Daniel Lowell Peterson (born January 9, 1936) is an American former

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

head coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...

. He resigned from his most recent position as the head coach of

Olimpia Milano Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano, commonly known as Olimpia Milano or as EA7 Emporio Armani Milan after its title sponsor, is an LBA Italian professional basketball team, based in Milan, Italy. Its colors are white and red, and the team is sometimes ...

in the Italian LBA after the team was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 2011 Italian league playoffs. The team then announced that he would assume another role with the club. He is nicknamed "The Coach" for his legacy in Italian basketball. Peterson was enshrined in the

FIBA Hall of Fame The FIBA Hall of Fame, or FIBA Basketball Hall of Fame, honors players, coaches, teams, referees, and administrators who have greatly contributed to international competitive basketball. It was established by FIBA in 1991. Originally built in ...

in 2024.

Biography

Peterson went to Evanston Township High School in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...

. He received his undergraduate degree from

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

in Evanston and a master's degree from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

. He served as assistant coach for NAIA school McKendree College from 1962 to 1963. From 1963 to 1964 he served as freshmen coach at Michigan State. After MSU, for one season, he was plebe coach at the United States Naval Academy. The next year, at the age of 30, he became head coach at the

University of Delaware The University of Delaware (colloquially known as UD, UDel, or Delaware) is a Statutory college#Delaware, privately governed, state-assisted Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Newark, Delaware, United States. UD offers f ...

. In five years there, he assembled a record of 69 wins and 49 losses. In 1971, he went abroad, acting as head coach of the Chile national basketball team until 1973. Peterson took his Chilean team on a grueling tour of the United States in 1972. From 1973–1978, he coached Virtus Bologna in the Italian LBA, winning the 1974 Italian Basketball Cup and, in 1976, the Italian League title. In 1978, he was hired as head coach of

, where he won four Italian League titles (1982, 1985, 1986, 1987), two more Italian Cups (1986, 1987), a Korać Cup (1985), and one European Champions Cup (EuroLeague) title, which is the highest title in Europe for pro club basketball. In 1987, he retired after coaching in Italy for 24 years, but he resumed coaching on January 3, 2011, with

. He still holds records for a coach in the Italian League playoffs, with 11 Final Four appearances in 11 years (after which a playoff format was introduced), 9 finals, 4 titles, 74 games coached, and 51 games won. On January 3, 2011, he became the new head coach of

, after the dismissal of Piero Bucchi. He left in June, succeeded by Sergio Scariolo.

Commentator

After his retirement, he became a popular sports commentator (basket and pro wrestling) for major Italian television channels.

Awards

He received the Coach of the Year award for Europe from the WABC and the Coach of the Year for Italy twice. Following his retirement from coaching, he was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995. In 2007, Peterson was named a Distinguished Alumnus of Evanston Township High School. In 2008, he was named one of the 50 most influential European club basketball personalities over the previous half-century.Euroleague Basketball article
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References

External links

Italian League coach profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peterson, Dan 1936 births Living people American emigrants to Italy American expatriate basketball people in Chile American expatriate basketball people in Italy American men's basketball coaches Basketball coaches from Illinois College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens men's basketball coaches EuroLeague–winning coaches Evanston Township High School alumni McKendree Bearcats men's basketball coaches Michigan State Spartans men's basketball coaches Navy Midshipmen men's basketball coaches Northwestern University alumni Olimpia Milano coaches Sportspeople from Evanston, Illinois University of Michigan alumni Virtus Bologna coaches

Biography

Commentator

Awards

See also

References

External links