Former Friar great rejoins the program as an assistant. Who is it?

• Former Providence College basketball star Ryan Gomes is returning to the Friars as an assistant coach.
• Gomes, a 2005 PC graduate, scored a school-record 2,138 points during his collegiate career.
• Gomes was drafted by the Boston Celtics in 2005 and played eight seasons in the NBA.

A former Friar great is returning to the program this season in a new role.

Ryan Gomes, a 2005 Providence College graduate, will join head coach Kim English’s staff as an assistant, the school announced June 2.

“We are elated to announce the return of Ryan Gomes to Providence College as an assistant coach,” English said in a statement.  “Ryan is an all-time PC and BIG EAST great!  After a long and prosperous career in the NBA, he is the perfect addition to help our student athletes understand what it takes to have success here at Providence and beyond.  Ryan’s basketball chops are obvious, they go without mentioning, but what stood out about Ryan as we went through this process was the profound impact he has made on so many throughout out his career at PC, Boston, Minnesota, OKC, Los Angeles Clippers and Portland. We are beyond excited to welcome Ryan, Danielle, Ryelle and Skyler back to Friartown.”

Who is Ryan Gomes?

In four seasons with the Friars, Gomes scored a school record 2,138 points (18.4 ppg) while shooting over 50 percent from the field and playing in 116 games.  He also grabbed 1,028 rebounds (8.9 rpg) over his career.  Gomes is one of just two players in Providence history to score at least 2,000 points and register 1,000 or more rebounds.  During his junior season, he averaged 18.9 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game which earned him  consensus First Team All-America honors. 

Gomes helped pace the Friars to a 20-9 mark and a NCAA Tournament berth in 2004.  As a senior in 2005, he led the BIG EAST in scoring at 21.6 ppg.  He was inducted into the Providence College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2016.

Most recently, Gomes was a player development coach with the Portland Trail Blazers from 2023-25.  Prior to working for the Trail Blazers, Gomes was a head coach for Overtime Elite (2021-23). He began his coaching career in 2016 as assistant coach for the Long Island Nets of the NBA D-League.  After coaching with the Nets, Gomes spent two years as a college basketball analyst for CBS Sports from 2019-21.

In 2005, Gomes was 50th overall pick (second round) in the NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics. He was eventually traded to Minnesota in a massive deal that brought Kevin Garnett to Boston and helped the Celtics to the 2008 NBA title. Gomes enjoyed his best seasons with the Timberwolves as he averaged 12.6 points in 2008 and a career-best 13.3 in 2009.

He also played for the Los Angeles Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Over the course of nine years, Gomes spent eight seasons in the NBA, playing in 487 games and averaging 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists. He also played professionally for Artland Dragons (2012) in Quakenbruck, Germany and Baskonia (2014) in Gasteiz, Spain before finishing his career with the Los Angeles D-Fenders (2016) in the NBA D-League.  

A native of Danbury, Conn., Gomes and his wife, Danielle, have two daughters, Ryelle and Skyler.

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