HARTFORD, Conn. — Former head coach of the UConn men's basketball team Kevin Ollie has signed on with a new basketball league.
Ollie is now the head coach and director of player development for OTE (Overtime Elite), a pro-basketball league for "elite young prospects".
The new league, announced last month, is a new option for players between 16-18 years old who want to play professionally but are not interested in following the traditional route from high school to the NBA.
OTE said they will pay top prospects a guaranteed salary of at least $100,000 per year and enable them to earn additional money from the use of their name, image, and likeness.
As a player and coach, Ollie mentored many of the game’s greatest stars, including Lebron James, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Kemba Walker. He is one of just four African-American head coaches ever to win a men’s NCAA championship.
That legacy will be a significant asset to OTE as it seeks to attract and develop the country's top young athletes.
“I’m ready to get back to what I was born to do: empowering and encouraging and supporting young people, and helping them grow,” Ollie said in a statement. “There’s no better place for me to do that than OTE, an extraordinary league for extraordinary young men. I consider it my mission to help these elite athletes realize their dreams.”
---
HERE ARE MORE WAYS TO GET FOX61 NEWS
Download the FOX61 News APP
iTunes: Click here to download
Google Play: Click here to download
Stream Live on ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching FOX61.
