Danny Manning will be an assistant coach at a different Big 12 institution this year.
While hundreds of outstanding players have fought for the Kansas basketball program beneath the Allen Fieldhouse lights, former Jayhawk Danny Manning made an impression that few could match. He is widely recognized as one of the most accomplished players in school history, having won the Wooden Award and led Kansas to the national championship in 1988.
Manning worked as an assistant to Head Coach Bill Self for nine years, dealing with the team’s big men in addition to his other responsibilities. He has since acquired a number of NCAA basketball-related roles, but his most recent hire may pain Kansas supporters the most. The former top choice in the NBA Draft will become an assistant coach for the Colorado Buffaloes in Boulder.
adding elite experience to the coaching staff
welcome to Boulder, Coach Manning #GoBuffs 🦬 pic.twitter.com/dQkunKaTGs
— Colorado Men's Basketball (@CUBuffsMBB) May 7, 2024
Kansas basketball great Danny Manning takes on assistant role at Colorado
After spending two years at Louisville, Manning found a new home at one of the Big 12’s new colleges. Colorado will rejoin the conference during the 2018 sports season, and he will be a part of that. Tad Boyle, a former Kansas University point guard who was a senior when Manning arrived in Lawrence as a freshman, now coaches CU.
Following a 26-11 season and a second-round exit, the Buffs signed Manning for a player development position. He has extensive experience in college basketball, having served as the head coach at Tulsa and Wake Forest for a combined eight years. After Mark Turgeon stepped down, the Mississippi native coached Maryland for half a season.
Manning is perhaps the greatest basketball player in Kansas history. He played 147 games for the Jayhawks over four seasons, averaging 20.1 points and 8.1 rebounds. The three-time Big 8 Player of the Year led a miraculous run in March Madness to help Kansas and Larry Brown win the championship.
Manning on the sidelines of a different school than Kansas in the Fieldhouse next season will be an unusual sight. Many supporters hoped Manning would return to assist Hunter Dickinson develop, but instead he will find himself west of Kansas.
