The Bowling Green Hornets have named Nathan Thompson as their new head coach and general manager for the 2014 season. Thompson, who served as the Hornets assistant coach last season, takes over for former Harlem Globetrotter Otis Key, who is now on the coaching staff of South Warren High School.
Both Thompson and Key are former star athletes at Russellville High School where the Hornets play their home games.
In announcing Thompson’s new position, a Hornets’ press release says: “Although Thompson, during his sole game as interim head coach last season, was unable to secure the title for Bowling Green in the championship game versus St. Louis, players admired his handling of the short-handed Hornets team during multiple points of adversity in the game. Furthermore, with an emphasis on continuity, familiarity and experience with last season's squad, and having an aggressive coaching philosophy, the Hornets' ownership believed Thompson was the perfect fit for the job.”
Waseem Moorad is the founding owners of the Hornets.
Before becoming a member of the Hornets coaching staff, Thompson was an assistant coach under Dennis Pardue for seven seasons on the Panthers’ basketball bench. He is currently Russellville’s athletic director and head coach of the RHS golf teams. He has also served as head coach of the soccer Panthers.
Considered by many to be the best soccer player ever at RHS, he played in the state basketball tournaments three of his four years in high school under Coach Phil Todd, becoming a starter on two teams that reached the Final Four of the Sweet Sixteen in 2000 and 2001. One of the key players on that 2000 team, Tony Key, was the Hornets’ center this year. The star guard on those Panther teams, Squeaky Hampton, played for the Hornets in their final games following completion of his international basketball season.
Thompson was also a starter in baseball and was also a part of Coach Keith McReynolds' Bees team which won the state Senior Babe Ruth 16-year-old state champions in 1999.
He comes from an athletic family. His dad, Tom Thompson, was the long-time coach of RHS soccer and softball while also coaching volleyball. His sister, Sarah Thompson Ibarra, played volleyball and softball for the Lady Panthers. Nathan Thompson played sports collegiately at Kentucky Wesleyan and Lindsey Wilson.
His full-time job is as a loan officer at First Southern National Bank. His wife, the former Laura Stokes, teaches at Lewisburg Elementary School. They have a young daughter, Avery.
More of the Hornets’ press release follows:
“Having experience as Athletic Director of Russellville High School, Thompson's background also made him the perfect candidate to become the Hornets' new General Manager. He will be responsible for not only scouting and acquiring new talent for the team, but also serve as the chief liaison between the team and the local media, businesses and organizations, and community.
“Coach Thompson may not have the accolades and regional popularity as his predecessor, but the Hornets believe he has the perfect potential, demeanor, and experience to continue the team's rise towards on and off-the-court success. Over the next few months, Thompson will be assembling his assistants, organizing tryouts, and overseeing the Hornets training camp, in an effort to develop better chemistry between the players and the coaching staff for the 2014 season. His efforts, knowledge, and skill will then be put to the test when the Central Basketball Association begins regular season play in March.”
The following is the Bowling Green Hornets’ description of the team from their website:
The Bowling Green Hornets, representing the Bowling Green, Kentucky community, just completed their first season in the league, with a 4-4 record, including falling short in the Championship Game against St. Louis. As the league Runner-Ups, the Hornets compiled a formidable roster, including four former Western Kentucky University basketball players (Jamal Crook, Kahlil McDonald, Teeng Akol, & Boris Siakam), one former University of Kentucky player (Brandon Stockton), and the 2013 NAIA Player of the Year from Georgetown College (Vic Moses).
The team also boasts six former and current international professional basketball players, including Maurice "Squeaky" Hampton (Israel, Czech Republic, Greece, Cyprus, Scotland), Tony Key (Mexico), Justin Taylor (Portugal), Jamal Crook (Canada), Vic Moses (England), and Boris Siakam (Bahrain). The success of this talented Hornets roster contributed to three Hornets players being named on the league's All-Star team last season, including Justin Taylor and Tony Key on the 1st-team All-Star squad, and Jamal Crook on the 2nd-team All-Star squad. The Hornets look to build on their organizational success in the 2014 CBA season.
The Hornets currently play in Russellville, which is approximately 20 minutes outside of Bowling Green. Russellville is the hometown for two of the Hornets players, as well as the Hornets coaching staff, and has been long considered fertile soil for producing local basketball players.