High School

North Tampa Christian (Florida) names Desmond Oliver head boys basketball coach

Oliver spent his previous coaching experience at East Tennessee State University and South Florida

Ross Van De Griek

Dec 22, 2021; Athens, Georgia, USA; East Tennessee State Buccaneers head coach Desmond Oliver reacts on the sideline against the Georgia Bulldogs during the second half at Stegeman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
Dec 22, 2021; Athens, Georgia, USA; East Tennessee State Buccaneers head coach Desmond Oliver reacts on the sideline against the Georgia Bulldogs during the second half at Stegeman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

On Monday morning, North Tampa Christian has announced the hiring of Desmond Oliver as their new head boys basketball coach.

Oliver brings in over 30 years of coaching experience where he has coached at power-five programs such as Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas A&M. He also has had previous stops at St. Bonaventure, Canisius, Charlotte, Cornell, and Rhode Island where he was an assistant as well before landing his first head coaching gig.

In April of 2021, Oliver was named the 18th head men's basketball coach at East Tennessee State in their program history where he led a young Buccaneer team to a 15-17 record in the 2021-2022 season. In 2022-2023, Oliver went 12-20 where ten of those 20 losses were decided by 4 points or fewer.

In May of 2023, Oliver was hired as an assistant coach under the late Amir Abdur-Rahim at the University of South Florida for two seasons.

Oliver comes into North Tampa Christian replacing Zach Reynolds who spent the previous four seasons where he led the Titans to a 91-23 record and reached the program's first Final Four in school history in 2024-2025 before losing in four overtimes to Victory Christian Academy.

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Ross Van De Griek
ROSS VAN DE GRIEK

Ross Van De Griek has been a high school sports writer covering the state of Florida since 2021. Ross also has been scouting high school basketball and Grassroots Basketball across the Southeast Region since 2022. Ross has been covering basketball and recruiting for High School on SI since August 2024. He has collaborated with Next Up Sports, Prep Hoops, and On The Radar Hoops throughout his scouting career. You can follow him on X @rossvdg14 or reach him via email rossvdg14@gmail.com for story ideas.

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