Rebels assistant coach Stacey Augmon won’t leave for the Charlotte Bobcats

By Taylor Bern

Saturday, July 21, 2012 | 8:35 p.m.

UNLV assistant coach Stacey Augmon will not leave the program for a position with the Charlotte Bobcats, UNLV coach Dave Rice confirmed Saturday.

The Associated Press reported on July 3 that a source said Augmon interviewed with the Bobcats for a position on the staff of first-year head coach Mike Dunlap. Augmon and Dunlap both worked for the Denver Nuggets during the 2007-08 season. Augmon stayed on with Denver until 2011, when he left to join former Rebels teammate Rice’s staff.

Rice said Augmon told Dunlap and Charlotte majority owner Michael Jordan that he would not join the Bobcats.

That’s certainly great news for UNLV, which is poised for a potentially great season due in large part to a talent-rich front court that Augmon will work with day in and day out. At the end of last season, his first as a college assistant, Augmon said he liked being back in college basketball more than he thought he would when he took the job. A big reason for that is the work he gets to do with the kids in practice, when they actually listen to him and work to improve.

It’s satisfying to see your work net positive results. Ultimately, that may not have been Augmon’s main reason for turning down the Bobcats, but it certainly played an important role.

With Augmon set to return, it appears Rice will enter the 2012-13 season with the same coaching staff he put together for his UNLV debut year. Augmon, associate head coach Justin Hutson and assistant coach Heath Schroyer will man their familiar positions. The rest of the staff, including director of basketball operations Kreigh Warkentien, are also slated to return.

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.