Michael Cooper is a former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association, who played for the Los Angeles Lakers. After his career in the NBA, he also served as a coach in the Women’s National Basketball Association and the NBA D-League. In the NBA, he is a 5-time NBA Champion. He also played for a time in the Italian League for Virtus Roma.
Player Profile and Personal Life
Michael Jerome Cooper was born on April 15, 1956, in Los Angeles, California in the United States. He stands 201 cm tall and his weight was last listed at 77 kg. When he was three years old, he cut his knee, which required 100 stitches. The doctors thought then that he would no longer be able to walk.
In 2014, he was diagnosed with Tongue Cancer. He had surgery for it and has since recovered.
| Position | Shooting Guard |
| Height / weight | 2.01 m / 77 kg |
| Born | 15 Apr 1956 |
| Nationality |
United States
|
| Playing Style | Right Handed |
| Team History | |
| Virtus Roma | 1990 - 1991 |
Los Angeles
|
1978 - 1990 |
High School and College Career
He attended Pasadena High School. When he graduated in 1974, he attended Pasadena City College before he eventually transferred to the University of New Mexico. While in college, he was named to the First-team All-WAC in 1977 and 1978.
Professional Career
He was drafted into the NBA during the 1978 NBA Draft and was picked by the Los Angeles Lakers as 60th overall. His entire professional career in the NBA was played with the Lakers. While there, he was named an NBA Champion five times. In 1987, he was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
He was also named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team and the NBA All-Defensive Second Team multiple times.
After the NBA, he played in the Italian League for Virtus Roma. In 1991, he was named the Italian All-Star Game MVP.
He started his professional coaching career with the Los Angeles Lakers. Cooper coached them from 1994 to 1997. In 1999, he started coaching in the WNBA for the Los Angeles Sparks. He helped lead them to two WNBA Championships. In 2000, he was also named the WNBA Coach of the Year.
In 2004, he coached the Denver Nuggets for a season. In 2005, he coached for the Albuquerque Thunderbirds in the NBA G-League. He returned to coaching the Sparks from 2007 to 2009.
Other teams, he’s coached for include the USC Trojans’ women’s basketball team, the Atlanta Dream, and the Chadwick School Team. As of 2022, he coaches the Culver City High School team.
Career Highlights
As a Player:
- 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988 - NBAchampion
- 1987 - NBA Defensive Player of theYear
- 1982, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988 - NBAAll-Defensive First Team
1981, 1983, 1986 - NBA All-DefensiveSecond Team
1991 - Italian All-Star Game MVP
- 1978 - First-team All-American –USBWA
- 1977, 1978 - First-team All-WAC
As a Coach:
- 2001, 2002 - WNBA champion
- 2000 - WNBA Coach of the Year
- 2006 - NBA D–League champion
Team History:
As a Coach:
- 1994–1996 - Los Angeles Lakers(Assistant)
- 1999 - Los Angeles Sparks(Assistant)
- 2000–2004 - Los Angeles Sparks
- 2004 - Denver Nuggets (assistant)
- 2004–2005 - Denver Nuggets (interim)
- 2005–2007 - Albuquerque Thunderbirds
- 2007–2009 - Los Angeles Sparks
- 2009–2013 - USC (women)
- 2014–2017 - Atlanta Dream
- 2019–2021 - Chadwick School
- 2021–present - Culver City HighSchool
