University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Adds Three to Men's Basketball Staff
April 23, 2001 | Men's Basketball
April 23, 2001
Amherst, Mass. -- University of Massachusetts Head Men's Basketball Coach Steve Lappas announced today that he has hired John Leonard, Andrew Theokas and Christopher Walker as assistant coaches on his staff. Walker and Theokas worked for coach Lappas last year at Villanova, while Leonard also has longtime ties to the new Minuteman bench boss.
"We have assembled a tremendous staff," Lappas said. "These men are committed to developing student-athletes who will be successful in the classroom and on the court. As a group, they bring 26 years of Division I coaching and administrative experience to the table, which is very important."
Leonard comes to UMass from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, where he spent the past two seasons as Assistant Commissioner/Operations. Prior to joining the MAAC staff, Leonard spent three seasons (1996-99) as head coach at Manhattan College, where he guided the Jaspers to a 26-57 record. He worked with Lappas as an assistant coach at Manhattan (1988-92) and Villanova (1992-96) before returning to his alma mater as head coach.
A native of Schenectady, N.Y., Leonard graduated from Manhattan in 1982, where he was a four-year letterman. A 10th-round draft pick of the NBA's New York Knicks in 1982, he ranks as the eighth-leading scorer in Manhattan history with 1,329 points. Leonard and his wife Cynthia have three children, Alyssa, Brianna and John, Jr.
"John worked for me at both Manhattan and Villanova, and has a tremendous understanding of the way we do things," Lappas said. "He is a tremendous teacher of the game, too."
Theokas spent the 2000-01 season as administrative assistant on Lappas' Villanova staff, but will serve as a recruiter and on-the-floor coach at UMass. Prior to his one-year stint at Villanova, Theokas spent two seasons (1998-99 and 1999-2000) as an assistant coach at Rider University in Lawrenceville, N.Y.
Before Rider, he served as head coach at Ocean County College in Toms River, N.J. A 1992 graduate of The College of William & Mary, Theokas, who is single, is a native of North Brunswick, N.J.
"Andrew worked for me at Villanova last year, and did a great job," Lappas said. "He's a young guy who has already had some great experiences in college basketball."
A former player at Villanova, Walker brings nine years of Division I coaching experience to the UMass program. A native of Houston, Texas, Walker spent the 2000-01 season as an assistant coach at Villanova, and prior to that was the Associate Head Coach at both Pepperdine (1999-2000) and Vanderbilt (1996-99). He began his coaching career at Loyola (Calif.) in 1992, where he worked until moving to Vanderbilt and working with Jan van Breda Kolff.
Walker, a two-time All-Big Five selection, started 96 games at point guard for the Wildcats from 1989 through 1992. He led Villanova in assists for three straight seasons and ranks 10th all-time in that category at the university. In his career, he scored 991 points. Walker, who was born on Christmas Day 1969, graduated from Villanova in 1992 and is single.
"Like Andrew, Chris worked with me last year at Villanova, and did a great job," Lappas said. "He did a great job of recruiting some tremendous classes at both Pepperdine and Vanderbilt, and I'm confidant he will do that here, too."
