University of South Florida men’s basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim has died at 43 years old due to an undisclosed illness.
The school said Abdur-Rahim died while suffering complications during a medical procedure at a Tampa-area hospital.
“We are heartbroken over the passing of Coach Abdur-Rahim,” the school wrote on X. “A tremendous man & leader with an infectious personality that was a shining light to all he encountered. Our thoughts & prayers are with his family, friends and everyone that he left a lasting impact on.”
Abdur-Rahim was entering his second season as head coach of USF after leading the team to the AAC regular season championship last year.
It marked the first time USF has ever won its conference and ranked in the AP top 25.
“All of us with South Florida Athletics are grieving with the loved ones of Coach Abdur-Rahim,” said vice president for athletics Michael Kelly said in a statement. “He was authentic, driven, and his infectious personality captivated all of Bulls Nation. Coach Abdur-Rahim leaves a lasting impact on our student-athletes, the University, and the community. We are supporting those closest to him, including his family, team, and athletics staff, to ensure they have the resources they need to deal with this tremendous loss.”
Abdur-Rahim manifested a vision that he sold USF athletics director Michael Kelly on before he was hired.
“I asked (Kelly), ‘You afraid of heights? Because you’re going to have to get up on that ladder one day to cut down those nets,’” the coach said during the press conference in which he was introduced as the program’s head coach.
Abdur-Rahim is survived by his wife and three children.
Before USF, Abdur-Rahim was the head coach at Kennesaw State, taking over a team that had gone 1-28 and eventually reaching a 26-9 record.