Dean Demopoulos (born March 29, 1954) is an American professional

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 ...

coach.

Early life

Demopoulos was born in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, and graduated from West Chester State in 1977 with a degree in comprehensive social sciences. He began his coaching career at Kennett High School in

Kennett Square, Pennsylvania Kennett Square is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, Kennett Square had a population of 5,943. Kennett Square is located in the Delaware Valley and considered a suburb of both Philadelphia, t ...

College coaching career

In 1983, Demopoulos became an assistant to John Chaney at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist ministe ...

, a post he held until 2000. During that span, the Owls became a national basketball powerhouse, amassing a 393–151 (72.2%) record and making it to the NCAA Tournament 16 times and to the Elite Eight on four occasions. For the 2000–01 college season, Demopoulos served as head coach of the

UMKC Kangaroos The Kansas City Roos, known before July 1, 2019, as the UMKC Kangaroos and also sometimes called the Kansas City Kangaroos, are the intercollegiate teams representing the University of Missouri–Kansas City that compete in the National Collegi ...

team. In his one season as coach, the Roos were ranked in the top 10 nationally in several statistical categories, including fewest turnovers (9.5 per game) and scoring defense (60.5 points per game).

Professional coaching career

NBA (2001–2012)

Between

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

and

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, Demopoulos served as an assistant to

Nate McMillan Nathaniel McMillan (born August 3, 1964) is an American basketball coach and former player who serves as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He coached the Seattle SuperSonics from 2000 to ...

at the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly shortened to Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Division (1967–1970), and ...

in the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

. With McMillan's move to the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

, Demopoulos joined him and again served as his lead assistant. After five seasons with the Trail Blazers, Demopoulos was hired as an assistant to

Vinny Del Negro Vincent Joseph Del Negro (born August 9, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player. He was the head coach of the National Basketball Association's Chicago Bulls from 2008 to 2010, and the Los Angeles Clippers from 2010 to 2013. ...

at the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

. He served under Del Negro for all three of his seasons, with Demopoulos leaving the Clippers in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

Melbourne United (2015–2017)

In April 2015, Demopoulos was hired by Australian NBL club

Melbourne United Melbourne United is an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria. United compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at John Cain Arena. The team made their debut in the NBL in 1984 ...

to be head coach on a two-year deal. He guided United to a 9–0 record to begin the 2015–16 season, which saw him set the best start to a debut head coaching season in league history. He was subsequently named NBL Coach of the Month for October 2015. Melbourne finished the regular season in first place with an 18–10 record, but went on to lose 2–0 to the fourth-seeded

New Zealand Breakers The New Zealand Breakers (also known as the Bank of New Zealand, BNZ Breakers for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional basketball team based in Auckland. The Breakers are the only non-Australian side currently competing in Austral ...

in the semi-finals. In 2016–17, Melbourne failed to make the finals despite boasting a bevy of stars. They entered the final round of the season in third place but lost both of their games, which saw them finish in sixth place with a 13–15 record. His contract was subsequently not renewed following the 2016–17 season.

Grand Rapids Drive (2018–2019)

Demopoulos spent the 2018–19 season as an assistant to Ryan Krueger at the

Grand Rapids Drive The Grand Rapids Gold are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and are affiliated with the Denver Nuggets. The Gold play their home games at Van Andel Arena. They began play as the Anahe ...

of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

Saskatchewan Rattlers (2022–2023)

On January 19, 2022, Demopoulos was announced as the new head coach of the

Saskatchewan Rattlers The Saskatchewan Rattlers are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The Rattlers compete in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL), playing their home games at the SaskTel Centre. The Rattlers hosted the ...

of the

Canadian Elite Basketball League The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL; ) is the premier men's professional basketball league in Canada, as recognized by Canada Basketball. The CEBL was founded in 2017 and began play in 2019 with six teams all owned and operated by owner ...

(CEBL). However, he was fired on July 4, 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Demopoulos, Dean 1954 births Living people American men's basketball coaches American expatriate basketball people in Australia Basketball coaches from Pennsylvania Canadian Elite Basketball League coaches High school basketball coaches in the United States Kansas City Roos men's basketball coaches Los Angeles Clippers assistant coaches Melbourne United coaches National Basketball League (Australia) coaches Portland Trail Blazers assistant coaches Seattle SuperSonics assistant coaches Sports coaches from Philadelphia Temple Owls men's basketball coaches West Chester University alumni