Kevin Boyle, who has coached three No. 1 NBA Draft picks and will likely have a fourth in Duke freshman Cooper Flagg, is making a dramatic move following the season.
Amid the changing landscape of NIL and the transfer portal in college basketball, the Clark, N.J. native is leaving Montverde (FL) Academy after this season to take over at Spire Academy (Ohio).
“The entire landscape of high school basketball has changed,” Boyle told ESPN. “There are new platforms for players to showcase themselves. Interest is growing. Expectations have changed, with players now having professional representation. Top prospects are looking for ways to maximize their development and image.
“This new situation necessitates different strategies, and Jonathan Ehrenfeld, our managing partner at Spire Academy, has the vision and commitment to help us forge the path forward. I want to thank Montverde for fourteen great years and Jon Hopman and David Bernatavitz for all their support.”
Boyle left St. Patrick’s High School for Montverde in 2011 after coaching players like Kyrie Irving (a No. 1 draft pick), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (a No. 2) and Al Harrington (No. 25).
At Montverde, he coached two more No. 1 picks in Ben Simmons (LSU) and Cade Cunningham (Oklahoma State), as well as top-3 picks in Joel Embiid (Kansas), D’Angelo Russell (Ohio State) and RJ Barrett (Duke),
The Cunningham-led team from 2019-20 went undefeated, as did his team from 2023-24 which featured four projected lottery picks in this year’s draft: Flagg, Asa Newell (Georgia), Derik Queen (Maryland) and Liam McNeeley (UConn).
“I think Kevin’s one of the outstanding coaches in the country; forget about high school, prep school, college or pro,” former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said to NJ Advance Media’s in 2022. “Kevin knows what the heck he’s doing, and he’s found a home there at Montverde.”
Now he’s found a new home and will depart after the EYBL Conference Tournament this week and Chipotle Nationals next month.
“He’ll go down as the best high school coach ever, and I think he’ll be a Hall of Famer within the next five or so years,” Montverde assistant coach Matt Cohen told Babcock Hoops. “People are gonna look back and see throughout his career the talent he’s produced and the sculpting of players he’s done, and no one will ever come close to that.”
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Adam Zagoria is a freelance reporter and Basketball Insider for NJ Advance Media. You may follow him on Twitter @AdamZagoria and check out his Website at ZAGSBLOG.com.