Recently promoted assistant men’s basketball coach Yasir Rosemond listens as Tajuan Porter answers questions about Rosemond’s transition from director of operations to assistant coach.
Porter said Rosemond’s role on the team won’t change – it’s just a new title.
“It really ain’t that different,” Porter said. “He was the loudest voice on the bench. He was always coaching us, making decisions, telling Coach (Ernie Kent) what to do.
“He made most of the decisions on the bench. What plays to call -.”
That’s when Rosemond interjects.
“No I don’t,” he said. “Don’t write that.”
Regardless of his supposed influence on the bench, Porter said Rosemond’s age, 30, as well as his familiarity with the players and coaching staff, were reasons why he was chosen for the job after former assistant coach Scott Duncan left for a similar position at UCLA.
“He’s young. He still has a lot to learn but he knows the game. He played under Coach Kent and we respected him,” Porter said.
Although Rosemond graduated with a degree in sociology from Oregon in 2003, he took a roundabout way back to the University. His collegiate career started at Okaloosa-Walton Junior College in Florida, where he played for a year before transferring to Butler (Kan.) Community College, spending the season as a redshirt.
He transferred to Oregon in 1997 and played under Kent for two years before transferring to Seattle Pacific University his senior season and was dismissed from the team for character issues. He then played professionally for four teams in three years in Brazil, was hired as the head coach at Redlands Community College in Oklahoma in 2003, and then became an assistant coach at Portland State in 2005 before coming back to Oregon this past season.
What happened in between all of those frequent stops?
“I matured a lot,” Rosemond said. “Back then there was one thing on my mind and that was to get to the NBA.”
Rosemond was one of several players to leave Oregon during the time when Kent was a new coach in 1998. Before leaving Oregon, Rosemond and Kent sat down to discuss Rosemond’s playing opportunities, and he decided to keep reaching for his NBA aspirations and transferred to Seattle Pacific rather than ride the pine as a Duck.
“We were never on bad terms. We came to a mutual decision when I left,” Rosemond said. “He gave me the opportunity to go out and learn and he never turned his back on me.”
Rosemond said he finally decided to give up his dream after being cut by several NBA teams. He channeled his energy into coaching after playing in Brazil and finally made his way back to Oregon, finding that not a lot had changed since he was a player.
“Coach (Kent) is pretty much the same guy. He’s changed a little bit. When I first got here he was a little bit more intense than he is now – I tell him that all the time,” Rosemond said. “He expects a lot more out of me now that I work for him.”
Through his coaching experience, Rosemond said he’s been blessed by being able to work under people who have known him at previous points in time, which has helped ease his transition into the coaching ranks. The difficult part about it for him is recruiting kids that are still relatively close in age to him.
“You’ve got to get them to respect you,” Rosemond said. “They look at you and think, ‘You’re just as young as I am.’ It’s been a big learning curve. That transition from player to coach is really tough.”
Replacing a great recruiter like Duncan is a difficult task as well. Rosemond said he has contacts in the Midwest and the South but doesn’t have the same type of reputation on the West Coast like Duncan has.
“That’s 25 years of experience,” Rosemond said. “He’s been all over. I can’t begin to think I can do what Scott’s done. I just hope I can be as good as him one day.”
But his age certainly helps him coach the players once they are on the team.
“He relates to the players real well because he’s still kind of young,” Maarty Leunen said. “He played for Coach Kent so he understands a lot of the things that we’re going through.”
And it doesn’t stop him from venting his frustration if a player isn’t playing to his ability.
“It doesn’t matter who the player is, he’ll get on their case if they’re playing bad or need to work harder, and I respect him a lot for that,” Leunen said.
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