TSU Travis Williams Adds Two to Coaching Staff

COACH TRAVIS WILLIAMS

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – Tennessee State men’s basketball coach Travis Williams has announced the hiring of two new coaches to his 2013-14 staff. Christopher Jordan will be the team’s new director of operations while Jason Slay will become one of William’s assistant coaches.

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We are excited about bringing on Chris Jordan and Coach Slay to complete the staff,” Williams said. “Jordan brings with him a great amount of experience from a professional level, while Slay is considered one of the top up-and-coming coaches out there right now and has a bright future in this business.”

 

For Jordan, he comes to TSU after spending a year as the director of basketball operations for the NBA Developmental League’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants. While with the club, Jordan coordinated all facets of operation, logistics and business associated with the franchise, including daily scheduling, player personnel and basketball analytics.

 

Jordan was also responsible for managing the team’s scouting database along with the video editing and sharing software for the purpose of the NBA Draft. In addition to video editing, he maintained compliance with the NBA D-League and breaking down opponent’s tendencies on the court.

 

Prior to his stint with the Mad Ants, Jordan was the assistant director of basketball operations at Georgia State from 2006 to 2011. He completed his undergraduate degree in Marketing at the university in 2005 and received his Masters in Sports Administration in 2007.

 

Jordan oversees the daily operations of the program, coordinating the team’s travel arrangements, handling equipment, editing video from competitions and monitoring the student-athletes’ academic and athletic progress.

 

“I had the opportunity to follow Coach Jordan’s career and growth over the years and always been impressed with his work both personally and professionally in Operations and he brings the right mentality to the position,” Williams said. “He had stops at the collegiate level at Georgia State and in the NBA Developmental league, so I feel confident that he can handle whatever gets thrown his way.”

 

“Personally, I have known Chris for a long time and was eager to bring him in here. Without a doubt, he has come in and hit the ground running with every aspect of our program.”

 

Slay enters his first season at TSU after serving as the Director of Basketball Operations for Georgia Southern University.  Prior to that, Slay was the top assistant coach at Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia, one of the top prep schools in the country.  At Hargrave, Slay coached 10 players that signed national letters of intent to Division I programs. He also served as the team’s director of individual development and summer training.

 

The Tigers of Hargrave finished with a 38-8 record including the National Prep Showcase Elite 8 during the 2012-13 season.

 

Slay also spent four years from 2008-2012 at West Virginia State as the squad’s associate head coach and recruiting coordinator. During that time, the Yellow Jackets won two West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships.

 

As a player at West Virginia State, Slay was a four-time letter winner and two-year starter. Playing guard, he guided his team to the NCAA Division II Sweet 16 three times (2004, 2006 and 2007) and the Yellow Jackets won back-to-back WVIAC Tournament Championships in 2006 and 2007.  He received his undergraduate degree in Physical Education in 2007.

 

“This was a very important hire to keep consistency and chemistry in our coaching staff," Williams said. "There were a number of applicants interested in being an assistant coach at TSU, but my assistant coaches and I felt like Coach Slay was a perfect fit for us,”

 

“Jason has a winning mentality, passion, and I expect him to come in right away and teach, develop, and improve our overall guard and wing play. I think his recruiting experience will pay huge dividends for the program as well... However, I was more impressed with his enthusiasm and knowledge of the game.”

 

Jordan and Slay will join assistants Ben Betts and Rodney Hamilton who came to the program last season. Betts has been promoted to William’s top assistant, with a major emphasis on defense and post player development, while Hamilton has been elevated to the team’s recruiting coordinator and will continue to develop and improve point guard play.

 

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