missouri State Bears (2008-2011).
After graduating from Lincoln High School, Martin played his college ball at Purdue University, where he helped lead the Boilermakers to three Big Ten Conference titles. After stints in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks and the Toronto Raptors, Martin returned to Purdue where he was an assistant for eight years.
Reaching out to help young people is what I’ve known Cuonzo Martin to do since he was at Purdue. And coming in to help Tim Fuller and his foundation and fellow coaches at all levels is no surprise at all.
Speaking of the coordinator of this event, Tim Fuller, he is in his first year as advisor to Harris-Stowe President Dwaun J. Warmack on sports-related matters. In 2012, Fuller was chosen by ESPN.com as one of the top 10 coaches under 40 years of age. He coached the last few years at the University of Missouri. Prior to that, Tim had stints at Elon College, Miami of Florida, Wake Forest, Fairfield and at Louisville.
Tim Fuller played his collegiate ball at Wake Forest, and had always had a passion to help young coaches.
“Enhancing a generation one coach a time,” said the soft-spoken Fuller. “It’s an opportunity for coaches both young and old, but particularly young coaches to get insight from a few of the best visionaries in the game.
Other coaches who highlight this event are Pamela McGee, Olympic Gold medalist and former Sacramento Monarch and L.A. Sparks star, and University of Memphis head coach Josh Pastner.
McGee was drafted second overall in the 1997 WNBA draft. In addition, McGee won back-to-back NCAA Championships while at USC. In 1983, McGee won the gold medal in her hometown of Los Angeles, California. McGee is the mother of Javelle McGee of the Denver Nuggets.
“I want to come to St. Louis and let coaches know that their work with young people is vital in our communities, and it’s not going unnoticed,” she said.
Josh Pastner will be entering his seventh season as the head coach of the Memphis Tigers. While at Memphis, Pastner has guided the Tigers to three conference championships and two regular season championships. Pastner played for the great Lute Olsen at the University of Arizona from 1996-2000.
Said coordinator Tim Fuller regarding the clinic, “Coach Pastner is a long-time friend, and the combination of Cuonzo Martin and Pam McGee gives us three of the most authentic and genuine people in the game to learn from.”
