Tag Archives: John Chaney

Alston marks Owls’ second verbal commitment of 2015 class

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Temple picked up a second four-start recruit via verbal commit Tuesday morning.

Donning one of his father’s old Owls jerseys, local product Levan Alston announced his verbal commitment to the university in a press conference, marking coach Fran Dunphy’s second such commitment for the 2015 recruiting class.

The 6-foot-4 Haverford School product garnered All-State honors after posting 16.5 points per game as a junior last season. He’ll join fellow shooting guard and AAU teammate Trey Lowe (Ewing, New Jersey) at Temple in Fall 2015, as Lowe verbally committed to the Owls as a four-star shooting guard in August.

In committing to Temple, Alston will be joining the alma mater of his father, Levan, who played for the Owls under former coach John Chaney in the mid-1990s.

Rick Brunson charged with attempted sexual assault, other charges

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Former Temple men’s basketball standout Rick Brunson was arrested for attempted criminal sexual assault in a Life Fitness on June 25 in Vernon Hills, Ill., a Chicago suburb nestled approximately 40 minutes northwest of the city.

Per a Vernon Hills police report, Brunson grabbed a female employee of the fitness center and was subsequently charged with attempted criminal sexual assault, criminal sexual abuse and three counts of aggravated battery. According to the report, Brunson was held on $5,000 bail.

Ironically, the arrest was dated on the same day as a report that Brunson was a leading candidate for an assistant coaching position with Temple for the 2014-15 season. According to that report, Brunson was set to be introduced for the position at some point in July.

Brunson played under former Owls coach John Chaney from 1991-95, and has since worked in some capacity with three NBA clubs after his retirement from the NBA in 2006.

His son, Jalen Brunson, is a senior at Stephenson High School and is a notable Temple target. ESPN lists the 6-foot-1, 180-pounder as its No. 1 rated point guard in the country for the class of 2015.

Former Owls star Rick Brunson to join staff as assistant

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The men’s basketball team will bring back former Owls standout Rick Brunson as an assistant coach, per a Philly.com report Wednesday.

Brunson starred with the Owls under former coach John Chaney in the 1990s and later played professionally for nine different NBA clubs in a nine-year span. He has coached as an assistant on both the college and NBA level, most recently with the Charlotte Bobcats for the 2012-13 season.

As per formal procedure, the job opening was posted on both the NCAA’s career website and Temple’s Human Resources site Tuesday, and should be officially filled within the next month.

NCAA rules limit teams to a maximum of three assistant coaches. As Brunson is set to take an on-bench assistant coaching position, one of the three current assistants will be reassigned.

Brunson expressed interest in the Owls’ head coaching job in the wake of Chaney’s retirement in 2006, fresh off his NBA career.

Brunson’s son, Jalen Brunson, will be a senior at Stevenson High this fall as the nation’s No. 1 point guard in the class of 2015. The 6-foot-1, lefty point man is rated as a five-star recruit by ESPN, and is a top Temple target while also considering Villanova, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Michigan State and Purdue.

He was part of a Team USA squad that swiped the Gold Medal at the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Americas Under-18 tournament on Tuesday night, averaging 12 points and 5.6 assists in five games.