Scott Burrell

Scott David Burrell (born January 12, 1971) is an American basketball coach and former player who is currently the men's basketball head coach at Southern Connecticut State University. He has played internationally and was also a professional baseball player, being the first athlete to ever be drafted in the 1st round of two professional leagues (MLB, NBA). In 1990, Burrell was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays of MLB. He played in Minor League Baseball during the 1990 and 1991 seasons. After ending his baseball career, he was drafted in 1993 by the Charlotte Hornets of the NBA. He was later traded to the Golden State Warriors and then the Chicago Bulls, where he won a championship ring. He next played with the New Jersey Nets and then finished his NBA career with the Hornets in 2000–01. He played in other professional basketball leagues through the 2005–06 season.

Early life Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Burrell was raised in nearby Hamden and attended Hamden High School. Burrell was named to the ABCA/Rawlings High School All-America Second Team as a senior in 1989. He was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the first round of the 1989 Major League Baseball draft after graduating from high school.

College career From 1989 to 1993, Burrell played at guard and forward for the Connecticut Huskies under Jim Calhoun.

Burrell went back to school and received his bachelor's degree in general studies from the University of Connecticut on May 8, 2010.

Professional career

Minor league baseball (1990–1991) After being drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fifth round of the 1990 Major League Baseball draft, Burrell was a minor league baseball pitcher from 1990 to 1991, first with the St. Catharines Blue Jays in 1990 and splitting the 1991 season between the Myrtle Beach Hurricanes and St. Catharines Blue Jays. Burrell had a 3.71 ERA and 2–6 record as a minor league pitcher.

Charlotte Hornets (1993–1997) Burrell was selected by the Charlotte Hornets with the 20th overall pick in the 1993 NBA draft. In the 1994–95 season, Burrell played in 65 games with 62 starts and averaged 11.5 points and 5.7 rebounds. Despite a season ending injury on April 1, 1995, Burrell finished third in NBA Most Improved Player Award votes. During the season, in which the Bulls won the NBA championship, Burrell played 80 games with three starts and averaged 5.2 points and 2.5 rebounds.

Shortly after the 1998–99 NBA lockout ended, the Bulls released Burrell on January 25, 1999. In six games with five starts, Burrell averaged 5.5 points and 3.7 rebounds in his only NBDL season.

After leaving the NBDL, Burrell finished much of his professional basketball career internationally, starting with the Shaanxi Kylins of the Chinese Basketball Association where he averaged 18.0 points and 6.2 rebounds in 2002–03. In 2003–04, Burrell played for the Batang Thunder of the Philippine Basketball Association, averaging 25.1 points and 5.0 rebounds. Burrell played 14 games for the Stampede, averaging 6.9 points and 3.9 rebounds. In 2005, Burrell signed with Bilbao Basket of the Spanish Liga ACB, where he played eight games and averaged 5.0 points. On January 24, 2005, Burrell signed with the Hitachi Sunrockers of the Japanese JBL Super League. Burrell averaged 6.2 points in his final pro basketball season with Hitachi in 2005–06.

On August 17, 2007, Burrell became an assistant coach for the Quinnipiac Bobcats men's basketball team at Quinnipiac University in his hometown of Hamden, Connecticut, under former UConn assistant coach Tom Moore.

On July 13, 2015, Burrell was hired as head men's basketball coach at Southern Connecticut State University, a Division II school in New Haven. Inheriting a 24–8 team from former head coach Mike Donnelly, Burrell led the Southern Connecticut Fighting Owls to a 22–8 (17–3 conference) record, Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Division title, and NCAA tournament appearance in his first season; as a result of this success, Burrell earned Eastern College Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honors. Burrell followed up with an 18–13 record and second straight NCAA tournament under his tenure (fourth overall for the program) in 2016–17.

As of the 2019–20 season, Burrell has a 91–56 cumulative record at Southern Connecticut . postseason = NCAA Division II first round

Personal life Following the Chicago Bulls' 1998 championship, Connecticut Governor John G. Rowland issued a proclamation of October 20, 1998 as "Scott Burrell Day," after the town of Hamden presented Burrell with a "key to the city." Burrell is married to SportsNet New York reporter Jeané Coakley. They have two children. His niece is the USA Eagles women's Rugby Union Lock Alycia Washington.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

Playoffs

College 1989–90 Connecticut

1990–91 Connecticut

1991–92 Connecticut

1992–93 Connecticut