Alvin Brooks III, regarded as one of the nation’s best assistant coaches, joined the Kentucky men’s basketball coaching staff as associate head coach in April of 2024.

Prior to arriving at Kentucky, Brooks coached eight seasons at Baylor, serving as both an assistant and associate head coach. The Bears went 194-72 during Brooks’ tenure, including a 94-46 record in Big 12 action, 12-5 in NCAA Tournament games and 22-15 against Associated Press top-10 ranked foes.

A Houston native, Brooks began his coaching career at the junior college level. He spent two seasons at Arkansas-Forth Smith, helping the Lions to the 2006 NJCAA Division I championship. He then joined the staff at Midland, where he again was on staff for an NJCAA title team in 2007.

Brooks ascended to the Division I level when he joined the staff for three seasons at Bradley as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. From there he also was a part of the Sam Houston State (2010-12) and Kansas State (2012-16) staffs before joining forces with Scott Drew at Baylor in 2016.

At Kansas State, Brooks was a part of one the best stretches in school history with 79 wins and NCAA Tournament appearances in two the four seasons. He also played a major role in K-State’s first-ever Big 12 regular-season title in 2012-13, which included the second-most wins (27) and a tie for the most conference victories (14) in school history.

At Baylor, the Bears put together one of the best seasons in program history in 2019-20. BU finished 26-4 and were projected for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament before the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the postseason. The Bears posted 23 straight wins (Big 12 Record) and were ranked No. 1 by the AP for five weeks, the longest stretch for one team since Kentucky was the top-ranked team in 19 straight weeks in 2015.

The following season, Baylor earned a No. 1 seed and captured the program’s first national championship. BU capped the season with a 28-2 overall record and a 13-1 mark in Big 12 action on their way to the school’s first-ever conference title. Baylor captured a program-record 11 victories over ranked foes and was a perfect 7-0 against teams ranked inside of the top 10. Three players earned All-America honors with Jared Butler becoming the first consensus first-team All-American in program history while also earning Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors. Davion Mitchell swept the National Defensive Player of the Year awards.

Capitalizing on Baylor’s success, with Brooks playing the lead role as recruiter, BU hauled in the highest ranked recruiting class in program history in 2021 at No. 4 overall by ESPN. Baylor won the Big 12 Championship again in 2022 to become the third school in Big 12 history to repeat as champions.

Baylor had a guard win All-America honors in four-straight seasons (Jared Butler in 2020 and 2021, Davion Mitchell in 2021, MaCio Teague in 2021, James Akinjo in 2022 and Adam Flagler in 2023). The program’s sustained success saw them become the only team in the nation to be a No. 3 seed or higher in each of the last four NCAA Tournaments and one of just four teams to win a game in the last five NCAA Tournaments.

The Bears have had seven selections in the NBA Draft, including three-consecutive lottery selections (Mitchell, Jeremy Sochan and Keyonte George) with Brooks on staff.

Brooks began his own collegiate playing career at Midland College before transferring to Idaho State. He was an Academic All-Big Sky selection as a senior. Brooks graduated from Idaho State in 2002 with a degree in finance. He earned a master’s degree in athletics administration in 2023. He and his wife, Tiffany, have two children, Alvin IV (AJ) and Austin.

He is the son of Lamar head coach Alvin Brooks II. Brooks II was the director of operations under Kentucky’s Billy Gillisipie from 2007-09.