Report: Former Mizzou Standout DeMarre Carroll Joining Cavaliers Coaching Staff

Carroll already has some experience as an NBA assistant as he's been a part of the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers staff.

Mar 28, 2009; Glendale, AZ, USA; Missouri Tigers forward (1) DeMarre Carroll goes for a loose ball in the first half against the Connecticut Huskies during the finals of the west regional in the 2009 NCAA mens basketball tournament at the University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Former Missouri Tigers men's basketball standout DeMarre Carroll was hired as an assistant coach by new Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson on Friday morning, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

"DeMarre Carroll is joining Kenny Atkinson’s coaching staff with the Cleveland Cavaliers, sources tell ESPN," Wojnarowski wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter). "Carroll — who played 11 NBA seasons — spent the past two years as a coach with the Lakers and Bucks."

Carroll joins a Cleveland team on the rise as the Cavaliers finished this past season as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference and the front office just signed five-time All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell to a three-year, $150.3 million maximum contract extension on Tuesday.

However, although they had success under him, Cleveland surprisingly dismissed head coach J.B. Bickerstaff on May 23. The Cavaliers decided to go in a different direction and hired Atkinson on June 28 after spending time as the Golden State Warriors assistant from 2021-24 with previous stops as a Los Angeles Clippers assistant from 2020-21 and the Brooklyn Nets head coach from 2016-20. Atkinson won his first ring after the Warriors defeated the Boston Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals.

As Wojnarowski stated, Carroll already has some experience as an NBA assistant as he was hired by the Milwaukee Bucks on August 2, 2022 and had the same role with the Los Angeles Lakers starting on July 4, 2023.

Carroll transferred from Vanderbilt to Missouri and redshirted during the 2006-07 season. Carroll made a massive impact with the Tigers over the next two seasons as he averaged a combined 14.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.

In his first season at Mizzou, he was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, which landed him a spot on the Big 12 All-Newcomer Team and was an Honorable Mention All-Big 12 member. In 2009, he was named the Big 12 Tournament MVP after leading Missouri to a Championship victory over Baylor. Additionally, Carroll also earned a spot on an NCAA Tournament All-Region team after leading Mizzou to the Elite Eight.

Carroll's stardom at Mizzou gave the Grizzlies enough reason to select him with the 27th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.

The former forward was quite the journeyman during his time in the league as he played for the Memphis Grizzlies, Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors, Brooklyn Nets and the San Antonio Spurs.

Perhaps Carroll's best season came in 2014-15 with the Hawks as he received the 15th-most votes for the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award and the 10th-most votes for the NBA Most Improved Player Award. Atlanta finished that regular season as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference after tallying a franchise-best 60-22 record.