Al Pinkins was recently named as the Florida Gators’ interim head men’s basketball coach. This is following Mike White leaving to take the same position at the University of Georgia. Pinkins was previously the associate head coach for the Gators. He has been with the team since 2018, focusing on the front-court.

Prior to joining Florida, Pinkins spent three seasons with the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Before that, he was at LSU for a season. At LSU, he worked with Ben Simmons during which he won National Freshman of the Year. He also spent time at Tennessee and Ole Miss. He spent three seasons with the Rebels. He did not overlap with White at Ole Miss, as he came in at the same time White left his alma mater for the head coaching position at Louisiana Tech. Pinkins began his career at Middle Tennessee State. He was there from 2003 to 2011.

Playing Career

Al Pinkins is from Mitchell-Baker High School in Camilla, Georgia. He began his college playing career at Chipola Junior College, where he played for two years. Pinkins then transferred to North Carolina State where he played for two seasons.

He began his professional career at Team Baleno in Zaragoza, Spain. Following that, he played in the USBL and the IBL for the Raleigh Cougars and Minot Skyrockets respectively. He also played overseas in Qatar and in China. Pinkins has no previous head coaching experience.

Pinkins As Interim

It is unlikely that Pinkins will change much for the Florida program, given he has very little time. Florida is already a front-court heavy team, so a continued reliance on Colin Castleton can be expected. The Gators are participating in the NIT Tournament and will take on the Iona Gaels. The tournament begins on March 15 and the Gators begin the next day on March 16.