skip navigation

Flex hire D-League vet as A.J. Guyton departs after three seasons

By Craig Fata, 12/27/14, 3:45PM CST

Share

Carlnel Wiley, Jr. takes helm; Guyton remains as MPBA director

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 27, 2014
Contact:   Craig Fata, Vice President
(844) THE-MPBA / craig.fata@theMPBA.com

 

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – A. J. Guyton, the head coach of the Bloomington Flex since the team’s inception in 2011 as the Central Illinois Drive, will not be returning to the bench in 2015, the team announced today.  Carlnel Wiley, Jr., an Oakland, California native living in Reno, Nevada, will take over coaching duties effective immediately.

                    Wiley began his coaching career in 2003 as an assistant at Butte College in Chico, California, after earning his Master’s Degree in Physical Education at Chico State University.  After two years at Butte, Wiley spent the next five seasons as an assistant coach first at Diablo Valley Community College in Concord, California, and then at Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, California. 

                    Wiley left Notre Dame de Namur in 2008 to become Director of Basketball Operations at Montana State University in Bozeman, where he spent three seasons.  In 2010, Wiley became Assistant Director of Basketball Operations/Quality Control Coach for the Reno Bighorns of the National Basketball Development League (NBA D-League).  During nine of the ten years from 2003-2013, Wiley served as Commissioner of the University of California-Berkeley Basketball Camp system.

                    After leaving the Bighorns in 2012, Wiley became an assistant for player development and programs with Dream Hoops in Reno, as well as Instructional Director for the Nevada Basketball Academy, also in Reno.

                    As a player, Wiley played in several U.S. minor leagues, as well as professionally in Tokyo, Paris and Madrid.  He also spent time with the Harlem Globetrotters.

                    “Carlnel’s resume is impressive,” said Scott Henderson, owner and president of the Flex.  “You don’t often see somebody who’s got this much experience in player development as well as relationships with the D-League available to coach for you,” Henderson said.

                    “I’m honored to join the Flex organization,” said Wiley.  “When you get the chance to join the best minor league team in the country the past three years, you take it, especially when they share having a commitment to the community like I do.  I look forward to continuing the tradition of excellence that’s been established here,” Wiley said.

                    Wiley takes over for A. J. Guyton, the only coach the Flex have ever known.

                    “We appreciate everything A. J. has done for us,” said Henderson.  “He’s been the best coach in the country at this level, and we hope to see him hit the big time one day,” Henderson said.

                    Guyton amassed a 52-5 overall record for the Drive and Flex from 2012-2014, including a 31-2 overall record at U. S. Cellular Coliseum.  He earned Premier Basketball League Coach of the Year honors in 2012 and 2013 after sweeping the Rochester RazorSharks in the PBL finals both seasons, and, at 18-0, was a lock to win a third straight in 2014 before the league kicked the team out of the playoffs and scrubbed the team’s statistics in a dispute over a postseason scheduling conflict.

                    Guyton was announced in September as a consulting director for the Flex’s new league, the Midwest Professional Basketball Association, a position he will continue to hold.  Guyton ran the MPBA combine in November in Chicago, as well as the individual team tryouts for the Flex, St. Louis RiverSharks and Gateway Steam.

                    “It makes more sense within our model for A. J. to concentrate on his role with the league,” said MPBA Commissioner Ed Schumer.  “He’s a fantastic coach, and he can have a much greater impact working with players on all six teams rather than just one,” Schumer said.

                The Flex open training camp on Jan. 1, and the regular-season opener against the St. Louis RiverSharks takes place on Jan. 4 in at Family Arena in suburban St. Charles, Missouri.  The team’s home opener at U. S. Cellular Coliseum is set for Sunday, Jan. 11 at 2:05 p.m. against the Gateway Steam.

-###-

The mission of the MPBA is to attract the top minor league basketball players, coaches, owners and staff members from across the United States, and to provide that talent with the opportunity to develop their skills in a professional environment; the MPBA will also provide its fans and supporters with a fun, value-based entertainment experience, as well as incorporate community outreach programs into its members’ operations.