On Thursday night at Tampa General Hospital, Tom Crean shared a meaningful story with Shareef Abdur-Rahim, illustrating how Amir Abdur-Rahim touched the lives of many throughout his journey.

This story highlighted Amir’s debut home game as Kennesaw State’s men’s basketball coach in 2019. Crean recalled the crowd being quite small, but he vividly remembered three enthusiastic students in Kennesaw State attire, their faces painted, and how Amir made them feel included and important as part of the team.

Crean admired Amir, noting how he instinctively understood that developing a basketball program was as much about fostering a sense of belief as it was about the game itself.

“Without a doubt in my mind,” Crean expressed to YSL News Sports with tears in his eyes Friday morning, “he would have been one of the greatest coaches everyone talked about as he continued to develop.”

Amir Abdur-Rahim passed away Thursday due to complications from a medical procedure, just under two weeks before beginning his second season as the men’s basketball coach at South Florida. He was 43.

In his first year at USF, he transformed the program, taking over a team that had a losing record in 10 of the previous 11 seasons, leading them to a remarkable 25-win season, winning the American Athletic Conference regular-season championship, and earning AAC Coach of the Year honors.

His accomplishments followed a successful stint at Kennesaw State, where he led the team from just one win in his first season to their first winning record and NCAA tournament participation as a Division-I program in 2023.

His unexpected passing created a ripple of shock within the college coaching community, with Kansas coach Bill Self noting in a heartfelt social media tribute that he was considered “a rising star in our sport.” However, it was Amir’s genuine connection with those around him that left a lasting impression beyond his wins and losses, particularly among coaches, players, and administrators who knew him.

“His main objective was to create the most unified team in college basketball; ultimately, he succeeded in uniting an entire community,” USF athletic director Mike Kelly shared on X Friday. Former USF player Kasean Pryor, now at Louisville, expressed on Instagram that “in just one year, you changed my life forever.”

Born in Marietta, Georgia, Abdur-Rahim played three seasons at Southeastern Louisiana University (2001-04) after starting at Garden City Community College for two years. “He was a leader from the moment he arrived,” recalled Billy Kennedy, who coached Abdur-Rahim at SE Louisiana and later recruited him as an assistant coach at Murray State and Texas A&M.

Like he did at Kennesaw State and USF, he also helped SE Louisiana achieve what they had never accomplished before his arrival: winning the Southland Conference title.

“People respect that he achieved it through hard work and was rightfully recognized for it. That’s a rarity today, both in sports and life,” Kennedy commented to YSL News Sports. “His attitude of gratitude stood out the most. He never felt superior to anyone.”

“The only flaw he had,” Kennedy noted, “was his stubbornness.”

The coaching staff at Murray State even coined the nickname “Donkey” for him, after the character in “Shrek.” This characteristic often emerged in ways that were genuinely beneficial for the players.

“If he believed in a recruit and thought they were a valuable player, he fought tooth and nail for them,” Kennedy affirmed. “He embodied everything that is good about college basketball.”

Crean credited Abdur-Rahim for helping to secure future NBA star Anthony Edwards as a recruit, even though Abdur-Rahim departed Georgia for Kennesaw State before coaching Edwards directly. In 2022, Abdur-Rahim shared on the “Coaching Origins” podcast that he considered staying at Georgia solely to keep Edwards committed to the Bulldogs.

The rapport between the two endured beyond recruiting, prompting Crean to reach out to Edwards Thursday to deliver the news of Abdur-Rahim’s passing in a personal manner rather than letting him learn through the media.

“If you asked Anthony to identify someone he absolutely trusts and knows will give him honest advice, Amir would be top of mind,” Crean remarked.

“He had an extraordinary talent for connecting with young people. … He instilled confidence in me,” said Murray State coach Steve Prohm. “Watching him over these past few years has been truly remarkable, and it breaks my heart knowing he leaves behind his wife and three young children and had so much potential ahead of him.”

Prohm coached Abdur-Rahim

As an aide at Southeast Louisiana, Prohm and Abdur-Rahim later teamed up as assistant coaches at Murray State alongside Kennedy. Prohm is thankful to Abdur-Rahim for bringing him and his wife together, with Abdur-Rahim standing as a groomsman at their wedding.

On Thursday night, Prohm turned to social media to process his feelings, where he stumbled upon various press conferences and quotes from Abdur-Rahim that were resurfacing following his passing.

“Listening to him speak,” Prohm reflected.

One memorable moment for Prohm was captured in the locker room after Kennesaw State almost defeated Xavier during the 2023 NCAA tournament. There was Abdur-Rahim, presenting a brief talk in front of a whiteboard that displayed just two words: “Love wins.”

It was at that moment Prohm decided the message he wanted to share with his Murray State players at practice the following day.

“I’m going to share with my team the message of ‘Love wins,’” Prohm remarked. “That truly encapsulated who he was. He was deeply committed and loyal, always bringing out the best in everyone around him.”