When the 2022 WNBA Champion Aisha Sheppard met Kenny Brooks, the latter had no proof to convince her to commit. Brooks had been introduced as the head coach of the Virginia Tech Hokies, a program that had won just two seasons in the previous 10 years before the former James Madison head coach had taken over. In Brook’s own words, it was “without any proof in the pudding,” as per Andscape. And for Sheppard to ultimately be drafted in the WNBA, and become a champion, she needed to have an unforgettable NCAA season.

Meanwhile, in March this year, the Kentucky Wildcats were looking for a head coach. Their previous Kyra Elzy had been fired after two consecutive losing seasons, despite making it to the NCAA tourney for the previous two seasons. Much like the men’s basketball team, the women’s team too made clear that they wanted to set high standards. And in such a case, Brooks was hired by them this year. Certainly, he did have had an impact at the Tech Hokies, but was he able to fulfill the promise he made to Sheppard?

The early years

When all the kids played basketball, Brooks certainly joined them. But while for others, the game would end on the court, and they would go back to do other chores like homework, Brooks wasn’t the same. He would be engaging in basketball board games, and forming strategies to be great at it. While it might look like a good-for-nothing task for aspiring basketballers, it helped a young Brooks concentrate on the ins and outs of the game, something that helped him when he became a head coach. While not much is known about his parents, his high school coach does find a mention in his story.

When Brooks’ participation in high school basketball was in trouble, his coach had to ultimately intervene. All this time, Brooks had been ignoring his homework and grades, something that was essential to keep him on the basketball team. “I stayed on my basketball team by the skin of my teeth,” Brooks stated. Though other kids would have straightened themselves out, this incident clearly showed that he had a knack for strategy. But that did not stop him from playing ball in college.

Brooks played basketball for the James Madison from 1988–1991. One of his most notable seasons with Madison was in 1988-89 when he hit 11.5 points with 3.7 assists per game. That year he started in 29 of the 30 games he played. However, later on, his role with the team declined. And the next year, though he played 30 games, he didn’t start in any of them, and his averages also didn’t touch the ceiling. At that time, he didn’t know that he would be once again coming to Madison as an assistant coach.

The formative years as a coach

From 1994-1998, Brooks served as the men’s assistant coach for the VMI before taking up a job with his alma mater. Staying there for 4 years, he transformed into the coach that we now see. In a matchup against Virginia Military Institute, the then JMU head coach Sherman Dillard got his second technical foul of the game. As the matter was about to escalate Brooks had to run to calm his head coach. Post that he had to fill in Dillard’s absence. That’s when he realized that it was time for him to step up.

Once he started giving calls to his players, the journey was transformational. “Players were coming up to me asking what we wanted to run. … I just remember being able to handle it all,” Brooks remembers. That was his EUREKA moment. After years of practicing on the basketball board games, he had now got the opportunity to apply his strategies and the result. The JMU won the game by double digits. Soon he was roped in as the assistant coach for the James Madison’s team before taking over the head coach role in 2003.

His progression from the position of an assistant to that of an interim to the head coach didn’t take much time. And he lived up to the new expectations with his coaching skills. In 2015, he surpassed Shelia Moorman as the most successful head coach in the program’s history. It was under his mentorship, that the program edged past the 1000th victory, making it only the third women’s basketball school to do so. And from there he got the position of head coach at Virginia Tech in 2016. But the question still remains did he fulfill his promise to Sheppard?

Fulfilling the promise

Brooks has four kids with his wife, Chrissy Stewart: Kendyl, Chloe, Gabby, and Nicholas. So when Brooks took over the coaching role at the Tech Hokies, it was anticipated that the state title winners of Spotswood Virginia High School – Kendyl and Chloe would add to the team and help their father fulfill his promise to Sheppard. However, injuries limited their time on the court. So, when Brooks took his players to the court, he lacked the major support from his daughters.

When, in March 2021, the Hokies sat in their film room, waiting for the NCAA bid announcements, Sheppard would have been very nervous. It was her last year with the Hokies, who hadn’t received a NCAA tournament call since 2006. This year, they finished the regular season with 14-9 overall and 8-8 in the ACC. However, to everyone’s surprise, they received an NCAA call. While everyone jumped for joy, two people, Brooks and Sheppard, stayed silent and exchanged glances. Finally, Brooks had fulfilled his promise. And then, in 2023, he was also the NCAA regional Champion in the Final Four.

So when now he was hired by the Wildcats, he thanked the Hokies “for the most joyful journey” while also enunciating that “I don’t plan on wasting any time building a positive atmosphere, winning environment and a persistent program that Big Blue Nation can be proud of.” Hopefully, the Wildcats will again get back to winning ways under his mentorship.