Longhorns Ex Royal Ivey Hired by Rockets
Former Texas Longhorns guard Royal Ivey is returning to the Lone Star State to continue his coaching career.
Ivey has been hired as an assistant coach on the Houston Rockets staff, per reports Thursday from ESPN. He'll be joining new Houston head coach Ime Udoka, previously of the Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs.
Ivey has been in the coaching ranks for nearly a decade now. After playing his final NBA season with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2014, he turned around and joined the team's G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, later that same year. Since then, he's served as an assistant on the Thunder (2016-18), the New York Knicks (2018-20) and had been with the Brooklyn Nets since 2020.
He also received the honor of being named the head coach of South Sudan's national team in May 2021, a role he will likely still hold despite his new coaching gig.
As for his time at Texas, Ivey was a part of a historical Longhorns run in 2003. Alongside legendary Texas guard T.J. Ford, Ivey and the Horns made a Final Four run before bowing out to Carmelo Anthony and eventual champions Syracuse in the national semifinal. This marks the last time the Longhorns made it to the Final Four.
Ivey played a big role as a starter during that run, including a 14-point performance in 36 minutes against the Purdue Boilermakers in the Round of 32. He started in all 12 of the NCAA Tournament games he appeared in during his collegiate career, totaling an 8-4 record on that stage.
Ivey ended his Texas career averaging 7.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists while starting 126 of 133 possible games.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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