ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – The St. Bonaventure men's basketball program has officially hired four new staff members ahead of the 2026-27 season, head coach Mike MacDonald announced Wednesday (April 22). Akbar Waheed, Clive Bentick and Nick Fruscio will join the staff as assistant coaches, while Nick MacDonald will be hired as a video coordinator and player development specialist.
 
"We are very excited about the coaching staff we have put together," head coach Mike MacDonald said. "We have a mix of veteran coaches and young coaches. We have coaches with NBA experience and high-major Division I experience. Most importantly, we have assembled a staff who love basketball, love teaching and are great role models for the young men on our team."
 
Waheed joins the Bonnies' staff with over 25 years of coaching and professional scouting experience. He comes to the Enchanted Mountains after a three-year stint as a scout with the Brooklyn Nets. Prior to his time in Brooklyn, Waheed served as an assistant coach at Georgetown from 2016 to 2022, where he coached future NBA professionals Jamorko Pickett, Omer Yurtseven and Mac McClung. Waheed served as the lead assistant at Hofstra (2015-16), Boston College (2010-14) and Niagara (2000-10) while also completing a stint as a scout with the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2014-15 season. 
 
Bentick, also with over two decades of Division-I coaching experience, arrives at St. Bonaventure after serving as an assistant coach at Monmouth since 2022. With the Hawks, Bentick racked up 50 wins in the last three seasons, including high-major upsets over West Virginia and Seton Hall. Prior to Monmouth, Bentick was an assistant coach at St. Francis Brooklyn for 15 seasons. He helped lead the Terriers to two national postseason tournaments: an NIT bid in 2015 and a CIT appearance in 2019. In 2021, Stadium listed Bentick as one of the top Division I assistant coaches in the country. 
 
Before St. Francis Brooklyn, Bentick coached at Le Moyne (2006-07) and at his alma mater, Canisius (2004-06) on MacDonald's staff. As a player, Bentick scored 840 points over his four-year career under MacDonald at Canisius, climbing to fourth in the Golden Griffins' all-time assist ranks (354). 
 
Fruscio, who joins St. Bonaventure after two years as an assistant coach at Daemen, posted a 61-3 record under MacDonald, with a 32-0 record in conference play. With Fruscio on the sidelines, the Wildcats won back-to-back East Coast Conference regular season and tournament titles, culminating in an East Regional championship in 2025-26. Daemen's win percentage of .968 during Fruscio's tenure was the second-highest win percentage among all NCAA teams at any level during that span. Fruscio spent time as an assistant at Canisius High School (2023-24) and Northwest Florida State (2022-23) prior to Daemen. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at East Carolina from 2020 to 2022.
 
Nick MacDonald joins the Bonnies from Cincinnati, where he served as a graduate assistant during the 2025-26 season. Prior to his time with the Bearcats, he spent one season as an assistant coach at Buffalo State, helping the Bengals achieve their highest win total since the 2018-19 season. MacDonald had a five-year playing career, the last three of which were played under his father at Daemen. He started his playing career at Niagara, where he appeared in 52 games and was named to the MAAC All-Academic team in 2020-21.
 
General manager Adrian Wojnarowski, Assistant Athletic Director for Men's Basketball Operations Matt Pappano and graduate assistant Tommy Kelly will retain their current roles.