As newly-appointed head coach Dennis Gates begins his term as the 20th head coach for the Missouri men’s basketball program, Tiger fans are anxious to see what effect he will have.
Gates agreed to a six-year contract worth $16.5 million on March 22nd.
Gates previously coached at Florida State and Marquette as a graduate assistant, but his most notable work was serving as head coach for Cleveland State from 2019-2022. His most notable accolades at Cleveland State included winning the Horizon League twice, clinching a berth in the NCAA tournament in 2021, and being awarded Horizon League Coach of the Year in both the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 seasons.
Having proven himself at Cleveland State, Gates is now preparing for a new challenge at Missouri, which is to rebuild the basketball team for a better future following the firing of previous head coach Cuonzo Martin.
Gates has shown that he has an eye for spotting talent, having helped recruit players that have played in the NBA such as Jonathan Isaac, Mfiondu Kabengele and Malik Beasley.
In terms of initial priorities, Gates has emphasized the importance of recruiting.
“I have to continue to re-recruit our student-athletes in our program now, but also recruit those that signed in our program and obviously go find recruits,” Gates said in an interview with KMIZ ABC 17 News.
Gates has found success in recruiting since he arrived in Missouri, bringing 4-star small forward Aidan Shaw back to the program after he decommitted earlier this year following Martins’ departure.
Gates has taken a more active approach toward the transfer portal this offseason as well.
Gates landed two highly ranked junior college recruits, Garden City Community College center Mohamed Diarra and John Logan College guard Sean East. He also secured commitments from talented players like UW-Milwaukee guard DeAndre Gholston and Cleveland State guard Tre Gomillion.
Along with recruiting players, Gates has brought in three assistant coaches to fill his staff.
Charlton ‘C.Y.’ Young, known for his recruiting and defensive tactics, previously worked with Gates at Florida State. Throughout his 28-year coaching career so far, Young has been successful in orchestrating the recruitment of high-level players like Patrick Williams and M.J. Walker. Missouri announced Young’s hire in April of 2022, and Young is set to make $600,000 per year on a three-year contract.
Gates also hired David “Dickey” Nutt as an assistant coach. Nutt worked with Gates at Florida State and Cleveland State, where he served as the special assistant coach for student-athlete development. Nutt served as the head coach for Arkansas State from 1995-2008, where he guided the Red Wolves to two Sun Belt Conference championships and their only NCAA tournament appearance in 1999.
The most recent addition to Gate’s coaching staff is assistant coach Kyle Smithpeters, who has a 15-year connection to Gates. Smithpeters previously held a coaching position at John A. Logan Community College for 10 years and revitalized the basketball program there. Smithpeters earned Conference Coach of the Year six times in his first eight seasons.
The arrival of Gates has already brought about new changes to Missouri’s basketball program in the short time that he has been in Columbia. The latest additions to the coaching staff and roster will provide a different look for the Tigers going into next year.
While basketball season doesn’t start until November, there is still a lot of anticipation from Missouri fans about what kind of an impact this new leadership will have on the team.
“We can expect some good basketball,” Gates said. “I’m excited to be here, obviously excited to be in this conference, and I’m here to roll my sleeves up.”
Edited by Brandon Haynes | bhaynes@themaneater.com
