Angelo State Associate Head Coach David Lewis will be entering his third season on the Angelo State men’s basketball staff, and has been a major role player in the team’s successes.
In the 2016-17 season Lewis assisted in guiding the Rams to the Lone Star Conference Tournament championship game falling just short to the University of Texas -Permian Basin. During the team's 15-11 regular season, the Rams saw guard, Quay King, become the all-time career leader in 3-pointers made. King was also named to the Conference Commissioners Association all-region second team and the All - LSC first team. Adding to the team's individual accolades for the season, Prince Foster and DeVonte' Pratt received all - conference honorable mentions. Lewis and the rest of the staff also aided three Rams, Thomas Tshikaya, Gustavs Puhovs and King, in making the jump to the professional ranks overseas.
In his first year at Angelo State (2015-16), Lewis helped direct the team to a 21-5 showing in the regular season with only one loss coming at home in the Stephens Arena at the Junell Center. ASU’s success continued into the postseason, where the Rams made it to the final of the conference tournament as well as the South Central Regional Tournament final.
"David is an up and coming rock star in the coaching profession and our program is extremely fortunate to be adding him to the staff here at ASU," said Angelo State Head Basketball Coach Cinco Boone. "His work ethic is second to none. He has a genuine passion for the success of our student-athletes on and off the court, and his experiences at the University of Texas, Howard College, and in the NBA have given him a strong foundation to be a tremendous asset to our players. His energy and sharp basketball mind will help continue to build upon the success that we have had in the past two seasons."
Lewis came to ASU from the Orlando Magic where he worked as a video analyst/opposition scout after also gaining experience with the Austin Toros in the 2013-14 season. A Kingwood, Texas native, Lewis earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Texas where he gained coaching experience a student assistant for Rick Barnes.
"My goal for this program will never be anything less than a National Championship," Lewis said. "We will wake up and work diligently every day with a mindset and attitude to achieve that goal. First and foremost, I expect every young man that comes through our program to leave Angelo State with a diploma in his hand. My goal is to help each of our players grow as students, as basketball players, and most importantly as human beings. I want our guys to be successful in all aspects of life."
Lewis, 27, played high school basketball in Kingwood under head coach Royce Huseman before transitioning over into a coaching career. He worked as a student and graduate assistant at UT from 2007-13 and helped develop multiple student-athletes including DJ Augustin, Dexter Pittman, Damion James, Avery Bradley, Tristan Thompson, Cory Joseph and Jordan Hamilton who were each selected in the NBA draft. The Longhorns made one Elite Eight appearance, won a Big 12 Championship, were ranked No. 1 for the first time in program history and compiled a 142-69 record during his time working with the program.
From his work with the Longhorns, Lewis worked briefly at Howard College before accepting a basketball operations/video coordinator position with the Austin Toros in the NBA D-League. He worked under head coach Ken McDonald and with Josh Howard, Flip Murray and Luke Zeller. Lewis continued gaining experience last year with the Orland Magic where he worked for Jacque Vaughn and James Borrego and helped coached Victor Oladipo, Tobias Harris, Elfrid Payton, Aaron Gordon and Nik Vucevic.
"David has worked with some exceptional athletes and basketball coaches in his coaching career," Boone said. "He has great contacts at a variety of levels and works hard to build new networks. Our current players, as well as future recruits, will benefit in their academic and basketball careers from having been mentored by a man such as David. We are proud and excited to have him in our Ram family."
Lewis is married to Elizabeth Hernandez and recently moved to San Angelo. Fans can follow him on twitter at @_DLew_
