| Coaching Experience |
| 2017-15 | 1st season | Northwestern State | Director of Operations |
| 2013-14 | 1 season | Northwestern State | Graduate Assistant/Director of Operations |
| 2012-13 | 1 season | Northwestestern State | Graduate Assistant |
North Louisiana native Nick Long is entering his third season with the Demons and second as the Director of Basketball Operations.
Long’s responsibilities within the Demons program include all film exchange with opponents, team meals, and he is heavily involved with academics. Along with assistant coaches Jeff Moore and Bill Lewit, Long helps the Demons maintain their lofty academic standards, which has led to national recognition for the program’s success in the classroom.
He served as a graduate assistant for the Demons in the 2012-2013 season, helping the Demons to a 23-9 record and a return to the NCAA Tournament. His thorough and efficient style resulted in him picking up additional duties in his initial season with the program, and earned him a promotion heading into his second year at NSU.
Long is a native of Monroe, where he was a four-year member of the Ouachita Parish High School basketball team, and graduated with a 4.0 GPA. He was named to the LHSAA Composite and 5A Academic All-State Teams in 2008.
His father, Larry, was a long-time successful high school basketball coach in the state of Louisiana for 17 years at numerous schools, most notably Ouachita Parish High School.
Nick earned a bachelor of arts in education from the University of Louisiana at Monroe in 2012 with a 3.74 GPA, earning cum laude honors at commencement. He added a master of science in sports administration from Northwestern State in 2014.
He spent two years as an assistant coach for the Ouachita Parish High School boys basketball team before coming to Northwestern State. While at Ouachita, Long helped lead the Lions to 37 wins and a district championship in his two seasons on staff.
He is the son of Larry and Beth Long, and has one younger brother, William.
One-on-one with ... Coach Nick LongWhat has been the most important thing you have learned from Coach McConathy and his staff?Long: “The most important thing I have learned from Coach Mike is that you have to know who you are. He always talks about how, in order to be successful, you have to know who you are and what you can do, not what others can do, but still have great expectations for yourself and our players.”
Your father was a longtime coach. Do you see any similarities between him and Coach McConathy?Long: “Sometimes I do, they are similar in their personalities. My dad got out of coaching and into administration when I was young, but from what I remember he really got after his players and they both carried a lot of the same expectations on and off the floor from their players.
What are your career ambitions and how has your time here helped enhance them?Long: “My ultimate goal is to remain in Division I coaching for the rest of my career. Working for Coach Mike and working alongside coaches like Coach (Jeff) Moore has helped me tremendously in my development as a young coach. Our staff is very diverse, and has taught me all of the little things that go into helping run the program smoothly. The biggest thing I have learned from working here that will help me reach my goals is taking care of the important things. Winning games is obviously extremely important, but the things that make that easier are what we focus on here -- academic achievement and community involvement.”
