All these years, Andre Turner could have been coasting.

It would have been easy enough, and understandable. Turner, who last week was named head basketball coach at Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee, is one of the most beloved former players in University of Memphis history. He was the point guard on the 1985 team that advanced to the Final Four for the second time in program history, and he cemented his legacy by making the game-winning bucket in the second round against UAB, and again five days later in the Sweet 16 versus Boston College.

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Turner was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers and carved out a nice pro career for himself, playing for seven NBA teams and also starring in Spain. But when his playing days were over, he embarked on a second career — one that took him back to where it all started.

Coaching in a gymnasium that bears his name, Turner was an assistant at alma mater Mitchell High from 2010 to 2015, helping the Tigers win two state championships. When Faragi Phillips left to take the job at Whitehaven, Turner took over as head coach and won a title of his own in 2016 to complete a three-peat.

Now, he’ll be bringing that same success, coupled with a humble work ethic, to Lane. Given his post-basketball career, it’s a situation that fits Turner to a T.

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“I think it’s a great opportunity for me to kind of put an imprint on the next level,” the 57-year-old said recently. “And really for me, it’s a challenge as well, for me to say, ‘Are you worthy? Do you have the ability to excel and exceed at the next level?’ It’s something that I’ve wanted to do always and something I’ve always looked toward, to try to get a situation where I could do this.”

Turning Lane into a winner will be a challenge. The Dragons — who compete in NCAA Division II and are members of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference alongside other historically black colleges such as LeMoyne-Owen, Clark Atlanta and Tuskegee — finished 11-17 in 2019-2020 and didn’t play at all in 2021 due to the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis.

In a sense, the program will be starting over, and that’s something Turner is familiar with, too. 

When his playing days ended, he was convinced to attend a career fair that led him to a job with the Shelby County Schools’ College, Career and Technical Education (CCTE) department. CCTE provides students with real-world experiences, education and experience to pursue a variety of paths after graduation, from STEM courses to manufacturing and hospitality.

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“I was just coming to look at it and I ended up sitting in on four different sessions,” Turner said. “The next week, the director at the time, Ms. Willie Slate, asked me to come and visit and said she thought I could be an asset to Shelby County Schools. And she wouldn’t have me sitting in the office; I’d be out interacting with kids and helping.

“Thirteen years later, here I am.”

As part of his duties with CCTE, Turner also played a key role in the district’s Early College Program, which allows students to take for-credit courses on college campuses while they are still in high school. Whether it was recruiting potential students for the program, arranging transportation or just offering an encouraging word, Turner was there for the students.

Not as Andre Turner, the basketball star. But as Andre Turner, the caring adult.

“It’s been so rewarding,” he said. “I’ve gotten to know so many kids and gotten so many phone calls saying, ‘Thank you just for being there.’ You get a chance to talk to the students on a real personal level and even though you’re helping them out . . . to see them so diligent about what they’re doing, you know it’s from the heart.”

And while Turner is moving on to the next level, his heart will always be at Mitchell, where he helped develop the careers of several college players, most notably former Memphis Tigers star Jeremiah Martin. 

“Everything is about timing,” Turner said. “I think that I had a great and exciting run at Mitchell and to be able to look at it and affect it and say, ‘Hey, that’s me.’ So many different players and coaches and the whole administration at Mitchell . . . you’re talking about dreams, getting able to go back home.”