National Basketball Association

Report: Avery Johnson agrees to deal with Alabama

Published Apr. 5, 2015 4:32 p.m. ET

foxsports

By Vincent Frank

It may seem like an awkward fit, but it appears that former NBA head coach and player Avery Johnson has agreed to become the University of Alabama’s men’s basketball coach.

ESPN’s Jeff Goodman is reporting that Johnson has made a verbal agreement to join the program and is finalizing a contract.

Johnson, 50, played 16 seasons in the NBA and won a championship with the San Antonio Spurs.

Johnson also has a decent amount of head coaching experience at the professional level. He led the Dallas Mavericks to the playoffs four times, including a Finals appearance, in three-plus seasons as the team’s head coach. Taking over for a downtrodden New Jersey Nets team, Johnson lasted less than three years and was fired during the Nets' first season in Brooklyn back in 2012-2013.

The Johnson hiring is somewhat of a coup for the Crimson Tide. Known mostly for its football program, basketball has taken a back seat at the school for decades now. Coming off a 19-15 season, Alabama has earned a total of one NCAA Tournament appearance over the course of the past nine seasons.

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