The Montgomery Advertiser

June 5, 2007

ALABAMA BASKETBALL: Gottfried makes staff changes

By Tim Gayle

Alabama basketball coach Mark Gottfried completed his staff by promoting Kobie Baker to assistant coach and hiring Jeff Dunlap to fill Baker's old position as director of basketball operations.

Baker was promoted to replace Tom Asbury, who resigned in early April to concentrate on his wife Carlie's health. Asbury remains in the athletic department in another capacity.

Gottfried, stung by a backlash of criticism following the Crimson Tide's late-season slide in 2007, has remained out of the limelight following Asbury's resignation and did not discuss Baker's promotion to an on-the-court position until the hiring of Dunlap completed his staff.

"I'm excited for Kobie," Gottfried said. "He's earned the right to have this promotion. He's very familiar with our program having been involved in the past. He brings an energy and great recruiting abilities to our staff and he has a great future in this profession."

Baker, 32, is a former Central-Tuscaloosa star who has been on the staff since his hiring in May 2006 as the director of basketball operations. Prior to that, he served as an assistant coach at North Texas, Troy, Nicholls State and Southeastern Louisiana.

"I'm looking forward to getting back on the floor and contributing as an assistant coach," Baker said. "This is an exceptional institution and it's extra special for me, as a Tuscaloosa native, to not only be associated with the University of Alabama but to be a part of a program with such a strong basketball tradition."

Baker's hiring came as a bit of a surprise to Crimson Tide fans who wanted a proven outsider to come in and help Gottfried strengthen the program. Alabama struggled on both ends of the floor this season in falling from a No. 4 ranking in December to a first-round loss in the National Invitation Tournament.

Gottfried attempted to address those concerns on Monday by announcing increased on-the-floor responsibilities for assistants Philip Pearson and James Holland.

"This is a great staff," Gottfried said. "Philip and James are extremely talented and very good in many areas. Both are in position to be head coaches soon. Both will take on greater responsibilities."

Dunlap, who was an assistant coach at Western Michigan for the past three years, served at Georgia from 1999-2003 as well as Loyola and Cal State Fullerton. He played at UCLA in the mid-1980s.

"Jeff is someone I have known for 20 years," Gottfried said. "He's very familiar with our system and will be involved with a number of different aspects of our program. He brings great organizational skills and a great knowledge of the game as well."

Gottfried will spend much of this summer as an assistant coach for Team USA in the Pan American Games that take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil July 13-19. Gottfried and Yale coach James Jones will serve as assistants under Villanova coach Jay Wright.

Two of Gottfried's players, juniors Richard Hendrix and Alonzo Gee, are among 30 players invited to participate in the trials July 12-14 at Haverford College in Pennsylvania. Others include Vanderbilt forward Shan Foster, Tennessee guard Chris Lofton, LSU guard Tasmin Mitchell and former Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa star D.J. White, a guard at Indiana.