James Holmes was named the head coach of the John Jay College men's basketball program in September 2025 and led the program to the semifinals for the second consecutive year.Â
Holmes guided John Jay to a berth in the CUNY Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) Men's Basketball Championship Tournament. The Bloodhounds advanced to the conference semifinals before falling to eventual champion Lehman College.Â
Under Holmes' leadership, the program experienced success both on the court and in the classroom. He coached two All-CUNYAC selections, including First Team honoree Keyshawn Miller and Second Team selection Jamir Stewart. Both student-athletes also earned recognition from the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA), with Miller receiving Third Team honors and Stewart being named Honorable Mention.
Academically, the Bloodhounds posted a 3.10 cumulative team GPA during the 2025-26 academic year. Ten student-athletes earned Scholar-Athlete recognition, while Adrian Kopec and Ronnie McIntyre were named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District® Team. Kopec collected the honor for the third time in his career, while McIntyre earned his first CSC Academic All-District® selection.
Holmes arrived at John Jay following two successful seasons as the top assistant coach at Tufts University, where the Jumbos compiled a combined 43-14 record and established themselves among the nation's elite Division III programs.
During the 2024-25 season, Tufts finished 22-6 overall and 8-2 in conference play, setting a program record for victories while earning a No. 8 national ranking. The Jumbos advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship. In 2023-24, Holmes helped lead Tufts to a 21-8 record and an appearance in the NCAA Sweet 16, finishing the season ranked No. 14 nationally after climbing as high as No. 5 during the year.
While at Tufts, Holmes played an instrumental role in the development of several standout student-athletes. Scott Gyimesi earned First Team All-NESCAC honors and was selected to the NABC and D3hoops.com All-Region teams after recording 14 double-doubles, ranking among the nation's leaders in both rebounds and total rebounding. Holmes also helped mentor James Morakis, who earned Second Team All-NESCAC recognition and D3hoops.com All-Region honors after leading the Jumbos in scoring during the 2024-25 campaign.
Prior to Tufts, Holmes spent two seasons as the top assistant coach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). During his tenure, the Engineers won 42 games and advanced to the NCAA Division III Sweet 16 in 2022. The coaching staff was recognized as the 2022 Liberty League Coaching Staff of the Year, and RPI finished the season ranked No. 21 in the D3hoops.com national poll.
Before RPI, Holmes served two seasons as the top assistant coach at SUNY Oswego. The Lakers captured both the SUNYAC regular-season and tournament championships in 2019 while advancing to the NCAA Sweet 16. During his time at Oswego, Holmes helped mentor four First Team All-SUNYAC selections.
Holmes began his collegiate coaching career at his alma mater, SUNY Oneonta, where he served as both a student assistant and graduate assistant.
In addition to his collegiate coaching experience, Holmes has worked at numerous prestigious basketball camps, including those hosted by the University at Albany, Columbia University, Dartmouth College, Yale University, the University of Virginia, Skidmore College, and the University of Rochester.
Holmes earned his bachelor's degree in history from SUNY Oneonta in 2016 before completing a master's degree in school counseling in 2018.
Basketball has long been a part of the Holmes family. His father, Jeff Holmes, coached the Shaker High School boys' basketball program for more than 25 years and was inducted into the Upstate New York Basketball Hall of Fame in 2022. His uncle, Steve Holmes, enjoyed successful head coaching tenures at SUNY Geneseo and Salisbury University, while his grandfather, Ray Holmes, was a longtime high school coach in the Plattsburgh and Potsdam areas and was inducted into the New York State Basketball Hall of Fame in 2025.
