FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas coach Eric Musselman announced Wednesday he has filled the vacant assistant coach position on his staff.
David Patrick, the head men's basketball coach at UC Riverside the last two seasons, has been hired to replace former Razorbacks associate head coach Chris Crutchfield, who accepted the head coaching job at East Central (Okla.) University on June 1.
"Coach Patrick and I got to really know each other when he was an assistant coach at St. Mary’s," Musselman said Wednesday afternoon on a Zoom call with reporters. "We loved sitting around talking basketball. He’s a guy that’s just a basketball junkie. Very good on the practice floor. When I got to watch him at St. Mary’s, obviously he is known as an incredible recruiter, but he’s really, really good on the floor.
"He’s a guy that loves individual player development. He’s just as well-rounded a coach as I’ve been around - from the recruiting aspect to the Xs and Os to game preps, practicing and individual skill development."
Patrick, 44, had a 27-38 record as a head coach.
Prior to his stint at UC Riverside, Patrick served as an assistant coach at Nicholls State, St. Mary’s, LSU and TCU. Patrick and Musselman worked together with the Tigers, helping the program reach the NCAA Tournament in 2015.
“I am honored to be reuniting with Coach Musselman,” Patrick said in a release. “The chance to help lead the historic Arkansas program, be close to home, and return to SEC basketball was one that my family and I could not turn down.
"We cannot wait to get down to Fayetteville and I cannot wait to get to work to continue pushing the Razorback program forward.”
Patrick, who grew up in Australia, was responsible for the recruitment of Ben Simmons, his godson and the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, to LSU.
UC Riverside, which won only nine games the season before Patrick arrived, finished 17-15 in his second year. The 17 wins tied for the most in program history at the Division I level.
In addition to his time in the college game, Patrick was also a scout for the Houston Rockets from 2010-12 and is an assistant coach for the Australian Men’s National Team.
As a player, Patrick reached the 1996 Final Four at Syracuse before transferring to Southwestern Louisiana, where he was part of an NCAA Tournament team in 2000. He also played four years professionally in Australia, England and Spain.
"There were a lot of people that had reached out - a lot more than maybe what I anticipated," Musselman added. "The phone over the last 30 days has been really busy. As always, I try to get back to everybody who reaches out and have legitimate conversations. There was a lot of really qualified people, a lot of people I have worked with in the past who I think are great coaches.
"David Patrick, when I really considered and thought about everything and talked it over with (Arkansas athletics director) Hunter (Yurachek), I think this really made the most sense for this program."