Chris Stiles: Overwhelming reaction to Haskins' retirement says it all

Jan. 19—PEMBROKE — "One of the greatest gifts of my life is a friendship with John Haskins."

Beyond anything he has accomplished on the basketball court — which is quite a bit in his 30 seasons as a head coach — the first thing that most people will say about John Haskins is along these lines, about the person he is off the floor.

Dan Kenney, who brought Haskins to UNC Pembroke to join his men's basketball coaching staff in 1989, and was athletic director during Haskins' transition from head coach of men's basketball to men's golf to women's basketball in the early 2000s, said the above to this scribe on Friday morning, and it's a sentiment echoed by many.

UNCP announced Thursday that Haskins will retire after this season, his 20th leading the Lady Braves basketball program and his 43rd season in coaching.

It's not unusual for the reaction after such news to be very positive. But the overwhelmingly positive message echoing through and beyond Brave Nation over the last two days says as much for Haskins as any number of wins or accomplishments could.

"Obviously he does his job and watches film and all that, but his mind just works the right way to be a good basketball coach," Braves associate head coach Donald Bohannon said. "He gets the best out of sometimes not the best players; we've got pretty good players, but some of them might not be as good if they were at other places, and I think he just gets the best out of them, and kind of reading through people said on Twitter or Facebook, that's one thing some of the alumni said is he gets the best out of his players. And that's because he actually cares, and I think that's pretty obvious."

Even the timing of Haskins' retirement announcement is a sign of his character and selflessness, Bohannon said.

"Coach Haskins is a good dude and he cares more about the people and the program and everybody else more than himself, so he thought it was best for them to, let's get through this process as quickly as possible so they can make whatever decisions they need to make," Bohannon said.

Haskins' influence includes the positive energy he brings to the team — even through some lean years at times — and the genuine interest he takes in everyone around the program. That doesn't just include the players, but support staff, others around the university, and yes, even those of us who cover the Braves, past and present.

"He absolutely loves what he does — and I don't just mean basketball," Kenney said. "If he's on the golf course, he's loving it. If he's cutting his grass, he's loving it. If he's coaching defensive slides, he's loving it. That's been his consistency in everything he does."

On the basketball court, Haskins is described as a terrific teacher of the game. Spend five minutes around him in a gym and his brilliance for the game is quickly and abundantly clear.

"My expectations at the time (hiring him) was I thought I was getting the best teacher of the game of basketball on the small college level, because he was coming to us from Gardner-Webb," Kenney said. "At that time, I was really excited, because those were my expectations. But after he got here, I realized my expectations weren't high enough for what his abilities were, and I think the last 35 years have proven it."

And, Kenney says, Haskins was always up for a challenge. Being the head coach of five different sports — you read that correctly — during his career proves it.

Basketball, of course, headlines Haskins' career. In a time when it was common for assistant coaches to take on the head-coaching job of a non-revenue sport, however, Haskins coached cross country at Gardner-Webb and men's tennis when he arrived at UNCP. In between his two basketball stints, Haskins coached the Braves men's golf team for three seasons.

It's the women's basketball program, though, that Haskins has spent the most time coaching. His current players shared many of the

"He's very personable," said Braves freshman Natalie Evington, a Purnell Swett alumnus who grew up watching the team. "He cares about us, he cares what we're going through and he wants to see us succeed. He doesn't feel like it's about him, he feels like it's about the players."

Choosing not to continue coaching his current players was difficult, Haskins said — particularly including Kelci Adams, Hannah Russell and Zaria Clark, who will be seniors next season playing for someone else.

"I was blessed to get recruited by him, and I would love to play for him my COVID year, my fifth year, but if it's God's will for him to retire, that's the best and I know there's good to come out of it," Adams said. "I couldn't imagine playing college ball under anyone else.

For the five seniors on this year's team, finishing strong was already top of mind — but now adds another level as their coach will also be finishing his career alongside them.

"We want us to go out with a bang, but now we want him to go out on a high road and get his recognition. Just finishing out on a high road and getting another ring," said Kalaya Hall, the Braves' leading scorer. "He comes in day in and day out, and we all might not see eye to eye all the time, but he really wants the best for us and just carrying out his vision for us."

The relationships extend far beyond current players, though, with former players staying close to the coach, even decades after their days wearing a Braves uniform — including those from his stint as men's head coach from 1992-2002.

"He's just one of those people who's influential in myself and my teammates' lives, and he continues to be that," said Jeremy Sampson, who was coached by Haskins as both an assistant and head coach and is now the boys basketball head coach at Purnell Swett. "He's personable with the players, he relates well with the players, both the guys and girls, and he's well-respected, well-liked, and no issues off the court. The way he is around people, that's one of his greatest assets as a person and a coach."

That those relationships are decades-long is also a testament to Haskins' tenure at UNCP, now at 35 years. As a result, he'll be remembered on the Pembroke campus long after his final season ends.

"You just don't see this type of loyalty and wherewithal and determination anymore," UNCP Athletic Director Dick Christy said. "These are the case studies you really want to hold up on a pedestal for our students, because I think in today's world people just bounce and bounce and bounce, and they miss the joy and they miss the reward of seeing a place grow up and seeing the people grow up and being a part of its fabric. John's going to be one of those last guys that's in that vein of the Dan Kenneys and the Lacy Ganes and the Ray Penningtons and the Howard Deans.

"He's written into the fabric of this place forever."

Sports editor Chris Stiles can be reached at 910-816-1977 or by email at cstiles@robesonian.com. You can follow him on X/Twitter at @StilesOnSports.