STANFORD, Calif. – Kyle Smith, the Anne and Tony Joseph Director of Men’s Basketball, has announced the addition of Brett MacConnell as assistant coach. MacConnell joins the Cardinal after 13 years at Princeton, seven as associate head coach.
“Brett MacConnell is an excellent fit for the Stanford basketball program,” said Smith. “He comes to the farm from one of the most storied and successful programs in college basketball and worked under Mitch Henderson for the past 13 seasons, helping lead the Tigers to multiple Ivy League championships and a sweet 16 appearance in 2023.”
MacConnell joins the Cardinal after helping Princeton to 231 wins over 12 seasons, including four Ivy League championships (2024, 2023, 2022, 2017), two Ivy League Tournament championships (2017, 2023) and six 20-win seasons. Additionally, MacConnell helped guide Princeton to the 2023 Sweet Sixteen as a No. 15 seed, with the Tigers becoming just the fourth team in NCAA Tournament history to accomplish the feat.
An elite recruiter and developer of talent, MacConnell has coached four Ivy League Players of the Year and 19 professional players. Two players – Tosan Evbuomwan and Devin Cannady – have reached the NBA, while the Tigers combined for 29 all-conference selections during his tenure. Most recently, MacConnell recruited and mentored 2024 Ivy League Player of the Year Cade Pierce and two-time All-Ivy League honoree Xaivian Lee.
“With the success he achieved with the Princeton program, it is a logical and well-earned position in the Stanford program,” continued Smith. “Although Princeton competed in the Ivy League, Brett helped build rosters with NBA players and multiple players of the year without athletic scholarships. This specialized skill will help build the Cardinal program in much the same way: high major athletes that are also high major students, striving for excellence in all areas. We are looking to adding Brett and his family to the Farm!”
On the Princeton coaching staff since 2013, MacConnell was previously the Princeton director of basketball operations from 2012-13 and the Saint Peter’s director of basketball operations from 2011-12. He was an assistant coach from 2010-11 at Holy Family University and associate head coach at Delaware Valley College from 2008-10.
Celebrated nationally, MacConnell was invited to the prestigious 2024 TopConnect Basketball Symposium, which identifies the top assistant basketball coaches in the country and connects them with Athletic Directors from around the nation. MacConnell also served as Princeton’s acting head coach four times, finishing with a 3-1 record.
A 2008 graduate from Rutgers, MacConnell is married to Sarah (Samad) MacConnell, a former strength and conditioning coach at Virginia Tech, Maryland and VMU. They have two sons, Cooper and Paxton, and his father, Kevin, is the Chief of Staff for the football program at Rutgers.