Tulane men’s basketball head coach Ron Hunter announced on May 1 two changes to the team’s coaching staff for the upcoming 2026-27 season. Kim Lewis, a two-time Tulane Hall of Fame inductee, will return as an assistant coach, while RJ Hunter will move into a full-time assistant coach position.
The announcement highlights the experience and connection that Lewis brings to Tulane athletics. “We are thrilled to welcome Kim back to Uptown and keep RJ on our staff for the upcoming season,” Coach Hunter said. “Coach Lewis brings a wealth of coaching experience to our staff as well as a deep connection to Tulane athletics that will be instrumental in helping us develop our student-athletes to compete at the highest level.”
Hunter also addressed RJ Hunter’s expanded role with the team. “Bringing RJ into a full-time role with our staff will allow him to continue to pour his experience and knowledge of the game into our student-athletes on a regular basis,” he said. “He has done an incredible job building relationships with the team over the past two seasons and we look forward to seeing his continued impact on the growth of our players on and off the court.”
Lewis returns for his third stint with Tulane after previous assistant coaching roles from 1997-99 and 2008-10, including mentoring Linton Johnson who later won an NBA Championship in 2005. As a player from 1990-94, Lewis set program records in steals and games played, scored over 1,300 points, helped lead Tulane to its first conference championship, and was inducted into Tulane’s Athletics Hall of Fame both individually (2014) and as part of a team (2020). He joins after more than two decades of Division I coaching experience at several universities.
RJ Hunter enters his third season at Tulane but first as a full-time assistant after previously serving as volunteer assistant coach following nine years playing professionally in various leagues worldwide. During his time on staff, he contributed significantly to player development and helped guide Tulane back into postseason play.
Other members rounding out Coach Hunter’s staff include Associate Head Coach Ray McCallum, Assistant Coach Gebereal Baitey, Director of Operations Nate Summers, and Assistant Director Ben Miner.
