Minn. jury awards $1.25M in assistant’s lawsuit against Tubby Smith over aborted hiring

Jury awards $1.25M in lawsuit against Tubby Smith

MINNEAPOLIS — A jury in Minneapolis has awarded an assistant coach nearly $1.25 million in his lawsuit against Minnesota basketball coach Tubby Smith over an aborted hiring.

Jimmy Williams was an assistant at Oklahoma State when Smith called him to talk about a job shortly after being hired at Minnesota in 2007. Minnesota backed away from Williams after athletic director Joel Maturi pointed out NCAA recruiting violations in his past.

Williams said he resigned at Oklahoma State after Smith offered him a job. Smith testified during an eight-day trial that he never finalized a job offer and didn’t tell Williams to quit his job.

Williams says Wednesday’s verdict vindicates him and that he hopes to return to coaching.