INDIANAPOLIS — New St. John’s coach Steve Lavin has hired Drexel assistant Tony Chiles to his staff and will interview New Heights athletic director Kimani Young Monday night, a source with knowledge said.
“Tony Chiles is the first hire and he’s still formulating his staff,” the source said.
A former Manhattan and Iona assistant and a Columbia University graduate, Chiles has been at Drexel under Bruiser Flint for five years.
He played his high school ball at All Hallows in The Bronx and led his team to the New York City and New York State Championships in 1985 and was the valedictorian of his senior class.
Neither St. John’s nor Drexel was able to confirm the hire. And Lavin was not immediately for comment.
Former Hofstra assistant Van Macon, Manhattan coach Barry Rohrssen, former Oregon assistant Mike Dunlap and Golden State Warriors assistant Rico Hines are also in play. Sources said former Virginia coach Dave Leitao was unlikely to join Lavin’s staff.
**Elsewhere on the Coaching Carousel, ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla has taken himself out of the Iona coaching search. With Lavin leaving ESPN for St. John’s, opportunities could open up for Fraschilla at The Worldwide Leader.
(Photo courtesy Drexel Athletics)
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