Southern Nevada Sports Hall of Fame to induct key figures behind UNLV championship era

Editor's note: Este artículo está traducido al español.

For one night, UNLV basketball’s golden era returns to the spotlight — not on the court, but in memory — as two architects of its rise are honored.

Former UNLV assistants Tim Grgurich and Mark Warkentien will be among this year’s inductees into the Southern Nevada Sports Hall of Fame tonight at Lee’s Family Forum.

Grgurich spent more than 50 years in the game, many of them on NBA benches, where he earned a reputation as an elite developer of talent and a coach who built deep, lasting relationships.

He served as Jerry Tarkanian’s top assistant from 1981 to 1992 — years that included three Final Four appearances in five years — and was one of those indispensable figures who shunned the spotlight and thrived in the background, mentoring players and sharpening game plans.

Warkentien was an assistant for six seasons, including the 1987 Final Four run, before transitioning to assistant athletic director — a role he held during the 1990 national championship season.

Warkentien went on to a distinguished career as an NBA executive, rising to vice president of basketball operations with the Denver Nuggets and director of player personnel with the New York Knicks. He died in 2022.

Tarkanian rightly gets much of the recognition for UNLV’s legendary run, but without Grgurich and Warkentien connecting with players and putting their imprint on the program, there is no championship banner. Consider what it means that an assistant of Grgurich’s caliber — one who had already proven himself as a head coach at Pitt — chose to spend 11 years as Tarkanian’s right-hand man rather than chase another head coaching opportunity.

With all due respect to the Golden Knights and their Stanley Cup championship in 2023, the Rebels’ rise to national prominence remains the greatest sports achievement in Las Vegas history. The program joined the Division I ranks in 1970 and reached the Final Four within seven years.

It was a national brand and everyone knew it.

There was nothing quite like a standing-room crowd at the Thomas & Mack Center: the pregame fireworks, Frank Sinatra sitting in “Gucci Row,” the breathtaking transition dunks and suffocating defense. The Runnin’ Rebels set the standard.

Current UNLV coach Josh Pastner lays it out in simple terms: “The reason pro sports are here is because of Runnin’ Rebel basketball led by coach Tarkanian,” he told the Sun. “It’s what coach Tark, coach Grg and coach Warkentien built.”

UNLV flavor dominates

The induction ceremony will have a distinct UNLV feel.

Cliff Findlay, the automotive group owner and philanthropist who is one of the university’s most dedicated supporters, will be honored as the inaugural recipient of the Legacy Award. The honor was created specifically for Findlay, who was inducted into the Hall in 2001 and has poured countless resources into supporting youth sports across Las Vegas.

Also being inducted is former UNLV golfer Ryan Moore, who won the NCAA individual championship in 2004 and has five PGA Tour victories. Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis will also be enshrined.

Building on UNLV’s past

When basketball recruits visit UNLV, they are photographed in team swag and with a special accessory: championship rings from those glory years slipped onto their fingers. It’s a great sales pitch — though perhaps more for the parents of the recruits. Those glory years, after all, were more than 30 years ago.

Stacey Augmon, one of the finest players in program history and a key member of the championship team, returned last year as the team’s director of community engagement. It’s another bridge between the program’s past and its present.

“We had one recruit recently visit and his dad was in awe of Stacey Augmon,” Pastner said.

“We educate recruits on the history,” Pastner said. “This was the premier program in all of college basketball — the best of the best, showtime before showtime.”

Pastner, of course, isn’t naive about today’s college basketball landscape. The programs winning now are the ones whose name, image and likeness collectives spend the most on players — and UNLV’s bankroll is millions of dollars behind the leaders.

While UNLV won’t be reaching the Final Four in three of the next five seasons, more modest expectations aren’t out of reach: finish in the top two of the Mountain West, become a perennial NCAA Tournament qualifier and bring excitement back to the Thomas & Mack Center.

If anything, the program’s history shows what’s possible when a community truly rallies around its team. Las Vegans took ownership of those Rebels. We were proud. We lived and died with every basket.

Pastner is right: Those glory years were something special. They set a tremendous bar — and it’s his job to capture some of that magic again. It’s his obsession.

“It’s so important that we never forget,” Pastner said.

Nobody worked harder than Grgurich and Warkentien in shaping players and advocating for them — and that legacy offers a worthy blueprint for the modern-era Rebels. That is what makes Friday’s hall of fame ceremony special.

[email protected] / 702-990-2662 / @raybrewer21