The Clemson Board of Trustee’s Compensation Committee Thursday morning officially approved the hiring of former Indiana State assistant coach Kareem Richardson to Brad Brownell’s staff as an assistant coach.

The Compensation Committee also extended the contracts and gave raises to assistant men’s basketball coaches Dick Bender and Antonio Reynolds Dean for another year.

Richardson will have a one-year contract with a base salary of $275,000 in 2021-’22. Reynolds Dean’s one-year deal was approved for $325,000, while Bender’s is set for $250,000.

Reynolds Dean’s salary increased from $257,000 to $325,000. Bender’s salary increased from $235,000 to $250,000.

Athletic Director Dan Radakovich pointed out to the Compensation Committee that basketball’s total assistant coaches’ salaries are just below the medium of the national figures for assistant coaches. They are just below the 50-percent level on the national level.

Richardson replaces Anthony Goins on Brownell’s staff after Goins left to join Earl Grant’s staff at Boston College. Grant was an assistant coach on Brownell’s staff at Clemson from 2010-’14.

“I’ve known Kareem for a long time and have always been impressed by his work ethic, knowledge of the game and competitive spirit,” Brownell said in a prepared statement. “Kareem brings a wealth of experience to the position having worked for many outstanding coaches over the years as well as serving as the head coach at UMKC. Our players will enjoy working with him and I think his experience in different regions of the country will serve us well in recruiting.”­­

Before going to Indiana State, Richardson spent six seasons as the head coach of the Missouri-Kansas City basketball program from 2013-2019. Richardson guided the 2016-17 UMKC squad to the second-most victories in a season (18) in school history.

Richardson had another stop at Indiana State where in 2000, he guided the Sycamores to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the Larry Bird era in the late 1970s. A year later in 2001, Indiana State topped No. 4 seed Oklahoma to advance to the second round of the NCAAs.

In 2000, the Sycamores won the Missouri Valley Conference Regular Season crown and then in 2001 they won the MVC Tournament Championship.

Richardson has been ranked as one of the top assistants in college basketball according to the basketball website Collegeinsider.com. He earned a reputation as a top-level recruiter during his time at Drake, serving as recruiting coordinator and helping head coach Mark Phelps secure the top-rated recruited class in the Missouri Valley Conference in two of his three years there.

In his first year as assistant coach at Drake, Richardson helped lead the Bulldogs to post-season play during the 2008-09 season, in the inaugural CollegeInsider.com Tournament.

Prior to Drake, Richardson was the top assistant with the UMKC men’s basketball program for the 2007-08 season. Richardson served as an assistant coach at his alma mater Evansville from 2003-07, one season (2002-03) at Wright State, as well as the stint at Indiana State (1999-2002). Richardson’s coaching career began at the University of Indianapolis from 1997-99.

Prior to his arrival at UMKC, Richardson served as an assistant coach at the University of Louisville. He helped the Cardinals win the Big East tournament crown and the NCAA Tournament’s No. 1 overall seed, on the way to the 2012-13 National Championship.

Prior to his year at Louisville, Richardson made the most of one season at Xavier, helping the Musketeers reach the NCAA Sweet 16 and the finals of the Atlantic 10 Tournament that season while posting a 23-12 record. He helped the Musketeers land a Top 20 recruiting class in 2011.

As a player, Richardson played in an NCAA Tournament as a freshman at East Carolina University. He then transferred to Evansville in 1995 and quickly established himself as the Purple Aces’ top point guard. Richardson, who was a team captain two years, was selected to the Missouri Valley Conference all-academic team in both 1996 and 1997. In 1996, he received notoriety on the MVC all-underrated team. He was a first team all-state selection at Rantoul (Ill.) Township High School in 1992 and was twice named conference player of the year.

Richardson, who was born in Tacoma, Wash., graduated from Evansville with a bachelor’s degree in telecommunication and interpersonal communication in 1997 and received his MBA from the University of Indianapolis in 1999.

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