Back in June, Jack Baker announced his retirement as the Head Basketball Coach at Maury High School in Norfolk (more on that story here).

It surprised some given that the Old Dominion grad decided to hang it up after 41 seasons because four starters are projected to return for the Commodores in 2017-18 and he was just nine wins away from second place on the VHSL all-time list behind former Hopewell sideline boss Bill Littlepage and Robert E. Lee-Staunton coaching great Paul Hatcher.

Baker, 66, led the Commodores to 19 district or conference titles along with eight trips to the State Tournament and six regional crowns, the final one coming in 2014. He coached many noteworthy stars over the years - names such as former #1 overall NBA Draft pick Joe Smith, UVA standout Cornel Parker, Seattle Seahawks Pro Bowl safety Kam Chancellor and recent University of Texas signee Matt Coleman.

Coach Baker recently appeared on High School Sports Talk Presented by VirginiaPreps.com on ESPN Radio 94.1 in studio with Coach Ed Young and Matthew Hatfield on July 15th to discuss his legendary coaching career, the top players he's coached and a variety of topics.

Hear that Interview at the link below...

Listen to Full Jack Baker Interview Here

Matthew Hatfield serves as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a regular contributor to the ACC Sports Journal. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him every Saturday at 10AM on ESPN Radio 94.1.