After storied UK basketball career, Derek Anderson now coaches at Male

From his foundation that aids battered women and children to his Stamina Academy that focuses on teaching life skills to Louisville’s youth, Derek Anderson has stayed busy in the 10 years since he last played in the NBA.

But he couldn’t stay away from basketball altogether, and now he’s helping coach one of the state’s most storied high school programs.

Anderson is in his first season as an assistant coach at Male, where the Bulldogs are off to an impressive 6-2 start and ranked No. 9 in the state in the Courier Journal’s preseason poll of coaches.

First-year Male head coach Tim Haworth said he approached the 44-year-old Anderson during a summer AAU event. After a couple of dinners, Haworth realized he wanted Anderson on his staff.

“He’s all about IQ basketball and getting kids smarter,” Haworth said. “You can just tell he’s been around a lot of really good coaches.”

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A 1992 Doss High School graduate, Anderson had a storied college and NBA career.

He played his first two season at Ohio State before transferring to the University of Kentucky, winning a national championship as a junior in 1996 and then suffering a torn ACL midway through his senior season. UK reached the NCAA final that season before losing to Arizona.

Anderson was a lottery pick in the 1997 NBA Draft and played 11 seasons. He averaged 12 points per game over his career and won a world championship with the Miami Heat in 2006.

Anderson laughs when asked if Male’s current players know about his basketball glory days.  

“All of them have heard about me, but they’re like, ‘Oh, we didn’t know you were that good,’” Anderson said. “Then they Google me and they’re like, ‘Coach, you were good.’ They’re good kids, and they listen. That’s a good thing.”

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Male junior Noah Courtney said Anderson’s NBA experience commands respect in the locker room.

“I listen a lot harder because I know he’s been there and worked hard to get there,” Courtney said. “I know he knows what it takes, and I want to pick up what he did. …

“He’s more of a laid-back coach, but the way he does it works. He knows how to get (the information) to you.”

That laid-back approach is a stark contrast to the fiery Haworth, who built a solid reputation with an aggressive style of play while winning five regional titles in eight seasons at Hopkinsville before taking the Male job.

The difference was evident Wednesday during Male’s loss to Collins in the first round of the King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic at Fairdale. As Haworth routinely yelled instructions from the sideline, Anderson had an occasional one-on-one conversation with players while on the bench.

After the game, Anderson spent 15 minutes in the locker room giving individual instruction to players.

“I don’t want to step on his toes and come in and say, ‘Hey, I know more than you. You should listen to me,’” Anderson said of his relationship with Haworth. “I let him do his thing. I feel the knowledge I have can help, and with the knowledge he has we can work well together. …

“I’m not loud and demonstrative. Tim and I are total opposites to get our point across. The kids recognize that, so it’s a good mix. I think I help kind of calm the kids down.”

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Anderson said he views the Male job as “a trial run,” as he would like to one day be a head coach on the college and professional level.

But whether it’s coaching 8-year-olds or pros, Anderson wants to put his personal touch on the profession and the sport he loves.

“I want to see these young kids learn how to play,” Anderson said. “If you’re in the third or fourth grade, why are you pressing? Where is your fundamental basketball? They don’t have it. And then they grow older and you try to teach it, they don’t know it. Hopefully we can get back to regular basketball skills and teach the mental part of the game.”

Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @kyhighs. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: www.courier-journal.com/jasonf.