Whitehaven High boys basketball coach Willie Kemp has deep ties to the city of Memphis.

Those connections contributed to the former Memphis Tigers guard returning to the Bluff City and starting his coaching career there after his professional playing days were done.

However, Kemp’s origins trace 45 minutes east of Memphis, in Bolivar, Tennessee. He started playing basketball at a young age there, and soon realized that the sport could take him far from the countryside of Bolivar.

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“Growing up in Bolivar, it was cool and all, but it wasn’t very much to do,” said Kemp, who spent seven of his eight pro seasons playing overseas for nine teams in seven different countries.

“The good thing about that was I focused on playing basketball, and by the time I entered high school, I knew how to fully display the talent I had.”

Kemp emerged as a highly regarded recruit at Bolivar Central High School, where he began receiving attention from schools around the country.

As a point guard, Kemp’s scoring and playmaking abilities intrigued coaches. But, despite the national interest, he decided to attend the University of Memphis and play under then-Tigers coach John Calipari starting in 2006. 

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“My mom was very ill at the time, and that certainly played a large part in me deciding to stay closer to home and being around her,” Kemp said. “I wanted to make sure I was there for her, and going too far outside of the area wouldn’t have been the best move for me.”

When Kemp arrived on campus for his freshman year, he earned the starting point spot. Under Calipari’s watchful eye, he started 36 out of 37 games and helped lead the Tigers to the Elite 8 of the 2007 NCAA Tournament. Kemp averaged 6 points and 2 assists that season, and was on course to increase his role even more.

However, things quickly changed when Derrick Rose entered the scene. A top-ranked recruit in the 2007 recruiting class, Rose — signed July 3 by the Memphis Grizzlies as a free agent — happened to play the same position as Kemp.

Despite the potential issues that the situation could have created, Kemp embraced Rose’s addition to the program, even speaking to him over the phone in order to convince him to attend Memphis.

“I knew he was a special talent, and that would require me to be a good teammate and accept that,” Kemp said of Rose, a three-time NBA All-Star and the 2011 NBA MVP. “I didn’t really care about all that other stuff because I just wanted to win.”

Playing in 40 games but starting none, Kemp was a key contributor to a Memphis squad that reached the 2008 national championship game. Heading into his junior year, with Rose gone after his one-and-done season before being selected No. 1 overall in the 2008 NBA Draft, Kemp trained even harder than before, confident his time to shine at Memphis had finally arrived. 

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However, yet another elite recruit — this time Tyreke Evans — arrived on campus for the 2008-09 season, forcing Kemp into a reserve role yet again. Playing behind the heralded Evans throughout his junior year, Kemp averaged only 13 minutes per game.

While Memphis reached the Sweet Sixteen, Kemp considered leaving the school after the season. 

His loyalty to the Memphis program superseded his personal aspirations, however, and Kemp remained at Memphis for his senior season. Josh Pastner took over as head coach of the Tigers and Kemp started 26 out of the 34 games he played during the 2009-10 season. 

As Kemp transitioned into professional basketball, he originally played with the Dakota Wizards of the NBA D-League during the 2010-11 campaign. 

From 2011-2018, Kemp’s professional odyssey included stints in Tunisia, Slovakia, Romania, Latvia, Poland, Cyprus and Kosovo.

“My favorite stop overall when playing overseas was in Poland,” Kemp said. “People may talk about the weather being cold or whatnot, but personally I enjoyed it.”

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After his playing career ended, Kemp entered the coaching ranks, first as a graduate assistant at Memphis under Penny Hardaway during the 2021-22 season and later at Memphis’ LeMoyne-Owen College under coach Bonzi Wells from 2022-23.

In March 2023, Kemp was hired for his first head coaching position at the high school level.

“I took the Whitehaven job with the intention of giving back to the community, while also fielding a team that will compete at the highest level,” he said. 

Kemp is also coaching the Beale Street Boys, a team that will be competing in The Basketball Tournament, a 64-team, single-elimination event featuring former collegiate players.

The TBT opens July 19 at seven regional host sites and concludes with a two-day championship from Aug. 2-3 in Philadelphia.

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With a roster that includes former Tigers Shawn Taggart, Will Coleman, Chris Crawford, Adonis Thomas, Jeremiah Martin and Alex Lomax, along with Memphis natives Antonius Cleveland, Tyler Stone and Lester Hudson, the Beale Street Boys will compete for an opportunity to win $1 million. 

Kemp is excited for the challenge of coaching in TBT, having played in the 2018 tournament himself. He’s got his eyes on the big-bucks prize.

“I put together a solid roster that I think has a chance of going far,” Kemp said, “and that’s what we plan on doing.

“That’s what we expect to do.”