Men’s basketball Head Coach Chris Caputo hired an assistant coach Wednesday, as the program looks to continue to build back its staff for the upcoming season.
Brenden Straughn, an assistant coach from St. Joseph’s, will join the team’s coaching staff with strong ties to the DMV after coaching Team Takeover – a D.C.-based basketball youth organization – and at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Maryland. Straughn follows Caputo as the second addition to the men’s coaching staff that entered the offseason with a clean slate after the program fired former Head Coach Jamion Christian and the team’s entire staff last month.
Straughn holds nine years of coaching experience dating back to his high school experience in Maryland.
“Brenden Straughn is someone I have known since his high school days at Eleanor Roosevelt High School,” Caputo said in the release. “Brenden is one of the most talented, respected and well-liked people in the DMV Basketball community. Brenden’s passion for recruiting, basketball acumen and experience in the A-10 will be a huge asset to our program.”
Straughn coached at Saint Joseph’s during the past three seasons, where he worked with the team’s offensive philosophy and profile as a recruiting coordinator. He undertook roster structuring and recruiting oversight while engaging in on-court player development, opponent scouting and implementing resources for player mental health wellness.
“I’m very blessed and excited to join the George Washington University community and basketball,” Straughn said. “The DMV area is home. This is a place where I have developed as a man and as a coach. The chance to be near my family and support system, in a city where I know dreams and opportunities are limitless, is something I could not pass being a part of.”
Straughn previously worked as an assistant coach for Team Takeover from 2013 to 2018, where he helped with on-court coaching, player development, recruiting and evaluation.
In 2017, he led the team to the Jordan Brand Classic, an all-star high school championship named after Michael Jordan, and one year later, he helped garner a title at the Peach Jam – a basketball tournament for amateur basketball players. Straugh coached more than 70 future Division I players and five McDonald’s All Americans for Team Takeover, including NBA players Jalen Smith of the Indiana Pacers and Luka Garza of the Detroit Pistons.
Straughn started his coaching career as an assistant coach at Eleanor Roosevelt High School, his alma mater. He helped compile a 123-25 record with two Maryland Division 4A state championships and three Prince George’s Country titles from 2013 to 2016.
Straughn was a four-year starter and three-time captain of the Hood College Blazers before his graduation in 2012. He ranked among the program’s top 10 scorers and totaled the second-most assists and steals of all time
“I believe George Washington University can and will attract some of the best and brightest student-athletes from this area and beyond,” Straughn said. “I look forward to working with Coach Caputo to add to the storied tradition of the GW basketball program, while developing young men on and off the court.”