Randy Ayers

Randall Duane Ayers (born April 16, 1956) is an American basketball coach who is currently an assistant coach (through a coaching advisor position) for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association. Ayers grew up in Springfield, Ohio and played college basketball at Miami University in Ohio. He has been a basketball coach since 1979.

He was selected in the third round of the 1978 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls. He played one year of professional basketball for the Reno Bighorns of the World Basketball Association. In 1979, he returned to Miami as an assistant coach. After four years on the Miami staff, Ayers was an assistant at Army from 1982 to 1984.

From 1984 to 1989, Ayers was an assistant at Ohio State under Eldon Miller and Gary Williams and was promoted to head coach in 1989. In eight seasons at Ohio State, Ayers had a 124–108 record with three straight NCAA tournament appearances from 1990 to 1992. In 1991 and 1992, Ohio State won back-to-back Big Ten Conference regular season titles and top-five national finishes. However, amidst declining team performance and an ethics violation, Ayers was fired in 1997.

Since leaving Ohio State, Ayers has coached in the NBA, starting as an assistant with the Philadelphia 76ers from 1999 to 2003. Ayers was head coach for the 76ers in the 2003–04 season, the last head coaching job he would hold. Subsequently, Ayers was an assistant for the Orlando Magic from 2005 to 2007, Washington Wizards from 2007 to 2009, the New Orleans Hornets (later Pelicans) from 2010 to 2012 and 2014 to 2015, and then the Phoenix Suns beginning in 2019.

Early life Ayers was born in Springfield, Ohio, the fourth of eight children of Frank Ayers and Betty Basey. He played basketball at North High School in Springfield, where he was named Ohio high school Class AAA (big-school) player of the year in 1974.

College career Ayers attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he played basketball. Ayers made his mark more as a defender, rebounder and playmaker than as a scorer, as Miami teammates Archie Aldridge as well as Chuck Goodyear provided much of the offense. As a freshman in 1974–75, Ayers saw significant playing time, averaged 8.5 points per game (ppg) with a .560 field goal percentage as the Redskins, coached by Darrell Hedric, posted a 19–7 record. Miami opened the tournament with a thrilling 84–81 overtime win over defending national champion Marquette, a game in which Ayers had a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds plus three assists. In the next round they were defeated by eventual national champion Kentucky, 91–69, although Ayers had another big game with 18 points, eight rebounds and three assists.

Ayers earned a bachelor's degree in education in 1978 and master's degree in 1981, both from Miami.

Professional playing career He was drafted in the third round of the 1978 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls, but was cut from the team and then played professionally in Reno, Nevada for the Reno Bighorns in the fledgling Western Basketball Association. Ayers earned second-team all-league honors, but the WBA folded after one season.

Coaching career

Early coaching career (1979–1989) In 1979, Ayers returned to Miami University for graduate school and became a graduate assistant for his former coach Hedric.

Although it was not apparent at the time, Ayers' tenure had crested. Ohio State significantly regressed in 1992–93. Despite peaking at #21 in the AP Poll, Ohio State finished 15–13 and exited after the first round of the 1993 National Invitation Tournament with a loss to Miami University. The next season, Ohio State dropped to 13–16, the first losing season in 17 years.

In June 1994, the National Collegiate Athletic Association placed Ohio State on one year's probation after finding that Ayers improperly met with a high school recruit and basketball coach during a restricted time period and paid $60 to the coach. Also that year, Ohio State power forward Lawrence Funderburke was selected in the second round of the NBA draft. However, Ohio State continued to struggle with three straight losing seasons, as low as 6–22 in 1994–95.

On March 10, 1997, Ohio State athletic director Andy Geiger fired Ayers. In eight seasons, Ayers had a cumulative 124–108 record at Ohio State. On April 29 that year, Ohio State reached a nearly $637,000 settlement with Ayers to buy out the remaining two years of his contract.

Philadelphia 76ers assistant and head coach (1997–2004) Ayers was named head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers on June 20, 2003, Ayers then joined the coaching staff of the New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) in 2010, continuing his position until 2012. He returned with the Pelicans for the 2014–15 NBA season before being hired as a scout for the Brooklyn Nets on November 3, 2015.

On June 26, 2019, Ayers was hired as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns. On June 28, 2022, Ayers was moved to the team's coaching advisor position, which allows him to take on a smaller role with the coaching staff and spend more time with his family, as well as remain a key part of the Suns' coaching staff.

Head coaching record

College

NBA

Personal life Ayers' youngest brother, Tim Ayers, served as mayor and city commissioner of Springfield, Ohio from 1984 to 1990.

Ayers married high school Spanish teacher Carol Denise Peery in 1983. They have two sons. Ryan Ayers (born July 16, 1986) played college basketball at Notre Dame and was later an assistant coach there. Cameron Ayers (born September 18, 1991) played college basketball at Bucknell University and played pro basketball.

He was inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.