Bishop McNamara promotes Jay Gavin to lead boys basketball program

Gavin will take the helm of a team for which he once starred

Former Bishop McNamara basketball star Jay Gavin has promoted from an assistant with the Mustangs to the team's head coach. / Colby Giacubeno

Bishop McNamara High School in Forestville, Maryland has lifted the interim tag from Jay Gavin’s name and hired the former Mustangs student-athlete as their permanent boys basketball head coach. 

Gavin, a 2007 Bishop McNamara graduate, inherits the boys’ basketball program at his high school alma mater after the selection committee conducted a nationwide search. 

“It’s exciting to say the least,” said Gavin, who played college basketball at Marist, VCU and Bowie State. “It’s a dream job.” 

Bishop McNamara competes in the highly competitive Washington Catholic Athletic Conference against nationally recognized programs such as DeMatha, Gonzaga, Paul VI and St. John’s. 

A number of former Bishop McNamara student-athletes have gone on to play and/or coach basketball at the collegiate and professional level including Todd Bozeman, Ty Lawson, Marcus Thornton, Keith Veney, Rashad Whack and Talib Zanna. 

Bozeman, who played at Bishop McNamara back in the 1980’s, was a three-time Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Coach of the Year at Morgan State University. He also had a stint as head coach at the University of California-Berkeley in the 1990’s where he coached future NBA champion and Olympic gold medalist Jason Kidd. 

Lawson attended Bishop McNamara for a year before transferring to Oak Hill Academy in Virginia where he was named a first team Parade All-American and participated in the McDonald’s All-American Game. 

Lawson accepted a scholarship to play college basketball at the University of North Carolina and helped lead the Tar Heels to the NCAA Championship in 2009. The Clinton, Maryland native collected various individual accolades including being named to the ACC All-Freshman team in 2007. He also earned the Bob Cousy Award given to the best collegiate point guard and was named ACC Player of the Year in 2009. He was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2009 NBA Draft.  

Lawson, who was the 18th overall pick, was later traded to the Denver Nuggets. Lawson also played for the Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings and Washington Wizards during his NBA career. 

During his senior campaign at Bishop McNamara, Thornton was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Maryland. He scored a career-high and registered a school record 43 points in his final high school game for the Mustangs. He enjoyed a stellar collegiate career at William & Mary and was selected by the Boston Celtics in the second round with the 45th overall pick of the 2015 NBA Draft. 

Veney is currently an NBA assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks but had a storied college career. 

The Seabrook, Maryland native began his journey at Lamar University and later transferred to Marshall University. He holds the NCAA Division 1 record for most three-point field goals in a single game with 15 treys.  

In 2018, Veney returned to his alma mater when he was named head coach of the boys' basketball program.  

Whack, the godson of legendary actor and comedian Martin Lawrence, is a 2009 Bishop McNamara High School graduate. During the 2014-2015 campaign, Whack was named the National Basketball League of Canada’s Rookie of the Year, averaging 11.7 points per game for the Island Storm. 

Zanna, who played college basketball at the University of Pittsburgh, was a first team all-conference selection during his junior campaign, averaging 15 points, 13.5 rebounds, 3.4 blocks, 1.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game for the Mustangs. The 6-foot-9, 230-pound center currently plays professional basketball overseas. 

“Talib Zanna and Rashad Whack were sophomores when I was a senior so they’re like little brothers to me,” said Gavin, who takes over a proud basketball program that has produced winners at every level of the sport. 

Gavin has coached at his alma mater in various capacities; he’s been a junior varsity assistant and junior varsity head coach. He’s also served time as an associate head coach before he was promoted to interim head coach in December. “I know the ins and outs of the program,” he said. 

During the 2024-2025 campaign, the Mustangs (14-15, 8-6) had a rough start but finished strong, winning fourteen of their last twenty games including victories over conference rivals Gonzaga and DeMatha. 

“We played a gauntlet of a national schedule,” explained Gavin, “and we took our lumps for sure.” 

Next season, a number of talented student-athletes return to the Bishop McNamara squad including Qayden Samuels, Prince Alexander Moody, Kirby Duran, Brandon Woodard, Jayden Mills and Jordan Taylor. 

Samuels, a 6-foot-5 junior, is a 1,000-point scorer who holds the school record for points in a single game with 45. The two-time first team All-Washington Catholic Athletic Conference performer is being pursued by numerous NCAA Division 1 college basketball programs. “He has a bevy of schools that have reached out,” said Gavin.