Mitchell remained with the school until retiring in 2007 as a professor of health and safety and director of driver education. Until recently, he frequently could be found at local college games, where he assessed talent for the NBA.
Kentucky State's three straight Division II NAIA championships put Mitchell and the school on the basketball map. Two of Mitchell's players - Elmore Smith and Travis Grant - became first-round NBA draft picks, a rarity for Division II players. At Alabama State, Kentucky State and NSU, Mitchell compiled a 325-103 record, a .759 winning percentage, making him the sixth winningest coach in NCAA Division II history.
In 2008, Kentucky State invited Mitchell for a ceremony in which the school named the basketball court after its all-time winningest coach. Mitchell was 1 of 3 coaches in college history to win three straight national titles, the others being UCLA's John Wooden and John McLendon of Tennessee State. "I've had a load of great memories in my career," he said before being honored by Kentucky State, "and I put this right on the top." Mitchell did not feel as warmly received at Norfolk State in 1978. "I probably shouldn't have come," Mitchell said years later. "They weren't ready for me."
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Kentucky State's three straight Division II NAIA championships put Mitchell and the school on the basketball map. Two of Mitchell's players - Elmore Smith and Travis Grant - became first-round NBA draft picks, a rarity for Division II players. At Alabama State, Kentucky State and NSU, Mitchell compiled a 325-103 record, a .759 winning percentage, making him the sixth winningest coach in NCAA Division II history.
In 2008, Kentucky State invited Mitchell for a ceremony in which the school named the basketball court after its all-time winningest coach. Mitchell was 1 of 3 coaches in college history to win three straight national titles, the others being UCLA's John Wooden and John McLendon of Tennessee State. "I've had a load of great memories in my career," he said before being honored by Kentucky State, "and I put this right on the top." Mitchell did not feel as warmly received at Norfolk State in 1978. "I probably shouldn't have come," Mitchell said years later. "They weren't ready for me."
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LUCIAS MITCHELL Death Notice: LUCIAS MITCHELL's Obituary by the ...
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