Nolan Smith About To Get His Own Gig?

Former Duke star may be a head coach very soon

Duke Fans, you knew this was inevitable: Nolan Smith, aka the People’s Champ, is in negotiations to take over the Tennessee State program.

The job opened because former head man Brian Collins resigned on June 30th to become an assistant with the Memphis Grizzlies.

Tennesse State, an HBCU in Nashville, is in the Ohio Valley Conference. It may not be an easy job: the Tigers share Nashville with Vanderbilt, Belmont and Lipscomb.

Still, it’s a starting point for his head coaching career and he could parlay it into a bigger opportunity. And as we Duke fans now, Smith has tons of charisma, which will help him a lot in a crowded market.

Incidentally, Barry Jacobs reminds us that former NCCU coach John McClendon coached at Tennessee State (then Tennessee A&I), where he won three national championships (1957-59), and coached NBA great Dick Barnett there too.

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