Sports

Lavin fills out staff for Storm

St. John’s now has a full coaching staff to nurture its elite recruiting class.

Head coach Steve Lavin announced the hiring of Darrick Martin on Thursday — which was first reported on by The Post weeks ago — and the promotion within the staff of assistants Rico Hines and Tony Chiles.

Martin, a former point guard who played in the NBA for 13 years and for two years under Lavin when he was an assistant at UCLA, is the third member of the staff with NBA ties, joining Hines and special assistant Gene Keady.

He spent the last two years as an assistant coach and player development specialist with the Timberwolves, where he worked closely with elite NBA players such as Kevin Love and Al Jefferson.

“With our current team being one of the youngest in school history, the timing is ideal for Darrick to join forces with our staff to assist in our efforts to return St. John’s to college basketball prominence,” Lavin said in a statement. “Following his diverse playing experience at the highest levels of basketball, he has transitioned seamlessly into a coaching career. Darrick is a natural teacher who possesses the knowledge and patience necessary to develop young players of this generation.”

Hines and Chiles, meanwhile, came in with Lavin three years ago and were a major part of the Red Storm’s highly rated recruiting class.

It includes shot-blocking machine Chris Obekpa, versatile forwards JaKarr Sampson and Orlando Sanchez, Texas A&M transfer Jamal Branch, a heady point guard, and sharpshooter Max Hooper, a Harvard transfer. They will join returning guards Phil Greene and D’Angelo Harrison, along with forwards God’s Gift Achiuwa and Amir Garrett.