Nate Laing enters his second season on The Hill after being hired to the WKU Men's Basketball coaching staff as an Assistant Coach prior to the 2025-26 season. He previously served as an assistant coach at Portland State for two years.
Laing helped the Vikings to back-to-back winning seasons from 2023-25, including a 19-13 final record in 2024-25 and a third-place finish in the Big Sky Conference. Prior to joining the staff at Portland State, Laing served as an assistant under current Mahurin Family Foundation WKU Head Men's Basketball Coach Hank Plona at Indian Hills CC in 2022-23, helping IHCC to a 29-5 final overall record and a semifinal run at the 2023 NJCAA National Tournament.
Prior to his stint at Indian Hills, Laing served as an Assistant Coach and Interim Head Coach at Northwest Florida State College in Niceville, Florida where he helped guide the Raiders to the NJCAA DI Men's Basketball National Championship in 2021-22. In three seasons at Northwest Florida State, Laing managed the men's basketball staff and oversaw day-to-day operations of the program, including community engagement events and fundraising initiatives.Â
Laing assisted in recruiting, scouting and player development while overseeing practice plans, statistical analysis and video breakdown for the program.
Laing began his coaching career as an Assistant Coach at Kentucky Wesleyan for one season in 2018-19. Prior to entering coaching, Laing competed as a student-athlete at Jax State from 2013-16 and UCF from 2016-18. Beginning his basketball playing career at Jax State, Laing was named team captain and a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) representative. Laing completed his playing career at UCF, playing under head coach Johnny Dawkins and received the Most Inspirational Award, the Coaches Award and served as a SAAC representative.
Laing completed a Master of Career and Technical Education degree at UCF in 2017-18. While at Jax State, Laing earned a Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management.
