Kris Joseph, a former NBA draft pick who played with the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets, was appointed lead assistant coach of the McGill men’s basketball team in 2023. This marks the first full-time assistant on the coaching staff since the program began more than a century ago, in 1902.

A second-round selection (51st overall) in the 2012 NBA Draft, Joseph is a 34-year-old native Montrealer who was raised in the Cote des Neiges district and currently resides in Brossard, Que.

He has coached with the Red Rush Basketball Program in Montreal, as well as at the Institut de Sport Dynastie, a preparatory basketball school in St. Jean, Que.

Joseph played four seasons in the NCAA with the Syracuse Orange, where he pursued a degree in the school of human ecology.

The 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward has played pro hoops for over a decade, including the 2012-13 season in the NBA with the Celtics and Nets. He had stints in the NBA’s Developmental League – with the Maine Red Claws and Springfield Armor – in addition to playing in France, Italy, and Portugal.

After his NBA experience, Joseph played for several other pro teams, most recently in the Canadian Elite Basketball League with the Ottawa BlackJacks (2021) and Saskatchewan Rattlers (2020). He also suited up for the Niagara River Lions (2017-2018) in the National Basketball League of Canada.

Joseph began his hoops career with Sun Youth, a local club program in the Montreal Basketball League. He honed his varsity skills locally at Mt. Royal High School (2004-2006) and at Archbishop Carroll (2006-2008) in Washington, D.C., then accepted an athletic scholarship to Syracuse (2008-2012).