LaMario Richards 2024/25

LaMario Richards

LaMario Richards is entering his third season as the head coach for the Hawks in 2025/2026. His assistant coach, Ivan Patterson, is also entering his third season. The two are overseeing the transition to NJCAA DII.

Coach Richards became head coach for the Hawks in 2023 for the 23/24 season. In 2024 he helped transition the Hawks to NJCAA DII.

Head Coaching
24/25 Record: 5-25
Team Transitioned to DII in 2024
23/24 Record: 6-25
Timeline
-Head Coach (Men's Basketball) at Harper College from 2023/24 - Current
-Asst. Coach (Men's Basketball) for Olive-Harvey College from 2021/22 - 2022/23 (2 seasons)
-Head Coach (Women's Basketball) for Ralph Ellison High School from 2020/21 (1 season)
-Asst. Coach (Men's Basketball) for East West University from 2019/20 (1 season)
-Asst. Coach (Boy's Basketball) for Oak Park River Forest High School from 2018/19 (1 season)
-Director (Boy's Basketball) at A3 Athletics from 2015 - Current
-Head Coach (Boy's JV Basketball) at Emmerich Manual High School from 2012/13 - 2014/15 (3 seasons)
Education
Masters Degree: 
Business Administration, Indiana University, (2012)
Science, Arkansas State University, (2018)
Education, American College of Education, (2018)
Bachelors Degree: Martin University (2009)
High School: 
Before Harper
Richards' coaching career started in 2012 at Emmerich Manual in Indianapolis, IN. He was the head coach of their boy's junior varsity team.

In 2015, Richards went on to be the AAU Director of A3 Athletics, an AAU program based out of Chicago.

Once he came to Chicago to coach, he stuck around. Richards was the assistant coach at various schools in the Chicago land area. He was the Oak Park River Forest boy's varsity assistant coach in 2018-2019 where he helped them team to a 18-10 record as well as a 11-1 conference record and conference title. The following year Richards jumped up to the college level at East West as the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the men's team. In the 2019-2020 season they set a school record for wins in a season. 

Richards' journey through the coaching ranks continued as he went back to coaching high school the following year, but this time as the head coach of the women's varsity team at Ralph Ellison. Unfortunately, the 2020-2021 season did not go as many had hoped due to the pandemic and was a limited season.

Richards went back to the collegiate level the following season in 2021-2022 where he was the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Olive-Harvey Panthers. In the two seasons he was there, the team had a 44-16 record while also going 18-0 in conference. The Panthers were also back to back conference champions in the City Colleges of Chicago Athletic Conference. 

Richards is also an experienced educator with over ten years of teaching experience. He obtained his B.S. from Martin University in 2009 as well as his M.B.A. from Indiana University in 2012. He has two additional graduate degrees, a M.S. from Arkansas State and a M.Ed. from American College of Education, both obtained in 2018.


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