It isn’t just the turnovers on the court that will hold back a basketball team, Rainbow Wahine coach Laura Beeman has discovered, it is also the ones in the office.

Lose too many assistant coaches and it affects recruiting, coaching and, ultimately, what takes place on the floor. So, when athletic director Ben Jay initiated talks on a rollover of her contract after a 17-14 (13-5 Big West) inaugural season, Beeman called a quick timeout.

"She wanted us to try to do something for her assistants first," Jay said. "If you know Laura, she would much rather help her assistants and then worry about compensation for herself," Jay said. "So, that’s what we are working on right now, first."

Her magnanimity, praiseworthy as it is, comes with a purpose, too.

"I have learned, particularly when I was at (Mt. San Antonio College), that I needed consistency with my coaching staff," Beeman said. "That’s when my program turned around."

Beeman was 390-110 in 15 years as coach at the California junior college, winning 10 conference and four California Community College State Championships. She is believed to have an annual salary of approximately $130,000 at UH.

"I was able to have Brian Critchlow with me for 10 years, which is unheard of at the JC level," Beeman said. "And it was because (the school) was able to do something to make it possible for him to stay with us."

At UH, meanwhile, it has been as though the Rainbow Wahine basketball office came with a revolving door. There have been 15 changes of assistant coaches in five years. To put it in perspective, Vince Goo, a former head coach (1987-88 through 2003-04), didn’t go through that many in 17 seasons.

In the UH athletic department, perhaps only the turnover in the men’s basketball roster has been as thorough. And it was reflected in five years without a Rainbow Wahine winning season until this year.

"I think any coach who is worth their weight knows the success is because of their assistant coaches and players," Beeman said. "I want good people around me and I think we have a good staff (Mary Wooley, Gavin Petersen and Dekita Williams). So, I want to keep the ones here, here."

The salary scale for women’s assistants is listed at $40,392-$100,116, though the average has been about $53,000 in recent years, with none believed to have reached $75,000.

Beeman said, "I know, most of the time, Ben’s hands are tied when it comes to the kind of contracts we can offer. So when he came to me, it was, ‘Hey, Ben, I’m pretty happy.’ If I had to prioritize — and I know people are going to say I’m crazy — I would like to look at my assistants and staff. Then, if there is room, look at my (deal)."

Some changes are inevitable, of course, as assistants chase head coaching jobs, etc. But Beeman pledges, "if I can keep the staff that I have now together now for the next, well, however long I’m here, then let me tell you, it will take our program to another level and do it quickly."

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.