Former NBA player Brandon Roy named Naismith National High School Coach of the Year

Roy coached Seattle's Nathan Hale High School to a 29-0 record this season, culminating in a Washington 3A state championship victory.

Former NBA player Brandon Roy has been named the Naismith National High School High School Coach of the Year, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Monday. 

Roy coached Seattle's Nathan Hale High School to a 29-0 record this season, culminating in a Washington 3A state championship victory. Nathan Hale High School star forward Michael Porter Jr., was named player of the year. 

The school hired Roy in June 2016 after the program only won three games the previous year. 

For the second consecutive year and just the third time ever, a player and coach from the same school won both awards. Last year, current UCLA star Lonzo Ball and Chino Hills High School coach Steve Baik were both honored. 

“Michael was the leader of a talented team which worked hard and never lost sight of their end goal—a perfect season and winning a state title,” said Eric Oberman, executive director of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. “Coach Roy was the steady guidance who motivated this team to improve every single game and ultimately they both were rewarded by winning Naismith awards.”

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Roy, who grew up in Seattle, starred as a guard at the University of Washington before the Timberwolves picked him with the sixth pick of the 2006 NBA draft. He was immediately dealt to Portland, where he played the first five years of his career. He retired in 2011 due to lingering knee problems, though he came out of retirement to play one season with the Timberwolves in 2012-13. 

Roy, a three-time NBA All-Star, averaged 18.8 points, 4.7 assists and 4.3 rebounds over six seasons in the NBA.