Gib Arnold is back in college basketball for the first time since his dismissal from the University of Hawaii a decade ago.
Arnold, who was fired as UH head coach on Oct. 28, 2014 amid an NCAA investigation and later assessed penalties by the collegiate governing body, announced on his Facebook account Wednesday that he has been hired to a support position on staff with the University of Washington men’s basketball team.
In a selfie video taken inside UW’s Alaska Airlines Arena, a bearded Arnold said, “So it’s now official. I’ve accepted the position of director of men’s performance for University of Washington men’s basketball. I’ll be working with Coach Danny Sprinkle and the Washington Huskies.
“So this is now my new home,” Arnold, 55, continued, showing a 360-degree view of the Big Ten school's arena. “Go Huskies.”
Sprinkle is in his first year at UW after coming over from Utah State in March.
Arnold, who coached UH for four years from 2010 to 2014, was found to have committed NCAA Level II violations for improper student-athlete benefits and compliance issues and was given a suspension of nine or 10 games as well as a three-year show-cause order, both of which expired at the end of 2018.
Arnold became a scout for the NBA’s Boston Celtics over that time and the penalties were effectively rendered moot.
He successfully sued UH for $700,000 after his firing, which was done by UH “without cause.” In all, UH expended about $1.3 million on the case, which was the most expensive coaching termination in school history, according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
UH was also penalized by the NCAA for violations committed during Arnold’s tenure. It had its wins vacated from the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons and, until a successful appeal, was given a postseason ban and reduction in scholarships for the 2016-17 season.
After Arnold’s former associate head coach Benjy Taylor took over on an interim basis for the 2014-15 season, UH hired then-Saint Mary’s College assistant Eran Ganot to represent a clean break from the Arnold era. Ganot inherited a talented roster and coached UH to a program record in wins (28) and the program’s first NCAA Tournament victory in 2015-16.
Ganot enters his 10th season in 2024-25 still looking to get UH back to a postseason game.
Arnold’s father, former UH coach Frank Arnold, died at age 89 in June.
Also on Wednesday, Ganot announced the signing of Osa Obasohan, a 6-foot-4 guard from Belgium to shore up the UH roster ahead of the 2024-25 season.
Obasohan will debut as a sophomore in the U.S. college game after playing as an amateur in LNB Espoirs, an under-21 league in France. Per UH, he averaged 14.5 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 33 appearances.
He is the eighth signee for the upcoming season. The last four were international players.
"Osa is a dynamic, big guard who can play multiple positions because of his size and athletic ability," Ganot said in a UH release. "His resume from a competitive league in Europe gives us confidence that he can have an impact on both ends of the floor for us. Osa's high character and leadership qualities fit seamlessly into our program and we look forward to him making a mark here."
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.