A familiar name is joining Jai Lucas’ staff at Miami. Former Kentucky walk-on and graduate assistant Riley Welch will serve as special assistant to the head coach in Lucas’ first season with the Hurricanes.

The two connected when Lucas was an assistant on John Calipari’s staff at Kentucky (2020-22) and Welch was a walk-on (2019-21) who became a graduate assistant (2021-23). Welch’s father John, a longtime NBA assistant coach, spent the 2023-24 season on Calipari’s staff, helping modernize the Wildcats’ offense. Riley has long talked about his desire to follow in his father’s footsteps. He spent the past two seasons with the Grand Rapids Gold, the Denver Nuggets’ G League affiliate, first as a video coordinator (2023-24) and then as an assistant (2024-25).

“Riley is someone who lives and breathes basketball, having grown up around the sport from a young age,” Lucas said in a press release. “We had the opportunity to cross paths at Kentucky when he was a player and graduate assistant coach, and I knew he’d be the perfect addition to our staff because of his basketball knowledge and positive attitude.”

On Kentucky’s staff, Welch coordinated and facilitated individual workouts, assisted in the planning of official visits, and created play call sheets for the coaching staff. During his time with the Grand Rapids Gold, he was in charge of the team’s defensive strategy while also leading player development workouts and assisting in opponent scouting.