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Former Florida standout guard Teddy Dupay has been involved in grassroots basketball in the Tampa area for the past three-plus years.
But Dupay took another step in his coaching and mentoring progression last weekend when he was named head varsity basketball coach at Cambridge Christian School in Tampa.
Dupay worked with some Cambridge students at his basketball academy in Tampa, and one of those parents approached Dupay and asked if he had interest in the varsity job.
“Got to meet everybody at the school, met the administration, everything, went through what they were looking to accomplish,” Dupay said. “They’ve done a fantastic job with their football program here the last couple of years, state finals last year, they return 10 starters on both sides of the ball and there’s a lot of excitement, all positives, there wasn’t any negatives in the whole situation …
“As I got to know them they were really open to talking to me and having open communication and dialogue, not passing judgement based on everything in the past, looking at we’re doing now, our entire body of work, they offered me a position and I accepted.”
Dupay said that coaching at a Christian school appealed to his faith and coaching a smaller K-through-12 school appealed to his ability to create a culture.
“You get to create a real culture, something we did at (Cape Coral) Mariner, something that we were able to do at Florida, where we come in, where there’s not a lot of basketball tradition, and come in and just create a culture of excellence, dedication,” Dupay said.
“If we come in there and follow the process the way I was taught, winning games should really take care of itself. At least I sure hope so.”
Dupay has plenty of mentors to draw from, including former Florida coach Billy Donovan and former UF assistants John Pelphrey, Donnie Jones and Anthony Grant.
“Just going to pass it on, pass it along, just keep doing what I love doing,” Dupay said.
Dupay said he will continue his grassroots efforts with his basketball academy in Tampa while coaching at Cambridge Christian School. At Cambridge, Dupay has pieces to build around, beginning with a young point guard named Caleb Young.
“Probably a little bit taller than me, maybe an inch or two, fantastic all-around athlete,” Dupay said. “I think some of the things I’ve learned, some of the things I do will really help him. I can relate to him, he can relate to me.”
Other notes:
– Four Florida basketball players — walk-on guard Lexx Edwards, center John Egbunu, forward DeVon Walker and walk-on center Schuyler Rummer — were named to the SEC’s winter academic honor roll on Tuesday.
– Per ESPN.com’s Jeff Goodman, 6-foot-6 graduate transfer Canyon Barry has visits planned at Northwestern (April 28) and Miami (May 2). Barry, the son of Basketball Hall of Famer Rick Barry, visited UF from April 8-9, attending UF’s spring football game. Barry averaged 19.7 points per game last season at College of Charleston, but sat out the final two months of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery.
– Former Gator assistant John Pelphrey told the Tuscaloosa News’ Cecil Hurt that second-year coach Avery Johnson’s personality attracted him to take the assistant coaching job with the Tide.
Source: GatorSports.com - Hoops Scoop
