Michael Jerome Cooper (born April 15, 1956), nicknamed "Coop", is an American
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 and former player. He played for the
Los Angeles Lakers during his entire career in the
National Basketball Association
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 ...
(NBA), winning five
NBA championships with the Lakers during their
Showtime era. He was an eight-time selection to the
NBA All-Defensive Team, including five times on the first team. He was named the
NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 1987. Cooper was inducted into the
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...
in 2024. The Lakers
retired his 21 jersey in 2025.
As a coach, Cooper led the
Los Angeles Sparks of the
Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. The league comprises 13 teams (scheduled to expand to 15 in 2026). The WNBA is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan.
The WNBA w ...
(WNBA) to two championships and the
Albuquerque Thunderbirds to one
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 ...
title. He has also coached in the NBA, WNBA, and the
NBA Development League. He was the head coach for boys basketball at
Culver City High School in California from 2021 to 2023. He then took an assistant coaching job for men's basketball at
California State University, Los Angeles.
Early life
Michael Jerome Cooper was born on April 15, 1956, in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, California. When he was three years old, he cut one of his knees severely, requiring 100 stitches to close. At the time the doctor said that he would never be able to walk. Cooper attended
Pasadena High School, where he excelled in
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 ...
. He graduated in 1974.
College career
Cooper attended
Pasadena City College before transferring to the
University of New Mexico. He played for the
New Mexico Lobos for two seasons, 1976–78, and was named first team All-Western Athletic Conference. In Cooper's senior season, he was named a first-team
All-American by the
United States Basketball Writers Association. The Lobos won the WAC title, with Cooper averaging 16.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.
Professional career
Los Angeles Lakers (1978–1990)
Selected by the
Los Angeles Lakers in the third round of the
1978 NBA draft with the 60th overall pick, Cooper became an integral part of their
Showtime teams of the 1980s with his defensive skills. In a twelve-year career, he was named to the
NBA All Defensive Team eight times, including five first-team selections. Until 2024, Cooper and
Norm Van Lier had the most defensive selections of any player to not be inducted into the
Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. He was named a finalist in 2022 and was selected for induction into the Hall of Fame in 2024. He won the
NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award in 1987. He, along with
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and
Magic Johnson, was a member of five Lakers championship teams in 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, and 1988.
At 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m), 174 lb (77 kg), the rail-thin Cooper known for his knee-high socks, played shooting guard, small forward, and point guard, although his defensive assignment was usually the other team's best shooter at the 2 or 3 position.
Larry Bird has said that Cooper was the best defender he faced. For his career, Cooper averaged 8.9 points, 4.2 assists, 3.2 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game. A popular player among Lakers fans, home crowds were known to chant, "Coooooooop" whenever he controlled the ball, and the Lakers sometimes ran an
alley-oop play for him that was dubbed the "Coop-a-loop." Leaving the team after the 1989–90 season, he was ranked among the club's all-time top 10 in three-point field goals (428), games played (873), total minutes played (23,635), steals (1033), blocked shots (523), assists (3,666), defensive rebounds (2,028), offensive rebounds (741), and free throw percentage (.833).
Pallacanestro Virtus Roma (1990–1991)
Cooper then played for the 1990–91 season in Italy for
Pallacanestro Virtus Roma in the Italian
Serie A
The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...
, averaging 15.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.9 steals, 1.8 assists, and 0.3 blocks per game.
Coaching career
Los Angeles Lakers (1994–1997)
Following Cooper's playing career, he served as Special Assistant to Lakers' general manager
Jerry West for three years before joining the Lakers' coaching staff in March 1994 under
Magic Johnson, then with
Del Harris from 1994 to 1996.
Los Angeles Sparks (1999–2004)
Cooper became an assistant coach of the WNBA's
Los Angeles Sparks in 1999, and helped the team reach the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, with a record of 20–12.
He was named the Sparks' head coach in November 1999, and the Sparks' record quickly improved, as they finished 28–4 in their 2000 campaign. Cooper was named the
WNBA Coach of the Year for his efforts. The Sparks followed with consecutive
WNBA Championships in 2001 and 2002, but were denied a third straight WNBA title by losing to the
Detroit Shock in 2003.
Denver Nuggets (2004–2005)
After the
Sacramento Monarchs ended the Sparks' run in the first round of the 2004 WNBA Playoffs, Cooper took a job as an assistant coach under
Jeff Bzdelik with the
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...
. After 24 games, Bzedlik was fired, and Cooper was named the Nuggets' interim head coach. He remained interim head coach until
George Karl
George Matthew Karl (born May 12, 1951) is an American former professional basketball coach and player. After spending five years as a player for the San Antonio Spurs, he became an assistant with the team before being appointed as a head coach ...
was brought in to coach the team about a month later and served as a scout for the Nuggets the remainder of the season.
