Georgia Tech interim assistant coach Julian Swartz is expected to be promoted to the full-time job, according to two people familiar with the situation. Swartz has been Tech’s interim assistant since November, when then-assisant Darryl LaBarrie was put on paid leave before resigning in February in the wake of an allegation of an NCAA rules violation. Swartz would need to pass a standard background check before his hire can be made official.
Swartz came with coach Josh Pastner to Tech from Memphis upon Pastner’s hire in April 2016 in a non-coaching staff role. Swartz had served in a variety of roles for four seasons at Memphis for Pastner, including interim assistant coach. This will be his first full-time coaching position at the college level.
The hire completes Tech's three-person coaching staff after the departures of LaBarrie and Tavaras Hardy, the latter of whom took the head-coaching position at Loyola Maryland. Tech also hired Anthony Wilkins, who was previously an assistant coach at Tulane.
Since he was elevated from his role as director of recruiting and compliance, Swartz has been on the road recruiting as well as coaching from the Tech bench. He is expected to work with the guards and wing players and to oversee Tech’s defensive play while Wilkins will coordinate the Yellow Jackets on offense.
Swartz played at Wisconsin and was a part of the Badgers’ 2000 Final Four team before completing his career at Division III Carroll College. His first job out of college was serving as a graduate assistant at Marquette and then at Indiana for coach Tom Crean, now the coach at Georgia.
He later served as a school counselor and high-school coach before returning to the college ranks at Memphis.
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