OSU Basketball: George Mason Assistant to Join Steve Lutz's Staff
Oklahoma State has another addition to its coaching staff.
OSU coach Steve Lutz is hiring George Mason assistant coach Mike Ekanem to fill the same role on his staff, according to a report from Jon Rothstein. Since taking over, Lutz has made some moves to fill his coaching staff for next season.
Those moves include bringing in Mississippi State’s James Miller as associate head coach and retaining OSU assistant Keiton Page.
Ekanem joined George Mason before last season and helped the team to a 20-12 season. Before going to the Patriots last offseason, Ekanem had spent years across various programs, including Sam Houston State, Memphis and Texas A&M.
Perhaps most notably, he was the director of player development under Erik Musselman at Arkansas in the 2021-22 season, which ended with an Elite Eight appearance.
Although filling the coaching staff is an essential step for Lutz ahead of his first season, the players on the court will be the most important factor. The Cowboys have begun to add to their roster for next season and are in the running for some other solid transfers.
After firing Mike Boynton, OSU has spent the offseason looking to retool and rebuild its roster. Since Boynton’s firing, several OSU players, including some of last season’s biggest contributors, have entered the transfer portal.
Leading scorer Javon Small has yet to decide on his next school, but three other regular starters have committed elsewhere. Brandon Garrison is headed to Kentucky, Eric Dailey Jr. committed to UCLA and Quion Williams will be at Abilene Christian.
The roster looks to be in good shape, with players such as Robert Jennings and Arturo Dean ready to compete for the Cowboys next season. Of course, if the roster is in good shape, having a good coaching staff could be the final step toward an NCAA Tournament appearance.
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Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.