Albuquerque Thunderbirds (2005–2007)
Cooper was the head coach of the
Albuquerque Thunderbirds for three years (2005–07). In 2007, he left the Thunderbirds after coaching them to the National Basketball Association D-
League Championship in 2006.
Return to Sparks (2007–2009)
Cooper then returned to coaching in the WNBA as head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks.
USC Trojans' women's basketball team (2009–2013)
In May 2009, Cooper was named head coach of the University of Southern California's Women of Troy Basketball Team. He quit in 2013 after USC went 11–20 and finished seventh in the
Pac-12 Conference
The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level for all sports, and its Co ...
with a 7–11 record. He was 72–57 overall at USC.
Atlanta Dream (2014–2017)
In November 2013, Cooper was hired by the
Atlanta Dream as head coach. His contract was not renewed by Atlanta after an 11–22 season in 2017.
Chadwick (2019–2021)
In 2018, Cooper signed on to coach 3's Company of the
Big3 League.
In 2019, Cooper was named the boys varsity coach at
Chadwick School in the
Palos Verdes Peninsula of
Los Angeles County.
Culver City (2021–2023)
Cooper became the head coach at
Culver City High School on September 8, 2021.
California State University, Los Angeles
Cooper became an assistant head coach of men's basketball at
Cal State, LA in 2023.
Head coaching record
NBA
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Denver
Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
, style="text-align:left;",
, 14, , 4, , 10, , , , align="center", (interim), , , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", —
, - class="sortbottom"
, align="center" colspan="2", Career
, 14, , 4, , 10, , , , , , —, , —, , —, , —, ,
WNBA
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2000
2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year.
Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
, 32, , 28, , 4, , , , align="center", 1st in Western, , , 4, , 2, , 2, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost in Conference Finals
, - ! style="background:#FDE910;"
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2001
, 32, , 28, , 4, , , , align="center", 1st in Western, , , 7, , 6, , 1, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Won
WNBA Championship
, - ! style="background:#FDE910;"
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2002
, 32, , 25, , 7, , , , align="center", 1st in Western, , , 6, , 6, , 0, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Won
WNBA Championship
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2003
, 34, , 24, , 10, , , , align="center", 1st in Western, , , 9, , 5, , 4, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost
WNBA Finals
, -
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
, 20, , 14, , 6, , , , align="center", (resigned), , , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", —
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2007
, 34, , 10, , 24, , , , align="center", 6th in Western, , , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", —
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2008
, 34, , 20, , 14, , , , align="center", 3rd in Western, , , 6, , 3, , 3, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost in Conference Finals
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2009
2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
, 34, , 18, , 16, , , , align="center", 3rd in Western, , , 6, , 3, , 3, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost in Conference Finals
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2014
The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
, 34, , 19, , 15, , , , align="center", 1st in Eastern, , , 3, , 1, , 2, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost First Round
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2015
, 34, , 15, , 19, , , , align="center", 5th in Eastern, , , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", —
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2016
, 34, , 17, , 17, , , , align="center", 4th in Eastern, , , 2, , 1, , 1, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost Second Round
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, style="text-align:left;",
2017
, 34, , 12, , 22, , , , align="center", 5th in Eastern, , , —, , —, , —, , —
, style="text-align:center;", —
, - class="sortbottom"
, align="center" colspan="2", Career
, 388, , 230, , 158, , , , , , 43, , 27, , 16, , , ,
D-League
, -! style="background:#FDE910;"
, style="text-align:left;",
Albuquerque
, style="text-align:left;", 2005–06
, 48, , 26, , 22, , , , align="center", 2nd, , , 2, , 2, , 0, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Won D-League Championship
, -
, style="text-align:left;", Albuquerque
, style="text-align:left;", 2006–07
, 50, , 24, , 26, , , , align="center", 3rd in Western, , , 1, , 0, , 1, ,
, style="text-align:center;", Lost in First Round
, - class="sortbottom"
, align="center" colspan="2", Career
, 98, , 50, , 48, , , , , , 2, , 2, , 1, ,
College
NBA career statistics
Regular season
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 3 , , , , 2.3 , , .500 , , , , , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.3 , , 0.0 , , 2.0
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", †
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 82 , , , , 24.1 , , .524 , , .250 , , .776 , , 2.8 , , 2.7 , , 1.0 , , 0.5 , , 8.8
