During the SEC spring meetings that took place Wednesday, LSU Coach Will Wade told reporters that assistant coaches Greg Heiar and Tasmin Mitchell were each given promotions on the coaching staff.

Heiar will be moved to associate head coach while Mitchell will move from player development to assistant coach, essentially replacing Tony Benford.

Mitchell became an integral member of the staff two years ago when Wade hired him in an administrative role.

"He's going to do a great job," Wade told reporters. "That was kind of the plan when I hired Taz in the first place when I hired him in an administrative position. We knew he had a bright future in coaching. He wanted to get into coaching, obviously wanted to do it at LSU. Loves LSU, so the plan was kind of to let him see how college basketball works, let him see how the coaching industry works.”

It’s the first time Wade has ever had an associate head coach but complimented Heiar by calling him “the best in the country in player development.”

“He's a tenacious recruiter and he's just a well-rounded assistant,” Wade said. “He’s going to be a head coach sooner rather than later. This is the first time I've had an associate head coach, but I think it's well-deserved."