Danny Peters was named assistant coach at the University of Arizona in April of 2018 following a four-year stint as an assistant coach at Ball State University. The appointment marks Peters’ second stint as a member of head coach Sean Miller’s staff, following his four years in Tucson from 2010 to 2014.
Over the last two seasons, Peters has helped the Wildcats sign a Top 20 recruiting class in 2019 that included a pair of Top 20 recruits and Top 40 signee Zeke Nnaji. Then in 2020, he helped Arizona secure a top five recruiting class nationally. Upon his arrival in Tucson, Nnaji’s work ethic was apparent and he would go on earn Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and first team all-conference accolades, becoming the fifth Wildcat to earn top freshman honors in Miller’s tenure. Nnaji was also named to the USBWA and NABC all-district teams. The 2019-20 season saw Arizona lead the Pac-12 in scoring while also holding opponents to the third-fewest points per game.
During his time with the Cardinals, Peters aided in head coach James Whitford’s overhaul of the program. Ball State posted the nation’s fourth largest turnaround in 2015-16 as it earned the first of its two 20-win seasons and shared the MAC West Division championship. The program’s first postseason trip of Peters’ time in Muncie, Ind., the 2016 CIT, was BSU’s first postseason berth in 14 years.
Peters spent four seasons in Tucson from 2010 to 2014, working as a graduate manager for two years before being promoted to assistant director of basketball operations for the final two. The Wildcats won a pair of conference championships and advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament twice during Peters’ first stint with the Wildcats.
The Cincinnati native was a four-year letterwinner at Ohio State from 2006 to 2010, appearing in 42 games for head coach Thad Matta. The Buckeyes won two Big Ten regular season championships and a pair of Big Ten Tournaments during his playing career while also advancing to the national championship game of the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
Peters is the son of the late Dan Peters, a longtime college basketball coach. The elder Peters was the head coach at Walsh University (1983-88), St. Joseph’s College (Ind.) (1991-93) and Youngstown State (1993-99). He was the 1998 Mid-Continent Conference Coach of the Year in 1998 after leading YSU to a 20-win season.
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