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 81 , , , , 32.4 , , .491 , , .211 , , .785 , , 4.1 , , 4.1 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , 9.4
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", †
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 76 , , 14 , , 28.9 , , .517 , , .118 , , .813 , , 3.5 , , 3.0 , , 1.6 , , 0.8 , , 11.9
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 82 , , 3 , , 26.2 , , .535 , , .238 , , .785 , , 3.3 , , 3.8 , , 1.4 , , 0.6 , , 7.8
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 82 , , 9 , , 29.1 , , .497 , , .314 , , .838 , , 3.2 , , 5.9 , , 1.4 , , 0.8 , , 9.0
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", †
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 82 , , 20 , , 26.7 , , .465 , , .285 , , .865 , , 3.1 , , 5.2 , , 1.1 , , 0.6 , , 8.6
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 82 , , 15 , , 27.7 , , .452 , , .387 , , .865 , , 3.0 , , 5.7 , , 1.1 , , 0.5 , , 9.2
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", †
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 82 , , 2 , , 27.5 , , .438 , , .385 , , .851 , , 3.1 , , 4.5 , , 1.0 , , 0.5 , , 10.5
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", †
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 61 , , 8 , , 29.4 , , .392 , , .320 , , .858 , , 3.7 , , 4.7 , , 1.1 , , 0.4 , , 8.7
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 80 , , 13 , , 24.3 , , .431 , , .381 , , .871 , , 2.4 , , 3.9 , , 0.9 , , 0.4 , , 7.3
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 80 , , 10 , , 23.1 , , .387 , , .318 , , .883 , , 2.8 , , 2.7 , , 0.8 , , 0.5 , , 6.4
, - class="sortbottom"
, style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career
, 873 , , 94 , , 27.1 , , .469 , , .340 , , .833 , , 3.2 , , 4.2 , , 1.2 , , 0.6 , , 8.9
Playoffs
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",
1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...
†
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 16, , , , 29.0, , .407, , .000, , .861, , 3.7, , 3.6, , 1.5, , 0.7, , 9.1
, -
, style="text-align:left;,
1981
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 3, , , , 34.0, , .550, , .000, , .714, , 3.3, , 2.3, , 2.0, , 0.0, , 10.7
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",
1982†
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 14, , , , 27.4, , .565, , .500, , .735, , 4.4, , 4.4, , 1.7, , 0.8, , 11.9
, -
, style="text-align:left;,
1983
1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 15, , , , 30.2, , .465, , .143, , .829, , 3.9, , 2.9, , 1.7, , 0.4, , 9.4
, -
, style="text-align:left;,
1984
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 21, , , , 34.4, , .461, , .333, , .806, , 3.9, , 5.7, , 1.1, , 1.0, , 11.3
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",
1985†
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 19, , , , 26.4, , .563, , .308, , .923, , 4.0, , 4.9, , 1.1, , 0.5, , 10.4
, -
, style="text-align:left;,
1986
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 14, , , , 30.1, , .470, , .463, , .818, , 3.3, , 4.9, , 1.3, , 0.3, , 9.7
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",
1987
Events January
* January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency.
* January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade.
* January 3 – Afghan leader ...
†
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 18, , , , 29.0, , .484, , .486, , .852, , 3.3, , 5.0, , 1.4, , 0.8, , 13.0
, -
, style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",
1988†
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 24, , , , 24.5, , .412, , .403, , .741, , 2.4, , 2.8, , 0.8, , 0.4, , 6.4
, -
, style="text-align:left;,
1989
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 15, , , , 27.6, , .416, , .382, , .833, , 2.7, , 4.7, , 0.6, , 0.5, , 7.7
, -
, style="text-align:left;,
1990
, style="text-align:left;",
L.A. Lakers
, 9, , , , 19.2, , .286, , .250, , , , 2.7, , 2.8, , 0.8, , 0.4, , 2.6
, - class="sortbottom"
, style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career
, 168 , , 4 , , 28.2 , , .468 , , .392 , , .825 , , 3.4 , , 4.2 , , 1.2 , , 0.6 , , 9.4
Personal life
In July 2014, Cooper was diagnosed with early-stage tongue cancer. He had surgery at
Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University in Atlanta,
and was able to recuperate.
See also
*
References
External links
* Coaching record at basketball-reference.com
NBA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Michael
1956 births
Living people
20th-century African-American sportsmen
20th-century American sportsmen
21st-century African-American sportsmen
21st-century American sportsmen
African-American basketball coaches
All-American college men's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Italy
American men's basketball players
American women's basketball coaches
Atlanta Dream coaches
Basketball coaches from California
Basketball players from Los Angeles
Basketball players from Pasadena, California
Big3 coaches
Denver Nuggets assistant coaches
Denver Nuggets head coaches
Los Angeles Lakers assistant coaches
Los Angeles Lakers draft picks
Los Angeles Lakers players
Los Angeles Sparks head coaches
NBA players with retired numbers
New Mexico Lobos men's basketball players
Virtus Roma players
Pasadena City Lancers men's basketball players
Pasadena High School (California) alumni
People from View Park–Windsor Hills, California
Shooting guards
Small forwards
USC Trojans women's basketball coaches
Women's National Basketball Association championship–winning head coaches