 Corbin inSalt Lake City, Utah, as the head coach of theUtah Jazz (2013) | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1962-12-31)December 31, 1962 (age 62) Columbia, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | A.C. Flora (Forest Acres, South Carolina) |
| College | DePaul (1981–1985) |
| NBA draft | 1985: 2nd round, 35th overall pick |
| Selected by theSan Antonio Spurs | |
| Playing career | 1985–2001 |
| Position | Small forward |
| Number | 23, 33 |
| Coaching career | 2004–present |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 1985–1987 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 1987–1988 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 1988–1989 | Phoenix Suns |
| 1989–1991 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 1991–1994 | Utah Jazz |
| 1994–1995 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 1995–1996 | Sacramento Kings |
| 1996 | Miami Heat |
| 1996–1999 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 1999–2000 | Sacramento Kings |
| 2000–2001 | Toronto Raptors |
| As coach: | |
| 2004–2011 | Utah Jazz (assistant) |
| 2011–2014 | Utah Jazz |
| 2014 | Sacramento Kings (assistant) |
| 2014–2015 | Sacramento Kings (interim) |
| 2016–2018 | Phoenix Suns (assistant) |
| 2018–2021 | Orlando Magic (assistant) |
| 2022–2024 | Charlotte Hornets (assistant) |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 9,766 (9.2 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 5,046 (4.7 rpg) |
| Steals | 1,228 (1.2 spg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Tyrone Kennedy Corbin (born December 31, 1962) is an American former professionalbasketball player who last worked as an assistant coach for theCharlotte Hornets. He was first appointed the assistant coach of thePhoenix Suns, then was named theUtah Jazz’s head coach, on February 10, 2011, following the resignation of longtime coachJerry Sloan.[1] He was also the brief interim head coach of theSacramento Kings in the 2014–15 season before being replaced byGeorge Karl. Prior to that, Corbin played 16 seasons in the NBA.
Corbin played collegiately atDePaul University from 1981 to 1985. He played in 120 games for the Blue Demons, increasing his scoring average and field goal and free throw percentage in each of his four seasons.[2] Corbin posted averages of 11.5 points (on .504 FG and .764 FT), 7.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steal and 2.3 turnovers in 31.1 minutes per game.[3] He finished seventh on DePaul's career scoring list and was a two-time honorable mention AP All-America selection, as well as an All-NIT choice in 1983, and he was invited to the 1984 Olympic trials.
He graduated with a degree in computer science, before becoming a second-round pick of the San Antonio Spurs in the1985 NBA draft. He was a teamcaptain in hisjunior andsenior years; the former wasRay Meyer's last ashead coach, the latter wasJoey Meyer's first.[4] He was inducted into theDePaul University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2005.[5]
Corbin played in theNBA atsmall forward from 1985 to 2000. His first two seasons were with theSan Antonio Spurs, as he was their selection in the second round (35th pick overall) of the 1985 NBA Draft. After signing with theCleveland Cavaliers in January 1987, he was part of the trade by the Cavs which sentKevin Johnson,Mark West, 1988 first-round and second-round draft picks and a 1989 second-round draft pick to thePhoenix Suns forLarry Nance,Mike Sanders and a 1988 first-round draft choice in February 1988.
After being selected by theMinnesota Timberwolves in theexpansion draft in 1989, he led the team and established career-highs in 1989–90 in rebounds (7.4) and steals (2.13). Corbin also recorded the first triple-double in Timberwolves history, with 10 points, 13 rebounds and a career-high 10 assists, against theDallas Mavericks on January 2, 1991.
His stint with the Jazz came by a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves forThurl Bailey early in the 1991–92 season, enabling him to help the team reach the NBA Western Conference Finals twice.[6] He averaged 9.6 points and 6.2 rebounds in 233 games for the Jazz from 1991 to 1994.[2]
He was then traded by the Jazz with a 1995 second-round draft pick to the Atlanta Hawks forAdam Keefe in September 1994. It was in Atlanta where his streak of 415 consecutive games played would be broken. Corbin then was traded to theSacramento Kings forSpud Webb in June 1995. Along withWalt Williams, he went to the Miami Heat forBilly Owens andKevin Gamble in February 1996.
He then spent three seasons with the Hawks via free-agent signing in 1996. After returning to the Kings as a free agent in 1999, he spent the next season with theToronto Raptors. He was traded by Toronto on February 22, 2001, withCorliss Williamson,Kornel David and a first-round draft pick to theDetroit Pistons forJerome Williams andEric Montross in February 2001.[7] Corbin was waived the next day, never again to be on an NBA team as a player.[8]
Wearing No. 23 and No. 33 throughout his playing career,[6] he averaged 9.3 points (on .457 percent from the field), 4.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals in nearly 26 minutes per game while playing 1,065 games in his career.[3] A versatile small forward, Corbin also played in 81 NBA playoff games in his career, including 37 with the Jazz, averaging 8.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.
After his playing career, Corbin spent one season with theCharleston Lowgators of theNBDL as a player mentor. Corbin was hired byScott Layden, then general manager of theNew York Knicks, as manager of Knicks player development for the 2003–04 season. In 2004, he went to the Utah Jazz, spending seven years as an assistant coach underJerry Sloan before eventually succeeding Sloan as head coach in 2011.[6]
On April 21, 2014, the Jazz announced that they had elected not to offer Corbin a new contract.[9] Afterwards he became an assistant coach of theSacramento Kings and on December 15, 2014, he was promoted to interim head coach afterMichael Malone was fired.[10] On February 12, 2015, he was relieved of his head coaching duties by the Kings, choosing to continue working with the organization as an advisor to the front office.[11]
On June 25, 2016, two days after the2016 NBA draft ended, thePhoenix Suns announced that Corbin would return to thePhoenix Suns as an assistant coach underEarl Watson's newest coaching staff. Watson was a previous player under Corbin's tenure during his last season coaching the Jazz, and was also a mentor for Watson as he began his transition into coaching in the NBA.[12] He'd also be reunited later on withMehmet Okur, another former player he coached that would join the Suns' coaching staff as a player development coach. After a 2 season stint in Phoenix, Corbin and the Suns parted ways.
On June 26, 2018, Corbin was hired by theOrlando Magic as assistant coach.[13]
On August 2, 2022, Corbin was hired by theCharlotte Hornets as an assistant coach.[14]
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utah | 2010–11 | 28 | 8 | 20 | .286 | 4th in Northwest | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| Utah | 2011–12 | 66 | 36 | 30 | .545 | 3rd in Northwest | 4 | 0 | 4 | .000 | Lost inFirst round |
| Utah | 2012–13 | 82 | 43 | 39 | .524 | 3rd in Northwest | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| Utah | 2013–14 | 82 | 25 | 57 | .305 | 5th in Northwest | — | — | — | — | Missed Playoffs |
| Sacramento | 2014–15 | 28 | 7 | 21 | .250 | (interim) | — | — | — | — | |
| Career | 286 | 119 | 167 | .416 | 4 | 0 | 4 | .000 | |||
Corbin has two children, Tyjha, and Tyrell with his wife, high school sweetheart, Dante.[6] Tyrell was one of the top basketball prospects from Utah, playing point guard for West High. He was named Utah's Mr. Basketball in the year 2011.[15] He went on to play for the UC Davis Aggies men's basketball team, a Division I school competing in theBig West Conference[16] and coached byJim Les, his father'sAtlanta Hawks teammate from the1994–95 NBA season.[17][18] Tyrell Corbin most recently played forMega Tbilisi in theGeorgian Superliga in 2022.[19]