Aki Collins, Asst. Coach

Alma Mater

Clark Atlanta University ’97

AKI COLLINS

ASSISTANT COACH

David “Aki” Collins (pronounced AH-kee), who is set to begin his second season in Happy Valley in 2022-23, brings more than 20 years of coaching experience and a reputation as top recruiter to Penn State.

Collins was instrumental in Penn State’s first-year success under Shrewsberry in 2021-22, helping guide the Nittany Lions to a number of statement wins and a thrilling postseason run in the Big Ten Tournament. Penn State owned the best scoring defense in the Big Ten, as the Nittany Lions allowed just 65.0 points per game – Penn State’s best defensive mark in 11 years. Collins was key in signing the highest-ranked recruiting class in Penn State men’s basketball history in November 2021, less than eight months into Shrewsberry’s tenure in Happy Valley. The 2022 signing class ranks as a consensus top-30 class in the nation by all major recruiting services.

The Shrewsberry-Collins connection dates back to 2003 when the two worked together at Marshall. Collins’ tenure as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Thundering Herd overlapped for two years with Shrewsberry’s role as Marshall’s director of operations.

After five seasons with the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder as an amateur scout, Collins returned to the college environment for 2020-21 as the director of basketball operations at New Mexico before moving back to the bench for the Nittany Lions.

With the Oklahoma City Thunder organization from 2015-20, Collins was an amateur evaluation scout with responsibilities for identification and intelligence for his final three seasons. His first two seasons as an amateur scout included evaluation of collegiate and NBA players in the southeast region of the United States, as well as professional international prospects.

Three seasons at Memphis (2012-15) and four at Marquette (2008-12) as an assistant coach primed Collins for his opportunity to evaluate talent in the NBA.

The impact of Collins’ coaching and recruiting expertise during his time at Memphis helped the Tigers to a 31-5 record and a perfect 16-0 mark as Conference USA’s regular-season and tournament champions in 2012-13. The following year, the Tigers defeated five Top 25 teams en route to 24 total victories on the season. For the second-straight year, Memphis picked up a win in the NCAA Tournament. Collins was a key part in the Tigers’ recruiting process that reeled in a consensus top-five ranked class in 2013. ESPN.com listed Memphis with the second-best class in the nation that year with Rivals.com and Scout giving it a No. 3 ranking.

Building his reputation as an elite-level recruiter and on-court tactician, Collins was a top target in 2008 for then-Marquette coach Buzz Williams. Collins’ efforts at Marquette under Williams were instrumental to the program’s success both on the court and in recruiting talent. The Golden Eagles recorded four-straight 20-win seasons and made four trips to the NCAA Tournament from 2008-12, including back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances in 2010-11 and 2011-12. The 27 victories in 2011-12 tied the program’s second-highest win total and a 14-4 Big East record gave the Golden Eagles a second-place finish in the league, their highest finish in program history. Marquette signed numerous ESPN top 100 prospects during Collins’ stint in Milwaukee and the 2008-09 class earned top-20 recognition from ESPN (No. 14), Rivals (No. 17) and Scout.com (No. 18). Collins and the Golden Eagles’ staff brought in another powerhouse class in 2009-10 with top-25 plaudits from Rivals (No. 13), ESPN (No. 18) and Scout.com (No. 25).

Collins started his full-time coaching career at Colorado in 1997, helping the Buffaloes to backto-back National Invitation Tournament (NIT) bids in 1999 and 2000. He spent three seasons at Howard University (2000-03) as an assistant coach, tutoring a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Year, and two MEAC Player of the Year candidates, before joining Marshall in the same role from 2003-06. His résumé also includes two years at Fairfield as an assistant coach.

Collins earned his bachelor’s degree in communications from Clark Atlanta University in 1997 and worked with the basketball team as the head student manager after an injury sidelined his collegiate playing career. The Brooklyn, New York product is currently pursuing a master’s degree in athletic leadership from Rider University.

Season

Second Hometown

Brooklyn, New York Family

Wife: Ina Sons: Jeremiah, DJ and Michael Experience

1997-2000 Colorado Assistant Coach 2000-03 Howard Assistant Coach 2003-06 Marshall Assistant Coach 2006-08 Fairfield Assistant Coach 2008-12 Marquette Assistant Coach 2012-15 Memphis Assistant Coach 2015-20 Oklahoma City Thunder Amateur Evaluation Scout 2020-21 New Mexico Director of Operations 2021-present Penn State