Dee-lightful: Silver Stars Announce New Head Coach

The San Antonio Silver Stars announced today that Dee Brown has been named the team’s new head coach. Brown signed a multi-year deal, but per team policy terms of the agreement have not been announced. He recently served as the head coach and general manager of the Orlando Miracle in 2002 before the team relocated to Connecticut. At the same time the Silver Stars announced that Shell Dailey, San Antonio’s interim head coach for the last 12 games of the 2003 season, will remain with the team as an assistant coach.

“We can’t tell you how excited we are to have Dee Brown leading our team into the 2004 season,” said Clarissa Davis-Wrightsil, the Silver Stars’ WNBA Chief Operating Officer. “Dee brings a tremendous wealth of basketball knowledge to the Silver Stars. Not only has he coached at the WNBA level, he has worked in the front office for the NBA’s Orlando Magic as the director of player development and is a 12-year NBA veteran.”

Brown was named head coach and general manger of the Orlando Miracle on April 5, 2002. In his only season at the helm, Brown led the Miracle to a 16-16 record and tied the franchise record for most wins in a season. He also orchestrated the team’s first ever trade as he added Clarisse Machanguana to the roster from the Charlotte Sting for a first round selection in the 2002 WNBA Draft. Brown also made the first-ever trade that involved a Miracle player sending Elaine Powell to Detroit in exchange for Wendy Palmer.

During 2002-03 off-season the Miracle relocated to Connecticut while Brown stayed in Orlando and joined the Magic as the director of player development. In this position, he worked closely with the basketball and business operations departments in overseeing all of the player programs and also developed leadership support to the organization and team’s basketball players as it related to both organizational goals and player development.

A 12-year NBA veteran, Brown was a 1990 first round draft pick (19th overall). He spent seven seasons (1990-97) with the Boston Celtics where he was a team captain for four years, three seasons (1997-2000) with the Toronto Raptors where he served as the team captain all three years and two seasons (2000-02) with the Magic. During his NBA career, Brown averaged 11.1 points, 2.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists in 608 games, and led the NBA in three-point field goals made (135) and attempted (349) during the 1998-99 campaign. For his career he saw action in 31 playoff games, and averaged 10.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 3.6 apg.

In 1991, he was named to the 1990-91 NBA All-Rookie First Team after averaging 8.7 ppg and 4.2 apg during his first season with the Celtics, and was third in voting for Rookie of the Year. The following season he was crowned Slam Dunk champion at the 1991 All-Star Weekend in Charlotte.

After retiring in 2002 Brown joined the Magic’s corporate office as a special assistant to Orlando Magic Operations, where he worked closely with the basketball operations, marketing, corporate sales, community relations and broadcasting departments.

Brown, is married to Tammy Brown and has three daughters, Alexis (8), Alyssa (6) and Alanni (1). Tammy is no stranger to women’s basketball as she played for American International College. Brown and his wife are the founders of The Tammy and Dee Brown Foundation, established in December of 1997 to support educational programs, which encourage strengthening the bonds between parents and children. Brown is a Special Limited Partner with Grace Venture Partners, a firm which specializes in providing equity financing for the commercialization of military technologies. Brown also serves on the Board of Directors for the UCF Foundation, Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Florida and the National Advisory Board for the DeVos Sports Management Program at the University of Central Florida and has recently been named a YMCA 2002 Black Achiever.

“Dee is a perfect fit for our organization and our community,” Davis-Wrightsil added. “We wanted a coach who could lead the team on and off the court while also being involved in and making a positive contribution to the community. Brown is a firm believer that a player’s character off the court is just as important as their skills on the court. The city will appreciate his work ethic and his desire to build a championship team.”

Dailey took over as interim head coach of the Silver Stars on July 26, guiding the team to a 6-6 record during their last 12 games of the season. She joined the Silver Stars on April 3, 2003, as an assistant coach. Prior to joining the Silver Stars, Dailey spent the previous four seasons as an assistant coach for the University of South Carolina.

“It’s a huge asset for the Silver Stars to have Shell back on the sidelines heading into next season,” Davis-Wrightsil said. “She did a tremendous job taking over last season and I know the players and our fans have great respect for her and the work she did while running the team.”

During her tenure at South Carolina she helped lead the Gamecocks to the NCAA tournament twice, including an appearance in the Elite 8 during the 2001-02 season. In addition to her coaching duties, Dailey was responsible for recruiting, scouting opponents, helping coordinate the team’s marketing strategies and scheduling the team’s community service appearances. Prior to joining the Gamecocks coaching staff, she served as an assistant coach for the Nashville Noise of the American Basketball League (ABL) in 1998 and the University of Texas A&M during the 1997-98 season.

No stranger to Texas, Dailey began her coaching career in 1992 as an assistant coach at Texas Christian University. The following season she was promoted to head coach where she guided the team for the next three seasons.

Dailey played four years of collegiate basketball at the University of Texas from 1981-85. Led by Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame member and Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame member, Head Coach Jody Conradt, the Longhorns participated in postseason play in all four of Dailey’s seasons. During her freshman year, the team reached the AIAW Final Four, losing to Rutgers in the Championship Game. Over the next three seasons, Dailey helped the Longhorns to two Elite 8 appearances and one Sweet 16 berth. During her collegiate career, the Longhorns won four Southwest Conference championships and never lost a conference game. Named as the team captain her senior year, Dailey also received numerous academic rewards and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in advertising management.

A native of McKinney, TX, Dailey is married to Eric Dailey and the couple is expecting their first child in January 2004