‘My career has come full circle’: New Gonzaga assistant R-Jay Barsh returns to Northwest

There’s no sure-fire way to know how a newcomer will fit in with an established group of coaches, but R-Jay Barsh has several things decidedly in his favor as the newest assistant on Gonzaga’s coaching staff.

One, he worked three seasons at Boise State for head coach Leon Rice, who spent 11 seasons at Gonzaga as an assistant to Mark Few, Barsh’s new boss.

Two, Barsh has recruiting connections across the country, particularly in the West, and overseas, which lines up with Gonzaga’s methodology.

And three, he’s close friends with the man he replaced, Roger Powell Jr., who spoke to Barsh’s Southeastern University team in December 2013.

At the time, Powell, recently hired as Valparaiso’s head coach after four years as a GU assistant, was a Valpo assistant. The Beacons hammered Barsh’s team 89-46, but the two stayed in contact and became good friends.

Barsh, who spent last season assisting Leonard Hamilton at Florida State, has a good feel for what he’s getting into at Gonzaga and vice versa.

“It does set the road map,” Barsh said of his three seasons with Rice. “One would assume they run their programs quite similarly. I do strive to have a family-driven atmosphere, get the job done, help the team grow and support the (head) coach.

“Those are things I love and I think I’ll fit in well because both of those approaches tend to be offensive-minded and I can bring the defensive stuff as well, especially when it comes to individual workouts. People think individual workouts are just about offense. The way coach Rice set it up for me, I think it’s going to be a smooth transition working for his previous boss.”

Barsh said of Powell: “His approach to life and family are things any young man would aspire to be. We always like to bounce ideas off each other and challenge each other as well.”

Returning to the Northwest and the opportunity to join Few’s staff were major selling points for the Washington native.

“Coach Hamilton has been a mentor of mine for a very long time and he had mentioned to me being in your home region at the state of where I was in my career would be very advantageous,” Barsh said. “I was in a great spot with Florida State and I had been a head coach in that state (for seven years at Southeastern) so it was kind of interesting where my home region was. I knew it was in the state of Washington, but I cut my teeth on the East Coast.

“What sold it is the way coach Few allows his assistants to work. It’s similar to coach Hamilton. Not a lot of people have the chance to work under two of the best.”

Barsh, 40, has played or coached at nearly every level, including Division I, II and III, NAIA, junior college and the preps. He played at Puyallup (Wash.) High, Tacoma Community College and Central Washington, but his time at the latter was cut short by a back injury.

He began his coaching journey before his playing career ended. He transferred from CWU to Puget Sound, where he was essentially a player-coach while trying to regain his health. He remembers being limited to playing in an exhibition game or two, but he’d already caught the coaching bug.

“I knew early on what part of the game was going to be best for me,” Barsh said.

He coached at Puget Sound, Tacoma’s Lincoln High and Tacoma CC before taking the head coaching job at Southeastern. That was followed by stops at BSU, Florida State and his upcoming move to Spokane. He also coached four straight summers in Jamal Crawford’s pro-am league in Seattle.

“It’s an opportunity to be with that staff and grow with those people, that’s a huge benefit,” Barsh said of GU. “I can get in a car or on a plane and I’ll be somewhere where I’ve either played in that gym or I know the coach. On the East Coast, I was building those relationships from scratch. My phone is on fire with people telling me they can’t wait to see me back in their gym.

“My career has come full circle.”

Barsh worked with ex-Washington great Isaiah Thomas and former Eastern Washington standout Rodney Stuckey and in Florida with Dwayne Bacon and Kevin Knox before they became NBA players.

He’s trained South Carolina women’s forward Chloe Kitts and expects that to continue at some point this spring or summer.

“The guys in Florida, I’ve been part of their story,” Barsh said. “Before they had a (college) offer, they were in my gym. There’s something about being able to see potential in a player and having a plan to help them get there even before they see it.”

Barsh’s time at Boise State coincided with one NCAA Tournament and one NIT appearance in three seasons.

“What I took from coach Rice was to have a full plan of what you want your team to look like and have the pieces in place to get there, but to be savvy to adjust if things change,” Barsh said. “He always had contingencies. The way in which he trusts assistants is a way I really respect.”

Asked what he learned from Hamilton, Barsh responded, “How much time do you have?”

He went on to describe Hamilton’s incredible work ethic, from studying video to nonstop hours on the phone with recruits, parents and his past players.

“I learned how to coach players really hard with love,” Barsh said. “I learned on the defensive side of the ball – people often think it’s just guys running around and trying hard – there’s 100 different things you have to do and he cares about all 100.

“There wasn’t a time when he wasn’t on the phone trying to make Florida State, the program or his former players better. And don’t be outworked.”