SAN ANTONIO — UTSA head men’s basketball coach Brooks Thompson announced Wednesday that he has hired Shenton Wai as team operations coordinator. His appointment begins immediately.
“I’m excited to announce the addition of Shenton to our staff,” Thompson said. “With his experience at the professional level in Australia and most recently with the Spurs, he will be a valuable asset to our program as we look to continue last season’s success.”
Wai joins the Roadrunners after spending the past year as a basketball operations intern with the San Antonio Spurs. While with the NBA franchise, Wai scouted, built and maintained the 2009 draft prospect and free agent DVD library for NCAA, NBDL and international players. Wai also coordinated travel for draft workouts, mini camps, training camps and open gym summer workouts, as well as assisting in the day-to-day operations of the front office.
“I am very excited about the opportunity to be a part of the UTSA men’s basketball program,” Wai said. “Coach Thompson and his staff have done a great job with the program and I am looking forward to helping them continue that success.”
Prior to joining the Spurs, Wai was a marketing and communications executive with the National Basketball League in Australia from 2004-08. He was responsible for the management of the NBL licensing program and official team gear and merchandise. Wai also managed multi-million dollar sponsorships for several companies and organized corporate events such as golf outings, trade show exhibits, dinners, press conferences and tournaments.
Wai served as marketing coordinator for the Sydney Kings from 2003-04, managing promotions and marketing activities, developing a membership loyalty program for season ticket holders and initiating relationships with community and corporate clients.
From 2001-04, Wai was an assistant coach and advance and talent scout for Sydney, helping the Kings win back-to-back NBL Championships in 2003-04.
Wai also coached a junior boys team, Nunawading Spectres, in 2000, a representative-level (highest level) club that produced Olympian and former NBA player Shane Heal. In 2003, he served as head coach for the Australian team that participated in the Maccabi Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile.
A former player, Wai was a member of the Coburg Giants of the Australian Basketball League in 1998 and also played for the Melbourne Tigers junior squad from 1991-93. He began playing club basketball in 1989 for Ashwood and began coaching the team one year later at the age of 13.
Wai earned a bachelor of business management degree in human resource and manufacturing from Victoria University in 1999. The Melbourne native graduated from Victoria with an associate degree in business operations management in 1996 and holds a Victorian Certificate of Education from Swinburne Secondary College in 1994.
