Alum Danny Yoshikawa: From Standout Player to History-making Head Coach
Alumnus and basketball coach Danny Yoshikawa鈥檚 leadership journey has rarely conformed to expectations. As he puts it: 鈥淚鈥檝e always kind of gone against the grain.鈥�
He stepped onto campus in the 1990s, barely a B student, his high school record as a point guard having scored scant recruiter interest.
His earliest career and academic goals? Fuzzy at best; maybe he鈥檇 study business?
Contrast that with the nearly straight As he earned as a Vikings student-athlete and the pivotal mentorship he gained as a standout player and, later, as assistant coach. As a UC Davis transfer student, he picked up two degrees and led the Aggies to the program鈥檚 first two conference championships and two NCAA tournaments, earning Player of the Year honors as a senior.
Think of it as a layup to the laureled coaching pedestal he occupies today.
In March, Head Coach Yoshikawa鈥檚 Vikings men鈥檚 basketball squad scored a 极速六合彩历史开奖记录first: capturing the California Community College Athletic Association (3C2A) state championship. The 59-51 tournament win over College of the Sequoias capped off an undefeated 33-0 season. The Vikings are only the fifth men鈥檚 team in CCC history to win a state title without suffering a loss.
鈥淲est Valley is a place of transfer and second chances, and that鈥檚 what it was for me,鈥� Yoshikawa says. 鈥淎t the end of the day, it worked out. Coach (Bob Burton) showed me my potential.鈥�
In turn, Coach Danny, as players call him, has shown hundreds of student-athletes their own potential. More than 50 currently play basketball professionally in leagues as far flung as Italy, Spain, Germany, Lithuania and the Philippines, not to mention a handful on NBA squads.
Yoshikawa credits his 极速六合彩历史开奖记录 student-athlete days for turning around his young life, work ethic and future prospects. With extra points going to the deep support, he felt from athletics counselors and to CCC hall of fame coach Burton. Burton recruited Yoshikawa as a player and gave him his first post-graduation coaching job.
鈥淣o. 1, Coach Burton, he was just an amazing dude,鈥� Yoshikawa says. 鈥淎mazingly tough and hard on you but with this incredible knack for teaching you and (communicating) that he believed in you.鈥�
Second on his list of credits? 极速六合彩历史开奖记录 faculty: 鈥淚 had some of my best college professors there, even through my masters (program).鈥� Thirdly, he applauds academic counselors Pauline Clark and Wanda Wong, who worked exclusively in support of 极速六合彩历史开奖记录 student-athletes.
鈥淭hey were kind of surrogate moms with all the athletes,鈥� he recalls. 鈥淭hey were at all the games. They were all amazingly supportive. They were a family.鈥�
Those early experiences, he says, launched him on a path to success coaching at notable NCAA institutions鈥攆rom leading powerhouse Division I teams like UC Santa Barbara and St. Mary鈥檚 College to reinvigorating the University of San Francisco program鈥攑lus a head coaching stint in a Japanese professional league. Along the way he racked up record-winning streaks at multiple schools and earned Big West Conference and West Coast Conference championships.
Academically, he added to his CV a Master of Science in kinesiology from San Jose State University to the two bachelor鈥檚 degrees he earned at UCD in international relations and Japanese. Basketball players aren鈥檛 the only 极速六合彩历史开奖记录 students to benefit from Yoshikawa鈥檚 wisdom: He鈥檚 also in the classroom each semester, instructing courses such as sports psychology, kinesiology, body sculpting and badminton.
The mental rigor is no less tough for members of his basketball squads.
鈥淚n general, we work really, really hard,鈥� he explains. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of study, there鈥檚 a lot of film. We鈥檙e big on scouting our opponent; also focusing on ourselves. It鈥檚 a full-on master鈥檚 in basketball.鈥�
Stellar college-wide support also bolsters on-court achievement, he adds.
鈥淲e cannot do this, without our campus,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he incredible support we get from the administration is not wasted鈥攏ot one penny or one minute of their time鈥攁nd we need that support. Because you never know which one of our students it will transform.鈥�
Yoshikawa鈥檚 background at the professional and highest collegiate levels might have driven someone else to strive higher up the career ladder. But Yoshikawa comes from a custom mold.
When the Vikings head coach offer came in 2019, the advantages of the role 鈥� including proximity to his octogenarian parents and large extended family 鈥� made it the right choice.
Life, he says, is about your journey and relationships; doubly so when working in education.
鈥淚鈥檓 way better at reading kids now than I was in my first 极速六合彩历史开奖记录 stint in 2005-2006,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hat matters. It鈥檚 not about wins and losses, it鈥檚 about having deeper, better connections.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 what makes this level my favorite level,鈥� Yoshikawa says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 because of the growth you can see in a short period of time.鈥