PULLMAN — Late last week, new Washington State Cougars basketball coach Kyle Smith officially announced he had made his first two hires: Derrick Phelps and Jim Shaw. Phelps has been on Smith’s staff for the past five seasons (most recently as associate head coach), while Shaw has been the head coach at Division II Western Oregon for the past four years.
The third assistant? That one might actually not come right away.
“We’ve got our working force now and we’re just going to roll with this group until we find (the guy),” Smith said in an interview from his office last week, days before Phelps and Shaw were announced.