Chuck Martin (basketball)


José Luis "Chuck" Martín is a Puerto Rico native college basketball coach, currently an assistant at the University of South Carolina. Martin was head coach at Marist College, a position he held for five seasons.

Basketball career

As a basketball player, Martin played for the Capitanes de Arecibo of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional for five seasons. He was coached by Raymond Dalmau, from whom he learned to be honest with his players, and his assistant Carlos Calcaño whom he credits as a source of inspirational quotes. Players like Eddie Casiano and Javier Antonio Colón impressed Martin as opponents.

Collegiate coaching career (1998–present)

Memphis (2006–2007)

In the University of Memphis, Martin was an assistant coach under John Calipari. The Tigers reached the national championship game in the 2007-08 season, and set a single-season Division I record for most victories with 38. The previous year, Memphis went 33-4 and reached the Elite Eight. The Tigers also became the first team in the history of Conference USA to compile a perfect regular season while winning the conference tournament.

Marist (2008–2012)

Martin replaced Matt Brady, who left for James Madison University, as head coach of Marist. In his first season, he guided the Red Foxes to 10 victories. Marist set a program record for fewest points allowed to a Division I opponent in a 57-35 win over Hartford, and also set a MAAC Tournament record for fewest points allowed in a 43-40 opening-round triumph over Iona.
After going 48-118 in five seasons, Martin was fired from Marist. He describes his experience as “difficult”, due to the institution’s low level and a lack of resources when compared to Memphis.

Indiana (2013–2016)

Martin continued his stay in the NCAA as an assistant coachi for Indiana.

North Carolina (2017–present)

Martin joined Frank Martin's staff at South Carolina.

Head coaching record

Personal life

Martin was born at San Juan, Puerto Rico, from where his family relocated to New York. His original nickname was in Spanish, “Che”, which eventually became “Chuck” because the English speakers couldn’t pronounce it properly. Likewise his actual last name, Martín, has an accent but it’s pronunciation became anglicized to “Martin”. When presenting himself, he does so as José Luis Martín and identifies as Puerto Rican.
Martin is a 1993 graduate of Monmouth University with a bachelor's degree in Communications. He and his wife, Lee, have three children. Martin retains links with the island to this day, taking his son to a tryout for the juvenile Puerto Rico national team in 2019. He has expressed his interest in joining the program, which he cites as a source of great pride.