Ole Miss basketball assistant Rahim Lockhart returns from medical leave of absence

Published 10:17 pm Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Rahim Lockhart is coaching again.

Lockhart returned to the bench for Ole Miss’ 82-69 win over Sam Houston State on Wednesday. The Rebels’ first-year assistant coach missed the first eight games after taking a medical leave of absence. Wilbur Allen, coordinator of player development, served as acting assistant coach in Lockhart’s absence.

Exactly what Lockhart was dealing with was never disclosed by the school.

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“His health has improved dramatically,” head coach Andy Kennedy said following Wednesday’s game. “We were just kind of waiting for what the doctors told us. He’s going to be a big addition. It was great for him to be back.”

An All-American during his time as a player at Ole Miss from 1998-2001, Lockhart returned to his alma mater in the spring after a three-year stint as the head coach at Jones County Junior College to fill the vacancy left by Tony Madlock, who briefly left the staff before rejoining it following Bill Armstrong’s departure for LSU. Lockhart coached Ole Miss forward Bruce Stevens in junior college.