Christ the King coach earns win 500

Saturday afternoon, Christ the King’s Bob Oliva became the latest coach to earn his 500th win, when his Royals routed Xaverian, 73-50, in the quarterfinals of the CHSAA Class AA intersectional playoffs at Holy Cross. “It’s very special,” he said. “It means I’ve been around a long time. … We’ve had good players, good coaches and we’ve given them good direction.”
After the win, Oliva’s players gave him the ball, with all their signatures on it. In his 25 years at the helm, he has a record of 500-167, and has led the Royals to four city and state championships. He’s coached eight players who’ve appeared in the National Basketball Association, one in the Major Leagues (Allen Watson) and another in the National Football League (Will Poole). “I don’t know if there’s another coach who can make that statement,” he said. “I’m proud of that, too.”
Oliva, 60, has mentored some of the best players to ever come out of the city, such as Lamar Odom (Los Angeles Lakers), Speedy Claxton (New Orleans Hornets) and Khalid Reeves, the all-time leading scorer at the University of Arizona and Christ the King. “I’ve got the best job you could ever have here,” he said.
Oliva came to Christ the King in 1978, first coaching the freshman team to a CHSAA freshman city championship in 1981 - the Royals first boys’ basketball title at any level - and was named the varsity boys coach the next season.
A physical education teacher who will retire at the end of this year, Oliva was the assistant athletic director at Christ the King for 13 years and then the official head of the sports department from 1995 until last year when he retired from the post. He doesn’t plan of giving up the last job that remains at the Middle Village school. “I’m going to coach,” he said. “I don’t see any foreseeable retirement there.”