Former Spurs guard T.J. Ford mentioned getting into coaching several days before his premature retirement from the NBA.
Ford will carry through on those plans as a volunteer assistant coach for the Austin Toros.
The Austin American-Statesman reports that Ford will be for that NBA Developmental League team.
“I’ll look at it from another perspective,” Ford told the Statesman. “I’m really starting at the bottom. I’m not sure where I’m headed. But I’m headed in the right direction.”
Ford, 28, announced his retirement from the Spurs and the NBA on March 12. His decision came five days after he collided with Baron Davis in a game with the New York Knicks that resulted in Ford being carried off the ATT Center court.
He told the Statesman he’s excited about the position, which he calls “an internship” that could lead to another opportunity in basketball.
“I retired prematurely,” Ford told the Statesman. “I’ve been around basketball my entire life. I feel I can do something. I feel I can give back to the game.”
His career change will take place in the same city where he had a memorable college career during two seasons with the University of Texas. Ford capped his sophomore season with the Naismith Award after leading the Longhorns to the Final Four in New Orleans.
His basketball knowledge should make him an outstanding coach. It won’t be surprising to see him back in the NBA in his new profession soon enough.