UT Arlington is expected to hire Kentucky assistant Katie Turner as its next head coach, sources told ESPN.
Turner joined John Calipari’s staff last offseason after spending one season at Oklahoma under Porter Moser and one season at Texas under Shaka Smart. Before moving to Austin, Turner was an assistant coach at SMU for seven seasons.
He began his coaching career at the junior college level before moving on to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Wichita State. Turner also played professionally in Italy for three seasons.
“I knew that when we had an opening, Katie Turner would be our next guy that I would call,” Calipari said when Turner was hired last spring. “I’ve been very impressed with Katie for as long as I’ve known her.
“He’s from Cincinnati, his dad worked for Tony Yates, and he still has ties to the area. He’s an established coach and someone who has a passion for development. He loves working with kids and spending time in the gym helping them. .Press for improvement.
“Katie has done an excellent job recruiting at Texas, which has always been good for us, and has a great ability to connect with young people. She is exactly the coach we have been looking for and I am thrilled to have her join our family.”
Turner replaces Greg Young, who was fired in early February after less than two years on the job. UT Arlington went 11-18 in Young’s first season before going 11-21 this season. The Mavericks were 9-16 when they released Young.