When Randy Bennett was hired to become the next head coach at Arizona State, he knew the staff around him would be important. After making a call to a former assistant, he secured a top-tier hire.

Rick Croy had been the head coach at Cal Baptist for the last 13 seasons. Leaving a head coaching job to become an associate is not a decision that is easy by any means, but it certainly brings great opportunity.

Starting Out

Croy, a California native, was an excellent high school basketball player at Northgate High School, and later played at San Francisco State (Division 2), where he holds the school record for 3-pointers made in a career with the Gators.

His coaching journey began immediately after the conclusion of his playing career, when he was an assistant at UC Riverside and Concordia Irvine, before receiving the head job at Citrus College in 2005. Croy remained there until joining Bennett's staff at St. Mary's

Lancers Ascend

During his 13-year tenure at Cal Baptist, Croy posted an impressive .667 win percentage, a great feat regardless of circumstance, but Croy didn't walk into an already established program. Five years into his time with CBU, they announced a transition up from division 2 to division 1, which Croy oversaw. Maintaining the success he already had in Riverside, he continued to grow the program, with five consecutive winning seasons to begin the new era. It culminated in 2026, when Croy brought the Lancers to their first NCAA tournament appearance in school history, falling in the first round as the 13 seed to Kansas, 68-60.

Jumping to The Desert

Croy worked on Bennett's staff at St. Mary's from 2010 to 2013, in the same position he'll assume at Arizona State: associate head coach. While departing from a head job to work under Bennett, Croy jumped at the opportunity.

"We had a few phone calls about what that would look like, for my son JRob, then we started talking on another level about a coaching opportunity. I believe in timing and opportunity and challenges, and it just made a lot of sense for our family."

"I wanted to compete at this level, and I'm a big believer in who you do it with. So to be able to do it at this level, with this coaching staff, with coach Bennett, in this moment is pretty surreal."

Croy, a potential head coach in waiting behind Bennett, will be a critical part of the Arizona State staff this season and beyond. Bringing his 4-star son, JRob, as a high-impact freshman is just the cherry on top. His experience as the lead man for a program growing as much as one can in nine seasons will be invaluable, not to mention the NCAA tournament experience he, Bennett, and many of the players bring to the table, which should have Sun Devil fans excited.