After coaching in Japan for two years, Cody Kelley is rejoining the University of Hawaii men’s basketball team as an assistant coach.
Kelley, 30, succeeds Clay Wilson, who accepted an associate coaching position at Cornell.
“I’m super stoked,” said Kelley, who was a UH assistant coach during the 2023-24 season.
In a news release, UH head coach Eran Ganot said: “Cody is a rising star with a tremendous basketball mind. He achieved great things during his first stop with us, and his work ethic translates directly into his coaching.”
Kelley served as the defensive coordinator for the Ibaraki Robots of Japan’s B League the past two seasons.
“We’ve been doing really well in Japan and making a name for ourselves, and then Eran called,” Kelley said. “We enjoyed our time in Hawaii. (The UH job) was very intriguing to me. Hawaii’s been doing great and I love working with that staff, as well as being around the people of Hawaii. I was like, ‘Why not?’”
Kelley and his wife, Dani, will relocate to Hawaii this weekend.
“I’ll be hitting the ground running, and be ready for these official practices,” Kelley said.
On July 20, the ’Bows enter the next phase of the NCAA’s offseason schedule, in which coaches will have more basketball-related access to players.
Kelley, a standout point guard at Wyoming and then South Dakota, said he will help with the UH offense, particularly the guards, and “do a lot of player-development stuff. I’m young and on the floor. Being able to develop these guys in the offseason and in season is going to be an important part of what I’m there for.”
Kelley is hopeful that working with Japan’s pros will transcend to coaching players with name-image-likeness deals.
“You’re figuring out how to put pieces together with really valuable players,” Kelley said. “You have to come in and don’t treat that lightly.”
About the Author
