NBA vet Duhon added to Redbird men’s basketball staff

Posted on June 19, 2018
Chris Duhon played nine seasons in the NBA, including four seasons with the Chicago Bulls. (GoRedbirds.com)

By WJBC Staff

NORMAL – A former McDonald’s All-American, NCAA national champion and nine-year NBA veteran has been added to the Illinois State men’s basketball coaching staff for the 2018-19 season.

Chris Duhon joins Dan Muller’s staff after a stint as an assistant coach with the Marshall Thundering Herd from 2014 to 2017.

“Chris brings a high level of on-the-court experience and success to our program,” said Muller. “His playing career speaks for itself. He is a leader, a teammate, a worker, and a winner. As a coach, Chris helped a tremendous amount with the turnaround at Marshall under Coach D’Antoni, and is eager to continue to grow here with us.”

Duhon, a native of Slidell, Louisiana, had a hand in Duke winning the 2001 National Championship. He graduated from Duke with a 123-21 record – the program and the Atlantic Coast Conference’s second-winningest player. He graduated as Duke’s all-time leader in steals (300), minutes (4,813), and second in assists (819). When he graduated, he was the only player in ACC history to record 1,200 points, 800 assists, 475 rebounds, 300 steals, and 125 three-point field goals.

“I’m very thankful to Coach Dan Muller and the University for giving me the opportunity to be an assistant basketball coach,” said Duhon. “I’m excited to be working for a University as prestigious as Illinois State, and I’m looking forward to coaching and working with a great group of student-athletes.”

The Chicago Bulls drafted Duhon in the second round in 2004, and he played four seasons in Chicago, followed by time with the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers to round out his nine-year pro career.

Following his playing career, he became an assistant coach with the Marshall Thundering Herd from 2014 until 2017. Duhon came into the Thundering Herd program with then-new head coach Dan D’Antoni – who Duhon had met when he played for the Knicks and D’Antoni was an assistant coach – and helped in a nine-win turnaround in just three seasons and a school-record conference win total.

The Redbirds enter the 2018-19 season returning their top four scorers, and 88 percent of the squad’s overall scoring from a team that finished the season with an 18-15 record and fell in the championship game of the 2018 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.

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