NABC — National Association of Basketball Coaches

What is the NABC?

The National Association of Basketball Coaches is a membership association of basketball coaches in the United States. It describes itself as “a professional development and advocacy organization supporting coaches at every level of the sport”.^[1] Its about page sets out its objectives, among them “to promote the ideals of integrity, sportsmanship and teamwork among basketball coaches and the players whom they coach”, “to unify coaches on issues pertaining to basketball at all levels” and to collaborate with the NCAA and other governing bodies “on legislation, policies and rules that impact the game of basketball”.^[2]

It is not a governing body. It writes no playing rules, runs no league or championship and sanctions no competition. What it produces is professional development for coaches, advocacy on their behalf, an annual convention held alongside the men’s Final Four, and awards and All-America teams voted on by its member coaches.^[6][12][9] Its home page states that “coaches champion the core values of leadership, advocacy, service, education and inclusion”.^[1] Its membership categories run from NCAA Division I to high school, youth and international coaches.^[4]

What does the NABC do?

Advocacy is the role the NABC gives itself in the college game: “The NABC engages with the NCAA and other governing bodies to provide coach perspective and input on legislative initiatives.”^[2] The rules and championships themselves belong to the college governing bodies — the NCAA, the NAIA and the NJCAA — and the NABC pages retrieved describe no power to make or enforce rules, conduct anti-doping testing or certify officials.

The association’s origin was itself an act of advocacy over the rules. The NABC states that its formation “began as an emergency measure for the presentation of a united opinion” after a rules committee proposed eliminating the dribble, and that Allen “organized coaches to take a stand in a nationwide protest which successfully postponed the adoption of the rule change for one year”.^[2]

Beyond advocacy it provides member services and professional development — the convention programme includes “keynote sessions, Professional Development Series clinics, networking events, the NABC Marketplace trade show, award ceremonies” — and runs the award programmes described below.^[9] Internationally, basketball is governed by FIBA, with USA Basketball as the national body; the NABC pages retrieved describe no affiliation to either.

When was the NABC founded and where is it based?

The NABC gives its founding in one sentence: “The NABC was founded in 1927 by Forrest “Phog” Allen”, the University of Kansas men’s basketball coach, whom it calls “a student of basketball founder James Naismith”.^[2] No independent primary source for the 1927 date could be retrieved, so it is given as the association states it; the founding place and the number of founding coaches are not stated on the NABC’s own about page.

The headquarters is at 30 West Pershing Rd., Suite 840, Kansas City, Missouri 64108, the address on its site.^[1] No renaming of the association is recorded in the NABC pages retrieved.

The board page lists the officers for the 2026–27 season: Tommy Amaker of Harvard as president, four vice-presidents, and Craig Robinson as executive director, together with past presidents, directors, directors emeritus, and directors representing the NJCAA Men’s Basketball Coaches Association and the National High School Basketball Coaches Association.^[3]

How is the NABC recognised?

As an association, the NABC’s standing is legal and contractual rather than a federation’s. Its about and membership pages do not state its legal form.^[2][4] ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer, drawing on IRS data, files the National Association of Basketball Coaches in Kansas City, Missouri, under EIN 31-1626159 as exempt under section 501(c)(6) — “Business leagues, chambers of commerce, real estate boards, etc, created for the improvement of business conditions” — since December 1998, with Craig Robinson listed as executive director and Form 990 filings through the fiscal year ending September 2024.^[10] A separate National Association of Basketball Coaches Foundation, also in Kansas City, is filed under EIN 06-1560942 as a 501(c)(3) organisation with a ruling year of 2000.^[11]

Its tie to the NCAA is visible in its own governance. Among the ex-officio members of its board, the NABC lists the NCAA’s senior vice-president of basketball and its senior vice-president of governance and member services, and two members of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Oversight Committee.^[3] The relationship is collaboration and representation, in the NABC’s words “coach perspective and input on legislative initiatives”; the NABC is not part of the NCAA’s structure.^[2]

The NABC All-America teams, NABC Coach of the Year and NABC Player of the Year are the association’s own awards, voted on by its member coaches; they are not NCAA awards, and no NCAA document assigning them a formal status could be retrieved. The general meaning of the title is set out under All-American.^{[5][6][7][12]}

What does the NABC organise?

Coach of the Year. “Selected via a nationwide vote of NABC-member head coaches, NABC Coach of the Year awards are presented at the conclusion of each season to outstanding head coaches in NCAA Divisions I, II and III, the NAIA, two-year colleges, and the high school level.” The NABC’s list of Division I winners begins in 1959; lists for Division II (1962), two-year colleges (1984), Division III (1976), the NAIA (1993) and high school (2018) begin later.^[6]

Player of the Year. “Voted on by NABC-member coaches in each division”, for NCAA Divisions I, II and III, the NAIA and two-year colleges; the Division I list begins in 1975.^[7]

All-America teams. The NABC names All-America teams for Division I, Division II, Division III, the NAIA and two-year colleges (NJCAA, NWAC and CCCAA).^[5] The 2026 Division I teams — first, second and third — were, in the NABC’s words, “voted on by NABC-member coaches across NCAA Division I”, and its Division I All-America history begins with the 1946–47 season.^[12][13]

Guardians of the Game. “NABC Guardians of the Game Awards are presented annually to NABC members who embody the core values of advocacy, leadership, service, education and inclusion”; the listed recipients begin in 2002.^[8]

Convention. Held “alongside the NCAA Men’s Final Four”, the final weekend of the NCAA tournament: the 2027 NABC Convention is scheduled for 1–5 April 2027 at Huntington Place in Detroit.^[9]

Who are its members?

Members are individual coaches. The NABC states that it “currently boasts a membership base of over 5,000 coaches throughout the ranks of the NCAA, NAIA, USCAA, NCCAA, two-year colleges, high schools, youth programs and other organizations” (retrieved 1 October 2026); it also calls itself “the nation’s largest professional association of basketball coaches”, a description that is its own.^[2] No independent membership count could be retrieved.

Dues for 2026–27 are banded by level and role. The membership page lists head- and assistant-coach rates for NCAA Division I; for NCAA Divisions II and III, the NAIA, USCAA, NCCAA and independents; for two-year colleges; and for high school, middle school, youth and grassroots coaches, with a high school state administrator rate. Flat-rate categories cover international coaches, support staff, retired coaches, those with no current position and affiliates.^[4]

Voting rights in the awards follow membership: Coach of the Year is decided by NABC-member head coaches, and Player of the Year by member coaches in each division.^[6][7] The board includes directors from the NJCAA Men’s Basketball Coaches Association and the National High School Basketball Coaches Association.^[3]