Ja endorses Kane for Murray State coach
MBB: The former Racer assistant helped recruit Morant to Murray
With one word, Ja Morant, the most famous former Murray State player, has thrown his weight behind former Racer assistant coach James Kane becoming Murray State’s next head coach.
After the news broke Friday night that Steve Prohm was let go after three seasons in his second stint with the program, Trilly Donovan, an anonymous, yet very in-the-know X account, posted this:
On Tuesday afternoon, Morant a response to that post on X:
Morant also finally responded to a post Kane made on X, back in August during Hoopalooza, where Kane wrote he was “Grateful for every moment!” To that, Morant posted:
Whether Kane ends up being a legitimate candidate for Murray State Director of Athletics Nico Yantko remains to be seen. While out interviewing candidates, Yantko has not commented on any specific candidates, but did provide a statement to WPSD-TV on Monday.
"We have been extremely diligent evaluating and talking with numerous candidates from all over the country over the past 48 hours," Yantko said in the statement. "Our goal, as with any head coach search, is to find a coach who can evaluate and develop talent, is a proven winner, is a relentless recruiter and can build positive relationships. The candidates that have already emerged in this process would all have an incredible impact on the program, and I am excited to continue and work around the clock to identify the next head men’s basketball coach for Murray State."
Kane started his coaching journey working as a graduate assistant under Anthony Grant at VCU in 2006. Kane moved up to video coordinator at VCU for two years, and then went to Alabama with Grant for two more seasons as video coordinator in 2009.
In 2011, Prohm hired Kane as an assistant coach at Murray State, as the Racers put together their magical 31-2 season, climbing as high as #9 in the Associated Press poll. Kane spent six seasons at Murray State, the first four with Prohm and then the final two under Matt McMahon.
In November of 2016, Kane was part of the coaching staff that signed one of the greatest recruiting classes in Murray State history: Shaq Buchanan, Tevin Brown and Ja Morant.
As you’ll see in this ESPN video from 2019 before the NBA Draft, Kane and a now legendary bag of chips are what began the recruitment of one of Murray State’s all-time greats.
Kane never actually coached Morant at Murray State, but the two have remained incredibly close throughout the years. After leaving Murray in the spring of 2017, prior to Morant officially arriving on campus, Kane rejoined Grant, this time at Dayton. After one season with the Flyers, Kane moved onto Iowa State where reunited with Prohm for three years.
In May of 2021, Kane returned to Dayton for a second time, where he continues to this day to work for Grant. Kane has worked with 12 NBA players, including three at Murray State: Isaiah Canaan, Cameron Payne and Morant.
Yantko did not provide a timetable to WPSD for hiring Murray State’s next head coach, but the transfer portal officially opens on March 24th, so don’t expect this search to take too long.