Twenty-five years, six Canada West Coach of the Year awards, five Canada West championships, two U Sports Coach of the Year honours and coaching stints with Team Canada and professional players — the resume doesn’t seem to end for Thunderbirds men’s basketball head coach Kevin Hanson.
For one of the nation’s most venerated basketball coaches, the sport is just one piece in a lifelong story.
Born in Regina, Hanson’s first competitive games weren’t at centre court, but at centre ice.
“My body was probably more suited to hockey than it was for basketball,” Hanson said, laughing in an interview with The Ubyssey. “That’s where I really learned to be as competitive as I am. Every day after school, every night after dinner, we would go and lace up in an old burning stove shack and get out there and just play.”
His family often moved around due to his father’s work, so Hanson continually found his home by participating in team sports.
"I think you just became a little bit more of a family and were accepted more once you were participating in sport,” Hanson said.
He first started playing basketball during grade two intramurals, encouraged by his parents and teachers to start playing.
“I kind of fell in love,” he said.
Eventually ending up in Vancouver, the sport became an increasingly important part of his life; Hanson credits its fast-paced and social environment for his involvement.
“It took over me in grade 8,” he said. “There’s so many more attempted shots at the net, at the goal. I just found it a very ... intrinsically fulfilling sport.”
With his high school’s varsity team, Hanson excelled and started to look at where the game could take him.
Playing a year at Langara College, Hanson transitioned from a power-forward to starting point-guard, eventually transferring to UBC in 1984. Named team captain, he highlighted his “claim to fame” as winning the 1987 Canada West championship while spoiling UVic’s dreams of an unprecedented national eight-peat.
During his undergrad, he had a unique pre-game tradition.
“After shootaround, I would go down to the Commodore Billiards,” said Hanson. “There was a $5 special of a hot dog, a bag of chips and an hour of pool. So I would play — that’s what me and another buddy of mine would do.”
Following university, Hanson hopped between coaching jobs in the
Lower Mainland for 13 years before landing the grail: UBC.
“When the opportunity at UBC arose, I thought, ‘Wow, what an amazing thing,’” he said. As of today, Hanson has 614 coaching wins as the head coach of his alma mater team.
“Any competitor will tell you that they love winning. I really love winning,” he said. “[But] all I want is that the players play [to] their max potential, and they become better people and better players because of it.”
Hanson consistently cited former UBC head coach Bruce Enns as having had a distinct impact on how he approaches coaching.
“I remember going to practices ... we would warm up and that would be the only time we would sweat,” he said. “Then it was more of a lecture.”
“He wanted us to be students of the game — to analyze,” Hanson said. “As an athlete, you’re going ‘Coach, I just want to run’ ... he goes ‘Well, in order to play, you got to understand the game like there’s a difference ... between being a basketball player and playing basketball.’”
The two still keep in touch, with Hanson saying Enns is still “watching all our games.”
“He’s still analyzing my team. I do cherish that relationship.”
Hanson led the Thunderbirds to the 2025 U Sports Final 8 — his ninth national appearance as head coach. UBC hosted both the men’s and women’s tournaments, from March 13–16, where the ‘Birds finished sixth.
“To be a successful coach, it’s absorbed into your body. It’s certainly not a job and it can’t just be a job,” he said. “It’s a lifestyle.”
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