Royal Ivey
NBA guard, assistant coach, South Sudan national team head coach, and Hollis-raised competitor
Royal Ivey was born in Harlem but grew up in Hollis, Queens, and carried the neighborhood's toughness, discipline, and work ethic from the courts of Hollis Playground to the National Basketball Association. A 10-year NBA veteran, assistant coach, and head coach of the South Sudan national team, Ivey has spent his career proving that defense, hustle, and character can take you as far as talent.
From Hollis to the NBA: A Different Path
Royal Terence Ivey was born on December 20, 1981 in Harlem, New York, but was raised in Hollis, Queens. His path to the NBA was not the usual one. He was never a nationally recruited star. At Benjamin N. Cardozo High School in Bayside, he had to find a creative way in — he auditioned and was admitted through the dance program after his mother helped him put together a routine to "It Takes Two" by Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock.
"Cardozo was a specialized high school and it was out of my jurisdiction, so the only way I could get in was through the math or science program, or the dance program," Ivey told ESPN. "I'm not a big math and science dude, but I said, 'I could dance.'"
Ivey realized early that he would not make his mark as a scorer. So he mastered defense instead. "In New York City, it's known for flash — guys who can handle the ball, score and pass — but I was a defender. I said, 'I'm going to be different. Everybody's going left; I'm going to go right.'"
After a postgraduate year at Blair Academy in New Jersey, Ivey earned a scholarship to the University of Texas, where he became a four-year starter and a two-time Big 12 All-Defensive Team selection. He finished his college career as Texas's all-time leader in career starts.
NBA Career: The Professional Survivor
Ivey was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round (37th overall) of the 2004 NBA Draft. Over 10 seasons, he played for the Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Oklahoma City Thunder, appearing in 492 regular-season games and 16 playoff games, including the Thunder's 2012 NBA Finals run.
His NBA career was the career of a professional survivor: a guard who earned roster spots through preparation, defense, reliability, and work ethic. He was not always the headline name, but he was the kind of player coaches valued. That matters in the Hollis sports story because it shows another pathway to excellence. Not every athlete becomes a superstar. Some build long careers by being trusted, prepared, and relentless.
Coaching Career: From NBA Sidelines to International Leadership
After retiring as a player in 2014, Ivey moved immediately into coaching. He has served as an assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder, New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets, and is currently an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets.
Defense as a Career
Royal Ivey's career shows that basketball success is not always built on stardom. Sometimes it is built on the work that coaches trust: defense, preparation, toughness, and the ability to make a team better without needing the spotlight.
That kind of player often becomes a coach because he has spent his whole career studying the game from the inside. Every summer, Ivey returns to Hollis Playground to run his free "Defending Your Dream" skills clinic for kids ages 8-14. "I wanted to do something that catered to life skills and basketball," he said. "Life is not just about basketball. It's about the essentials like nutrition, eating right and educating the kids."
The clinic, which Ivey has run for years with his parents Rod and Jennifer, stresses education, respect, discipline, teamwork, and financial literacy. In 2012, speaking at the clinic, Ivey wiped away tears as he looked out at his family — including his 92-year-old grandmother — and told the children, "The sky is not the limit."
South Sudan and a New Basketball Story
One of the most important chapters of Ivey's career came through international basketball. In 2021, he became head coach of the South Sudan national team. Working with Luol Deng and a rising basketball program, Ivey helped guide one of the world's youngest countries onto the global basketball stage.
South Sudan reached the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup and qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics — the country's first Olympic basketball appearance. For Ivey, the achievement showed that coaching is not only about strategy. It is also about belief, identity, organization, trust, and helping players see themselves as part of something larger than one game.
"That's a daunting task and major feat," Sports Illustrated noted, "considering that the country had never made the Olympics before."
Books Before Basketball: A Family Tradition of Education
Ivey comes from a family of educators. Both of his grandmothers were school teachers. His mother, Jennifer, was a school teacher who retired after 35 years of service.
"In our house it was books before basketball all the time," Ivey said. "You had to get your homework done or you couldn't go out, you couldn't turn on the TV or play with your friends."
During the 2011 NBA lockout, Ivey returned to the University of Texas to finish his degree in applied learning and development. "That's my passion," he said, "to teach kids and to be around kids and see kids develop and grow and become successful role models in our society."
Athletic Legacy Ledger
Royal Ivey's career connects Hollis, the University of Texas, the NBA, international coaching, and community leadership:
Royal Ivey's Hollis connection belongs to the neighborhood's athletic and community-service legacy. He never forgot where he came from. Every summer, he returns to Hollis Playground to run his free clinic, proving that the same streets that taught him to defend his dream can teach the next generation to defend theirs. From the NBA to the Olympics to the courts of Hollis, Ivey has carried his neighborhood with him everywhere.
At a Glance
- Full name
- Royal Terence Ivey
- Born
- December 20, 1981, Harlem, New York; raised in Hollis, Queens
- High school
- Benjamin N. Cardozo High School (Bayside); Blair Academy (NJ, postgraduate)
- College
- University of Texas at Austin (four-year starter)
- NBA Draft
- 2004, 2nd round (37th overall), Atlanta Hawks
- NBA career
- 10 seasons: Hawks, Bucks, 76ers, Thunder
- NBA Finals
- 2012 with Oklahoma City Thunder
- Coaching career
- Assistant coach: Thunder, Knicks, Nets, Rockets (2014–present)
- South Sudan
- Head coach (2021–present); led to first World Cup (2023) and first Olympics (2024)
- Hollis legacy
- Runs annual free "Defending Your Dream" clinic at Hollis Playground
- Education
- BA in applied learning and development, University of Texas
- Family
- Mother, grandmothers were teachers; "books before basketball" household
Credits & Archival Acknowledgments
- Wikipedia — Royal Ivey
- ESPN — "Royal Ivey: 'The sky is not the limit'" (2012)
- Sports Illustrated — Rockets' Royal Ivey Could Garner Head Coaching Interest
- NBA.com — Getting to Know: Royal Ivey
- Queens Tribune — "NBA Guard Royal Ivey Returns to Hollis"
- HPA Notable Residents draft for Royal Ivey
- HPA neighborhood framing — Notable Residents of Hollis series
This Legacy Is in Peril
Royal Ivey made it from Hollis Playground to the NBA Finals and the Olympic stage. Every summer, he comes back to those same courts to teach the next generation that "the sky is not the limit." The neighborhood that built that competitor, that coach, that mentor — and the parks where he still gives back — are worth protecting.