Former Douglas County and UNC Standout Joins Tar Heels Staff

CHAPEL HILL, NC —Just over a year after Douglasville-native Brandon Robinson last suited up for the North Carolina basketball team, the Douglas County High grad is heading back to Chapel Hill to become the program's first ever graduate assistant.

Tar Heels coach Hubert Davis, who replaced the legendary Roy Williams in April, announced earlier this month that Robinson would be part of his coaching staff.

"Brandon Robinson is going to be the first-ever grad assistant in the history of the men's basketball program, so I'm just so excited about having him on staff," Davis told 97.9 The Hill's Art Chansky according to KeepingitHeel.com.

Robinson, who was part of the Tar Heels' 2017 National Championship team as a freshman, released a statement on Twitter expressing his excitement about his new role within the program.

"I am so grateful to Coach Davis for giving me this opportunity to begin living out a dream that I've had since I was a kid. I'm excited to be back and get to work to help the program grow in the same way it has helped me."

Robinson's father Frank was a longtime coach in the Atlanta area, and Brandon recently told The Athletic that he had been thinking about becoming a coach since he was a youngster. However, he didn't expect it to happen quite so soon.

After a fine senior season in 2019-20, in which he averaged a career-high 11.8 points per game, Brandon Robinson was hoping to find an opportunity to play professionally, likely overseas. He told The Athletic he had multiple offers, but they failed to materialize due to the coronavirus pandemic.

So, Robinson returned to the Atlanta-area this year and started helping out as a coach for his old AAU team the Georgia Stars. That's when he realized he'd truly caught the coaching bug. During a trip to Indianapolis to play in a 3X3U National Championship Tournament, which coincided with the 2021 Four Four, Robinson said his mind often was on his coaching duties.

"I couldn’t stop thinking about the AAU team I'd been helping out. Like, I was always looking on my phone to check their scores, calling the other coaches seeing how we were doing. It's like I was missing coaching and helping the team out," Robinson told The Athletic. "I definitely enjoyed playing — I was having a good time — but my attention was starting to go somewhere else."

While Robinson was at the tournament, Williams retired after 33 years in charge at North Carolina. Five days later, Davis, a former Tar Heel star and longtime assistant, was named the head coach. Robinson had always been close to Davis, and called to congratulate him on the new job.

During their talk, Davis recalled the conversations he used to have with Robinson about the latter becoming a coach someday. Davis knew Robinson had been coaching with the Georgia Stars and asked Robinson if he might be interested in returning to the Tar Heels program. Of course, it would mean giving up his dream to play professionally.

"I'm gonna be honest. It was just a no-brainer," Robinson told The Athletic. "I didn't even take like really five minutes or a day to think about it. I told him straight up on the phone, 'This is something I want to do.' I told him I'm in, right there on the spot."

Robinson joins a staff with several other former North Carolina players, including: Jeff Lebo, Brad Frederick, Sean May, Jackie Manuel and Pat Sullivan. Robinson is the low man on the totem pole, and actually will be coaching some of the players who were his teammates.

Robinson told the Athletic that he expects to be doing a little bit of everything: working guys out breaking down game film and learning about recruiting.

Michael McKay of TarHeelBlog.com suggested Robinson's skillset and career trajectory- a three-year reserve who blossomed as a senior - should be assets in helping other Tar Heel players succeed.

"Robinson averaged less than 12 minutes and four points per game in his first three years at Carolina before exploding for 30.2 minutes and 11.8 points during his senior season," McKay wrote. "Robinson will surely be called on to help current players emulate his senior season shooting production, when the two-guard shot a healthy 36.9 percent from three and 82.6 percent from the free-throw line."