Graves is in his second season with the Mountaineers after serving as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Belmont Abbey, the past six seasons. After serving in the Director of Basketball Operations role during his first year, he was promoted to Assistant Coach for the 2020-21 season.
While at Belmont Abbey, Graves was instrumental in the success culminating in a 23-8 season in 2018-19 that included a second consecutive conference tournament championship appearances. He also played a key role in the recruitment of the conference player of the year in 2019 (Dequan Abrom). During Graves’ tenure as an assistant, Belmont Abbey had five all-conference players, while also achieving a 12-win improvement from the 2017 season, the largest increase of wins in the conference. Graves was responsible for recruiting, on-the-floor coaching, skill development, scouting reports, scheduling, video coordination and academic monitoring. Graves also served as the Head Coach of the men’s basketball program’s Developmental team. Under his tutelage, over 10 developmental players ascended to the Varsity team.
Prior to Belmont Abbey, Graves was an assistant coach at McDaniel College in Westminster, Md. At McDaniel, Graves assisted the head coach with the day-to-day duties of running a college basketball team, was responsible for the recruitment of a diverse group of qualified student-athletes for successful participation at the varsity athletic level, conducted and monitored player development athletically and academically and served as game administrator at intercollegiate contests as assigned by the department.
A 2012 Belmont Abbey graduate, Graves played for four years under Stephen Miss, earning a spot on the Dean’s List and Conference Carolinas Presidential Honor Roll. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management with a Cumulative 3.26 GPA and was Vice President of the SAAC at Belmont Abbey College.
After graduation, Graves was awarded the prestigious Victory Scholarship from Sport Changes Life. The Victory Scholarship Program assists deserving students from the USA in obtaining a scholarship package to study at Masters level throughout Ireland. While in Ireland, Graves graduated with a Masters of Business Studies from the University of Ulster, Jordanstown, in 2013. He served as head coach for the Ulster Elks Premier League Men’s Basketball team in Northern Ireland. He was the captain of the Ulster Elks National League Basketball Team and was an E-Hoops Counselor with Sport Changes Life.
