Bibby Ball hits Sacramento State as ex-Kings star leads new-look Hornets
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Bibby implements strict fundamentals and coaches his practices hands-on.
- Hornets roster was overhauled with 15 newcomers and major transfers to boost talent.
- Program targets cultural change and Big West transition under Bibby’s leadership.
Mike Bibby isn’t just a barker in practice.
He’s a hands-on guy who, as the first-year Sacramento State basketball coach and in his first year coaching at the collegiate level, gets involved in a play in his quest to implement non-negotiable fundamentals. This can include setting screens or coming off of one.
The 2000s Sacramento Kings star guard looks fit enough to curl off a screen and coolly drop in an 18-footer jumper in front of a frenzied home playoff crowd, but Bibby does his basketball work now with a whistle. He is still in his element of living the game, and now teaching it.
The Hornets have 15 new players on the roster, a complete overhaul from a taxing 2024-25 season. The coaching staff is new. One holdover is Zach Chappell, the Sacramento-raised prep star who excelled as a Hornets player and was on the coaching staff last season. He is now the assistant general manager for the program, earning praise from Bibby for holding down the fort until he arrived.
Retired NBA great Shaquille O’Neal is the Hornets hoops general manager, a volunteer role he has said was a favor to his longtime friend Bibby.
Bibby said he is impressed with the work ethic of the new-look Hornets, whose home opener is Tuesday in the sparkling new Hornet Pavilion — the portion of the on-campus fitness center known as The Well that replaces the tiny Nest as Sac State’s new home court, located next to the school’s football stadium. Sac State hosts small-college Dominican of the Bay Area at 7 p.m.
“We’ve still got a lot of work to do,” said Bibby, sounding every bit like a coach. “We have a lot of old, dusty habits that we have to know off. It’s like starting from the beginning. We learn, teach them how to do the pick-and-roll, and jump to the ball, and little stuff like that. We’re breaking habits that they had from before, and trying to teach them the right way to play, to make it a habit.”
Fundamentals sound good in coach speak, but Bibby has stressed that theme since taking this gig, his first on a college bench. He was a fundamentally sound player who poured himself into his craft. He coached national prep powerhouse Shadow Mountain High in Arizona to five state championships, with fundamentals meshing with the talent.
And those teams were in shape. Al Biancani helped whip those high school players into shape when Bibby invited the former Kings strength coach to work them over. Bibby’s first call when he landed the Sac State job was to Biancani, a highly regarded regional strength coach for decades who jumped at the chance to work with his old friend again.
“We can be pretty good,” Biancani said. “Mike has a plan.”
Bibby is equal parts intense and relaxed in practices. He lets his coaches coach, and he also leaves no doubt who is in charge. This is Bibby Ball time now.
“I love to coach, love teaching the game,” Bibby said. “I love getting the kids better. I like pushing them. I’ve got a lot of knowledge that I can help them with, on the court and off. It’s a family here. A lot of these players came from different parts of the country, and their families are comfortable leaving them with us. It’s great.”
Bibby understands that there will expectations. He wasn’t asked by Sacramento State president Luke Wood or Athletic Director Mark Orr to be a savior.
Just be Bibby, they said. Orr said having Bibby on board has extra meaning because “he’s a Kings legend.”
Bibby is a basketball lifer, and he’s only 47 years old. He was a national recruit in high school who signed with the Arizona Wildcats and helped lead them to the NCAA championship in 1997.
The second overall pick in the 1998 draft by the then-Vancouver Grizzlies, Bibby had his best seasons with the Kings from 2001-08, and his game-winning shot to beat the Lakers in a 2002 Western Conference Finals playoff game is the biggest play in the Kings’ Sacramento era, which dates back to 1985. Bibby played through the 2011-12 season in the NBA, scoring 14,698 career points and making 5,517 assists.
Bibby’s challenges now include getting the Hornets relevant. The Hornets have fielded just two winning seasons since moving up from Division II to Division I in 1991. Just two. This is the final season for the Hornets in the Big Sky Conference before a move to the Big West, which is heavy on California teams.
“I’m here for the kids, the school, the city of Sacramento,” Bibby said. “I just want to help change the culture here with this program. I never thought Sacramento State would be my first college coaching job. I’m glad it is. The kids have to buy in. If they don’t, it’s going to be another season like last year. We have a lot of good kids. They just have to buy in.”
Sacramento products bolster roster
Sac State’s revamped roster includes: guard Mikey Williams, a transfer from UCF; forward Brandon Gardner, a transfer from USC; guard Taj Glover, a transfer from South Florida; guard Jahni Summers, a transfer from Indiana State; forward Shaqir O’Neal, son of Shaq and a transfer from Florida A&M; 6-foot-11 center/forward Jeremiah Cherry, a transfer from UNLV; guard Prophet Johnson, a transfer from Fairfield; guard Isaiah Bronson, a transfer from Cal Poly Pomona; guard Arman Madi, a transfer from Northern Arizona; and forward Jeremiah Nyarko, a transfer from Stony Brook.
And there are two Sacramento-area products with their own quest to prove that they belong: 2025’s Sacramento Bee Player of the Year in forward Mark Lavrenov of Rocklin High in Placer County; and guard Jayden Teat, who prepped at Jesuit and Capital Christian and transferred in from Utah.
Lavrenov has impressed with his work ethic and skills, be it fighting for rebounds and positioning as a 6-8 banger or an effective shooter who can handle the ball. It didn’t take Bibby long to realize he had a player. Lavrenov was signed by the previous coaching staff.
“I wanted to see him work out, and I thought, ‘He’s going to play!’” Bibby said.
Lavrenov said he has embraced the challenge of adjusting to a faster and more physical game. This isn’t the high school ranks anymore. Everyone can play.
“That’s the biggest thing, listening to the coaches, buying into the process because all of these coaches know more than I do,” Lavrenov said. “We have a lot of senior leadership, older guys, too. It’s great learning from them.”
Teat can handle the ball, shoot it and lead the team, be it in practice or in games. His joy is evident.
“I’m very encouraged,” Teat said. “We have a very good team here. Fourteen new players. Coach has done a lot of good things. We have a lot of team camaraderie off the court, like bowling. We had some dinners. It really formed us together...
“None of us are short of motivation. Everybody here has something to prove. We all have goals, dreams and aspirations.”
This story was originally published November 2, 2025 at 5:00 AM.