Smokey Gaines

Teams coached: Detroit Mercy Titans, San Diego State Aztecs
Detroit record: 47-10 (.825)
San Diego State record: 112-117 (.489)
Overall record^: 159-127 (.556)

David Gaines
Born February 27, 1942
Hometown: Detroit, Michigan
Alma Mater: LeMoyne–Owen College (BA, 1968) / Eastern Michigan University (MA, 1970)
Starred at LeMoyne-Owen in Memphis, leaving as the program’s all-time leading scorer
- Became the first-ever player to have his jersey (#32) retired by the school
- Played with the Harlem Globetrotters from 1963-67; later inducted into the team’s “Legends Ring”
- Spent the 1967-68 season playing for head coach John Givens with the Kentucky Colonels (ABA)
Hired in 1977 as the head coach at Detroit Mercy, going 47-10 in two seasons at the helm
- Led the Titans to the NCAA Tournament in 1979; ranked as high as #15 in the AP Poll
Left UDM for San Diego State in 1979, coaching the Aztecs for the next eight seasons
- Went 112-117 overall, finishing above .500 each year between 1980 and 1985
- Won 23 games in 1985, earning a NCAA Tournament berth by way of the WAC Tournament title
- Among those he coached were All-American (and long-time NBA player) Michael Cage and Baseball HOFer Tony Gwynn
After coaching, Gaines operated a night club – Smokey’s – in San Diego for ten years
Briefly coached the San Diego Stingrays of the short-lived IBL in 1999
Returned to alma mater in 2005 and spend the next three years as LOC’s head basketball coach and athletic director
Then oversaw the Memphis City Schools’ athletic programs from 2008 until his retirement in 2012

^ overall record includes head coaching positions at the NCAA Division I level only