Todd Lee was announced as the Head Coach of the Cal State Bakersfield men's basketball program on March 26, 2026. He became the tenth Head Coach in the history of the program.
Lee brought more than 30 years of coaching experience to the Roadrunners, including 12 seasons as a collegiate head coach. Most recently, he was an assistant coach at USC for two seasons (2024-26) under Eric Musselman after spending a pair of seasons on Musselman's staff at Arkansas (2022–24). While with the Razorbacks, Lee served as director of scouting and later as an assistant coach. His longstanding relationship with Musselman dates back to the early 1990s, when the two coached together for the Rapid City Thrillers in the CBA (1992–94).
During his first season at Arkansas, the Razorbacks advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 and had three players selected in the top 40 picks of the 2023 NBA Draft - Anthony Black, Nick Smith Jr., and Jordan Walsh. Another standout, Ricky Council IV, earned All-SEC honors and signed with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Prior to Arkansas, Lee was the head coach at his alma mater, South Dakota, from 2018 to 2022, compiling a 66-52 record and earning Summit League Coach of the Year honors in 2021. During his tenure, he coached multiple All-Summit League selections, including Stanley Umude, who was a three-time All-League performer and one of the nation’s top scorers in 2020-21.
Lee led South Dakota to a 19-12 record in 2021-22, including a 12-5 mark down the stretch after a two-week shutdown of the program due to COVID, while reaching the Summit League semifinals. His 2020-21 squad won 10-straight games and started 9-0 in league play for the first time since 1992-93. That season also featured a road win at rival South Dakota State, snapping SDSU’s 32-game conference home win streak. In 2019-20, the Coyotes finished 20-12 and ranked among the national leaders in field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and points per possession.
Before South Dakota, Lee served five seasons (2013–18) as associate head coach at Grand Canyon University, where he helped lead the Antelopes through a successful transition to Division I. GCU posted a 103-58 record during his tenure, made four straight postseason appearances, and reached the WAC championship game in 2018.
From 2005 to 2013, Lee was the head coach at Division II powerhouse Kentucky Wesleyan. He guided the Panthers to five NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, a Sweet 16 berth in 2012 and a No. 1 national ranking. His teams averaged 22 wins per season over his final six years as he was recognized as the 2008 GLVC Coach of the Year, 2010 NABC Midwest Region Coach of the Year and a finalist for the 2012 Clarence "Big House" Gaines National Coach of the Year award.
Lee also spent eight seasons at UC Irvine (1997–2005), the final four as associate head coach. Under his guidance, the Anteaters captured two Big West regular-season titles and achieved three consecutive 20-win seasons. UC Irvine also played in the National Invitation Tournament in 2001 and 2002.
He previously served as an assistant coach at Cal State Bakersfield (1994–97), where the Roadrunners won the 1997 NCAA Division II National Championship.
Lee’s professional coaching career began in 1992 as the head coach of the CBA’s Rapid City Thrillers, where he organized the first U.S. pro team to tour China, finishing 5-0 against the Chinese National Army team.
His coaching journey began at the junior college level with Southwestern College (1986–89) before spending three seasons as an assistant at the University of San Diego (1989–92).
A native of Huron, South Dakota, Lee graduated from the University of South Dakota in 1986 with a degree in business administration and earned a master’s in education from Azusa Pacific in 2003.
He and his wife, Brooke, have six children.
With decades of experience at multiple levels and success at every stop, Lee looks to build a culture of competitiveness and intensity with his return to Bakersfield.
“When you watch our team play, you should feel their competitiveness, toughness and that they are a connected team that cheers for each other. We will play an up-tempo style, we will be unselfish and very aggressive attacking the rim. We want to put pressure on the rim and create open 3s. Defensively we will be a very tough and aggressive man-to-man team that takes great pride in being really good defensively. You cannot be a championship team without being a great defensive team. I want our fans to feel our team's intensity on both ends of the floor, which is what fans want to cheer for.” - Todd Lee
WHAT THEY SAYING ABOUT TODD LEE...
- “Todd Lee is known in the coaching fraternity as a star. He is an incredible X and 0 coach, as well as having a magnetic personality. He has a unique background having coached both at a collegiate and professional level…He is one of the best coaches I have ever been around.” – Eric Musselman, USC Head Coach
- “The most important hire when I got this job was Todd Lee. He has been huge as far as establishing our culture in five short years and a lot of the success goes to Todd and his dedication to coaching and tireless work ethic.” – Dan Majerle, Former GCU Head Coach and NBA All-Star
- “When Todd first reached out to me while he was coaching with a group down in San Diego, I could tell he was organized, he was gung ho and that he would do an excellent job…When you coach in The Big West, you have to wear a lot of different hats to make your program successful. Sometimes guys are good on offense, or they’re good on defense, or a good recruiter. Todd can do it all!” – Pat Douglass, Former CSUB Head Coach and 3x NCAA Division II National Champion
- “I have known Coach Lee for close to 30 years. He was an assistant at San Diego where I played and we are still very close. He has won big everywhere he has coached. He is a tremendous coach and an even better person.” – Mike Brown, New York Knicks Head Coach
- “Todd was hired as the associate head coach [at GCU] because of his experience and track record of success. He groomed Dan and showed him the ropes to being a college coach. He was great to be around and a real professional with a great work ethic. He did whatever it would take to get the job done.” – Jerry Colangelo, Member of the Basketball Hall of Fame
