Calling the chance to spend the past four seasons on Tommy Lloyd’s Arizona coaching staff an “absolute honor,” UA assistant Steve Robinson formally announced his retirement Thursday after a 42-year college basketball coaching career.
After spending much of his college career under Roy Williams at Kansas and North Carolina, Robinson joined the UA staff for Lloyd’s first season of 2021-22 and said UA fans welcomed him and his family with open arms.
“We are forever grateful for that,” Robinson said in a UA statement. “After more than 40 years of coaching and mentoring young men from around the world, I feel it is the right time for me to step away and spend more time with my wife, our kids and our grandkids.
“Coaching has been my passion from the day that I started and I want to thank each and every former player, coach or manager for the impact they have made on my life. There are so many lifelong friendships and memories that my family has been able to take away from college basketball, I could never begin to list them all.”
During his four seasons at UA, Robinson helped the Wildcats win two Pac-12 regular season titles and two Pac-12 Tournament titles, while also reaching the NCAA Sweet 16 three times.
Arizona assistant coach Steve Robinson speaks with KJ Lewis during the first half against BYU, Feb. 22, 2025, in Tucson.
Citing Robinson’s vast experience in the college game and integrity, UA coach Tommy Lloyd thanked him for “taking a chance on me” and moving to Tucson to help in Lloyd’s first season as a head coach.
“From the first day, he brought a wealth of knowledge and experience that few coaches in the country have,” Lloyd said. “His remarkable career has spanned four decades and some of the best basketball players in the game, which speaks to him as a person and a coach.”
Earlier this month, Lloyd confirmed that Robinson was leaving after the school posted an assistant coach job opening, but the school had been waiting for Robinson to announce his departure out of respect.
Arizona has since removed the job listing and is expected to announce a replacement for Robinson next month. The Wildcats’ other four assistants — Jack Murphy, TJ Benson, Rem Bakamus and Ken Nakagawa — are expected to return next season.
A 2019 inductee into the A Step Up Hall of Fame for assistant coaches, Robinson has been the Wildcats’ most experienced assistant over the past four seasons. He replaced Jason Terry, who left during the summer of 2021 to become a G League head coach.
Before joining the Wildcats, Robinson, 67, was a longtime assistant coach under Williams, and also a head coach at Tulsa and Florida State.
Robinson was 46-18 in two seasons at Tulsa, leading the Golden Hurricane to the 1995-96 and 1996-97 NCAA Tournaments, before leaving for Florida State. Facing ACC competition, Robinson led the Seminoles to the 1998 tournament but was fired in 2002 after four straight losing seasons.
Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd talks to Steve Robinson during the first half against Southern University, Nov. 13, 2023, in Tucson.
Robinson returned to Kansas to work with Williams again in 2002-03 before moving with Williams to North Carolina. Robinson stayed with Williams for the next 18 seasons until Williams retired after the 2020-21 season.
Robinson was a candidate to replace Williams as the Tar Heels’ head coach in 2021-22, but when Hubert Davis was hired to replace Williams, Robinson was not retained and then joined the Wildcats.
