Jeff Capel will return to Duke in the 2011-12 college basketball season as an assistant in a reorganization of the program's coaching staff by coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Capel, a former Duke guard from Fayetteville, will return to his alma mater after spending the last nine seasons as a head coach, first at Virginia Commonwealth and then at Oklahoma.
To make room for him on the staff, Nate James, a former Duke player, will leave the assistant's job that he held for the last three years to become a special assistant on the staff.
"We are excited to have Jeff joining our staff," Krzyzewski said in a statement released by Duke on Sunday morning. "He is an outstanding coach and will be a great fit in our program.
"Jeff has been a highly successful head coach at the [NCAA] Division I level and he will continue that here at Duke. Adding a coach of his caliber will make everyone in our program better."
Capel was fired at Oklahoma after the 2011 college season. He amassed a 96-69 record there in five seasons and reached the NCAA tournament in 2008 and '09. His 2009 team reached the NCAA South Regional championship game and lost to North Carolina 72-60.
He became the VCU coach for the 2002-03 season and at the time was the youngest coach in Division I at 27 years old. He had a 79-41 record and four consecutive NCAA tournament berths while at VCU.
Capel scored 1,601 points in his Duke career, which ended after the 1997 season. He is well known for a 1995 home game against UNC, in which he hit a running shot from about 40 feet at the buzzer in overtime to tie the score and force a second overtime in a 102-100 loss.
James' new role will not include on-court coaching. He will still assist the coaching staff in developing game plans, examining game video and planning practices.
"Nate has done a very good job with us as an assistant coach and he will continue to be a huge asset to our program in his new role," Krzyzewski said in his statement. "He has a bright future ahead of him and this opportunity will help him continue to grow and develop."
The other two positions on the coaching staff will not be changed. Steve Wojciechowski and Chris Collins will stay in their roles as associate head coaches.
All four assistants played at Duke for Krzyzewski. All four also served as team captains in their careers.
"It is a special thing to have four former players and team captains on my staff," Krzyzewski said. "All four are great coaches and will work well together to give Duke the best coaching staff in the country."
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement