More on New Tiger Assistant Jose "Chuck" Martin

Calipari Hires St. John's Assistant

Jose “Chuck” Martin, an assistant at St. John’s University the past two seasons, has been hired as an assistant men’s basketball coach at the University of Memphis, head coach John Calipari announced Tuesday. The 2006-07 campaign will be Martin’s eighth year as an assistant, as prior to St. John’s he also served on the staffs at Drexel, UMass and Manhattan.

“Chuck brings great experience to our staff,” said Calipari. “He worked with a close friend of mine (and former Calipari assistant) in Bruiser Flint at UMass and Drexel.

“He’s a tremendous recruiter, and that has been evident the last two years at St. John’s. Chuck’s recruiting ties around the country, and especially in New York, will prove beneficial for the our program.”

Mike DeCourcy, The Sporting News national college basketball writer, added: “Chuck Martin’s background is all class. He has worked with some of the finest people in the business, from Bruiser Flint to Norm Roberts and all the way back to his high school days in the New York Catholic League. He’ll bring a wealth of contacts to Memphis and will help the Tigers continue their advance on the national stage.”

Martin was a key recruiter on the St. John’s staff the past two seasons, helping the Red Storm bring in fresh talent. Some dividends of Martin’s work at St. John’s were seen in two signature victories for the Red Storm in 2005-06. In mid-January, St. John’s upset No. 9/9 and then-undefeated Pittsburgh 55-50 and followed with a 68-56 win over No. 17/15 Louisville. As a result of the two upset victories, the Red Storm were honored as college basketball’s Team of the Week by several national media outlets.

“It’s an honor to join the staff here at Memphis, and I’m excited to have the opportunity to work with John Calipari and the staff,” Martin said. “I’m looking forward to being a part of the Memphis family.

“St. John’s will always be special to me because I grew up in New York City. It was a great experience working with Coach (Norm) Roberts at St. John’s. They are turning the corner there, and they’ll do well this year.”

Prior to St. John’s, Martin was an assistant coach at Drexel for head coach Bruiser Flint, who served as an assistant for Calipari at UMass in the 1990s. During his time with the Dragons, Martin was involved in all aspects of the basketball program, including national recruiting, working with the team’s guards on skill development, scouting and game preparation.

“I’ve known Coach Calipari for a few years, and I also worked for Bruiser Flint so I’m familiar with what they do,” said Martin. “I’ve followed Coach Calipari’s career from the time he was at UMass through his stint with the NBA’s New Jersey Nets and now with the program here at Memphis. Coach Calipari’s done a tremendous job and I’m really excited to be a part of it.”
Prior to working at Drexel, Martin worked with Flint at UMass during the 2000-01 season, when the Minutemen advanced to the Atlantic 10 conference championship game.

Martin began his collegiate coaching career as an assistant at Manhattan College during the 1999-2000 season under head coach Bobby Gonzalez. Martin’s strong roots in New York City helped land All-MAAC players Mussy Green, Jared Johnson and 2004 NBA second round draft pick Luis Flores.

Martin attended Champlain (Vt.) Junior College, where he captained a pair of NJCAA Tournament teams, before completing his career at Monmouth University. At Monmouth, Martin played the point guard position and averaged 7.1 points and 2.0 assists for his career. Martin is a 1993 graduate of Monmouth with a degree in communications.

Martin and his wife, Lee, have three children: a daughter, Ashley-Monet (8), and two sons, Jordan (3) and Justin (1).