Brian Collins (basketball)
| Memphis Grizzlies | |
|---|---|
| Title | Assistant coach |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | March 23, 1984 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Belmont (2002–2006) |
| NBA draft | 2006: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2006–2007 |
| Position | Guard |
| Coaching career | 2007–present |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 2006 | Bakersfield Jam |
| 2007 | Kouvot |
Coaching | |
| 2007–2009 | Tennessee State (assistant) |
| 2009–2012 | Cumberland (assistant) |
| 2012–2015 | Columbia State CC |
| 2015–2017 | East Tennessee State (assistant) |
| 2017–2018 | Illinois State (assistant) |
| 2018–2025 | Tennessee State |
| 2025-present | Memphis Grizzlies (assistant) |
| Career highlights | |
As player:
As coach:
| |
Brian Erick Collins[1] (born March 23, 1984) is an American professional basketball coach who is an assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was previously the head coach at Tennessee State University.[2][3]
Playing career
A Nashville native, Collins was a four-year starter at hometown Belmont under Rick Byrd, and was the captain of the Bruins first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance at the Division I level in 2006. He scored 1,199 points in his career, and left the school as the all-time leader in assists and steals at the Division I level.[3][4]
After graduation, Collins played professional basketball between 2006 and 2007 with the Bakersfield Jam of the NBDL and Kouvot in Finland.[5]
Coaching career
In 2007, Collins began his coaching career serving as a graduate assistant and director of basketball operations at Tennessee State until 2009, when he accepted an assistant coaching position at NAIA institution Cumberland.[3]
Collins landed his first head coaching job, taking the reins of Columbia State where he took over a team that went 10–17 in his first year, but compiled a 54–11 overall record in his final two seasons and led the team to two-straight NCJAA national tournament appearances.[6][7][8] After the 2015 season, Collins joined the staff at ETSU for two seasons before spending one season at Illinois St. as an assistant coach.[9][10]
On March 26, 2018, Collins was named the 21st head coach in Tennessee State history, replacing Dana Ford, who accepted the head coaching position at Missouri State.[3]
On June 30, 2025, Tennessee State announced that Collins had stepped down for a coaching role in the NBA.[11] Collins then accepted a position as an assistant for the Memphis Grizzlies.[12]
Head coaching record
NJCAA
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia State () (2012–2015) | |||||||||
| 2012–13 | Columbia State | 10–17 * | 7–11 * | N/A | |||||
| 2013–14 | Columbia State | 28–4 | 17–1 | N/A | ELITE 8 | ||||
| 2014–15 | Columbia State | 26–7 | 14–4 | N/A | SWEET 16 | ||||
| Columbia State: | 64–28 (.696) | 38–16 (.704) | |||||||
| Total: | 64–28 (.696) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
NCAA DI
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee State (Ohio Valley) (2018–2025) | |||||||||
| 2018–19 | Tennessee State | 9–21 | 6–12 | T-8th | |||||
| 2019–20 | Tennessee State | 18–15 | 9–9 | T–5th | |||||
| 2020–21 | Tennessee State | 4–19 | 3–17 | 12th | |||||
| 2021–22 | Tennessee State | 14–18 | 8–10 | T–5th | |||||
| 2022–23 | Tennessee State | 18–14 | 10–8 | T–3rd | |||||
| 2023–24 | Tennessee State | 18–15 | 10–8 | 5th | |||||
| 2024–25 | Tennessee State | 17–16 | 12–8 | T–3rd | |||||
| Tennessee State: | 98–118 (.454) | 58–72 (.446) | |||||||
| Total: | 98–118 (.454) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
References
- ^ "Brian Erick Collins () - Basketball Stats, Height, Age". FIBA Basketball. Retrieved December 3, 2025.
- ^ "Tennessee State basketball coach Brian 'Penny' Collins signs 5-year, $1 million deal". The Tennessean.
- ^ a b c d Streamline Technologies, Nashville, TN. "Brian 'Penny' Collins Named Tennessee State University Head Men's Basketball Coach".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Brian Collins College Stats - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
- ^ "2006-07 Bakersfield Jam Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
- ^ "Columbia State Season Box Score". njcaa.org.
- ^ "Columbia State Season Box Score". njcaa.org.
- ^ "Columbia State Season Box Score". njcaa.org.
- ^ "Collins Named Assistant Men's Basketball Coach". Illinois State University.
- ^ Streamline Technologies, Nashville, TN. "Brian Collins – Men's Basketball Coaches – Official Site of East Tennessee State Athletics". ETSUBucs.com.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Men's Basketball Coach Brian "Penny" Collins Resigns for NBA Job". Tennessee State University. June 30, 2025. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
- ^ >"TSU basketball coach resigns to accept assistant position with the Memphis Grizzlies". NewsChannel15. July 15, 2025. Retrieved July 15, 2025.