Art Alvarez
President and Head Coach
He has sent several players to the pros, including three to the NBA.
He won two prep state titles and was the driving force behind leading a pro team to a No. 3 ABA ranking.
And he is the chief executive officer of the Miami Tropics organization that is set to compete in the first-ever FIBA Liga De Las Americas tournament.
Alvarez’s latest challenge, the 16-team club championship of the Americas, will be televised internationally by FOX.
If the FIBA league is like his previous challenges, the Tropics are sure to be winners because Alvarez has been a success at just about everything he has tried, from business to sports.
As a basketball player, he was the first Cuban to earn first-team all-state, doing so as a guard for Miami's LaSalle High School.
As a coach, he helped lead Miami Christian to two state titles, setting Florida's single-season record for wins (38) in the process.
Born in Havana, Cuba, Alvarez came to the United States when he was just one month old. He and his family settled in Miami, where Alvarez began his love affair with basketball.
As a sophomore, he was on the Miami High junior varsity coached by Bob Kaufman, now at Killian. Also on that Miami High staff as an assistant to Kaufman was Shakey Rodriguez, then in his first year as a coach. Rodriguez would go on to win five state titles at Miami High and is still a close friend of Alvarez.
After his sophomore year, Alvarez transferred to LaSalle, where his scoring exploits earned him a scholarship to Miami-Dade South. However, Alvarez broke his ankle just 10 days after arriving on the Dade South campus, ending his playing career.
Then, while many of his friends went into coaching, Alvarez took a different route. At age 21, he married Amy, and they started a family - two daughters and a son.
To support his family, Alvarez went into private business. And although he was very successful in business, it often meant less time for his family.
"I made a promise to my son Danny that I would coach him in basketball when he got a bit older,'' Alvarez said.
Alvarez kept his promise, starting out as the junior-varsity coach at Miami Christian when Danny was in the 8th grade.
Alvarez led Miami Christian to state titles in the two years the Victors were eligible - 2000 and 2002.
The 2000 team featured two players who went on to star at FIU - Carlos Morban and Junior Matias - as well as Kelly Ortiz and Johan Rivera.
The 2002 team went 38-2 and was ranked ninth in the nation by USA Today. The starters on that team, regarded as one of the finest in state history, were Jose Juan Barea, Carlos Rivera, Jesus Verdejo, Ivan Lopez and Sammy Hernandez - all Division I signees.
Alvarez's last Miami Christian team was also special. The 2003 Victors went 24-4 and featured Verdejo and Guillermo Diaz.That team was ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation.
With his son having graduated that year, Alvarez left high school coaching.
"Miami Christian wanted me to stay, and I thought about it,'' Alvarez said. "But my plan had always been to get out once Danny graduated. Plus, we had accomplished everything we wanted.''
Alvarez, however, has continued to run the Tropics, one of just over 40 Nike Travel Teams in the nation.
His biggest thrill, however, has been to see so many of his players move on to do big things. Diaz, Barea, Morban and Lopez are already playing professionally. Diaz, in fact, made history when he became just the fifth Puerto Rican ever drafted by the NBA. Barea, meanwhile, made the NBA's Dallas Mavericks as a rookie free agent.
With two dozen former Tropics players currently competing for Division I colleges, the list of pros will continue to grow.
"The hard work of the kids is what has made this program special," Alvarez said. "They have made the Tropics a great experience, and I know the program will continue to get bigger and better."
Alvarez's Accomplishments:
- State championships with Miami Christian in 2000 and 2002.
- 2002 team ranked 9th in the nation by USA Today.
- 2003 team ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation by USA Today.
- State Class 1A Coach of the Year in 2002.
- Miami-Dade County Class 4A-1A Coach of the Year 2002.
- ESPN High School Coach of the Month, December 2001.
- Rim Rattler Tournament Championship in 2000.
- Kingdom of the Sun Tournament Championships in 2001 and 2002.
- Led Miami Tropics to 125-50 record in first five seasons.
- Won the Copa McDonald's in Puerto Rico in the summer of 2005. The Tropics beat the junior national teams from Puerto Rico and Argentina and the national team from Puerto Rico.
- Coached projected NBA lottery pick O.J. Mayo and led the Tropics to the Final Four of the Kingwood Classic.
- In August of 2006, became owner and president of the ABA Miami Tropics. Led the team to an 18-5 record and a No. 3 ranking in the league.
- In August of 2007, became owner of the Tropics team that entered the FIBA Americas League. In December, the Tropics swept three of the top pro teams in Latin America - Halcones Xalapa of Mexico, Arecibo of Puerto Rico and Fuerza Regia of Mexico.
- In January of 2008, Alvarez led the Tropics' FIBA Liga de Las Americas team to a Bronze Medal in Mexacali, Mexico posting a 2-1 record in the Final Four.
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