David Long reflects on 30 years as Columbia River's basketball coach: 'I've had it good for a long time'

'I've had it good for a long time.' Long, who retires among the state's winningest coaches (456 wins), shares memories from a storied career.

Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports | Feb 11, 2022

David Long reflects on 30 years as Columbia River's basketball coach: 'I've had it good for a long time' /

VANCOUVER, Wash. — David Long wore his lucky tie.

No, the article of his coaching wardrobe didn't extend his coaching career one more game. But former players, their families, school staff had plenty to celebrate on Thursday night after Columbia River's season-ending loss to Shelton at the buzzer, 50-48, in a District 4 2A play-in game.

Long spent 30 years as Columbia River's head boys basketball coach. He coached his last game on Thursday night after announcing it would be his final season in the fall. He spent 35 years at the school, also serving as the golf coach, and even had a stint as a learn-on-the-fly soccer coach in 1987.

He finishes with 11 league titles and five trophy finishes at state, headlined by a runner-up finish to Franklin in 2009. In total, he's won 456 career games on the boys side — and 32 wins over two seasons as the girls coach (1991-92) — which place him high on the all-time Washington high school wins list. His father Sonny Long, who is among Oregon's all-time winningest coaches, was on the bench as an assistant for many of them.

Former players and community members came in droves to River's last regular season home game on Feb. 4 to celebrate Long.

SBLive caught up with Long moments after coaching his last game.

He reflects on his favorite games, final season and more:

SBLive’s all-classification Top 25 Washington boys basketball power rankings: Curtis, Rainier Beach surging (Feb. 7)

SBLive’s all-classification Washington girls Top 25 basketball rankings: Buckle up as postseason play ready to hit another gear!

Girls basketball notebook: As district tournaments loom, Eastlake programs led by sister-brother combination

Vote now: Who should be the WaFd Bank Washington High School Athlete of the Week (Jan. 31-Feb. 6)?

Top stars, best performances in Washington high school basketball (Jan. 31-Feb. 5)

SBLive’s Washington high school boys basketball power rankings by classification (Feb. 7)

SBLive’s Washington boys basketball coaches polls: Toppenish, Curtis climb (Feb. 7)

Must-watch 10 Washington high school girls wrestlers in the postseason, including 2022 Mat Classic

Camas downs Union for share of first league title since 2011 — a win fueled by a holiday pep talk and a late-night text

Published Feb 11, 2022

ANDY BUHLER, SBLIVE SPORTS

Andy Buhler is a Regional Editor of Texas and the national breaking news desk. He brings more than five years of experience covering high school sports across the state of Washington and beyond, where he covered the likes of Paolo Banchero and Tari Eason served on state tournament seeding committees. He works on the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national boys basketball rankings. He has covered everything from the Final Four, MLS in Atlanta to local velodrome before diving into the world of preps. His bylines can be found in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), The Associated Press, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington), The Oregonian and more. He holds a degree from Gonzaga and is based out of Portland, Oregon.

Related