Patrick Zipfel (born October 15, 1967) 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 Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

and former college

athletics director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and ...

. He is currently the advance scout for the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Prior to joining the Sixers in 2023, the Philadelphia native was a member of the Phoenix Suns coaching staff, led by Monty Williams, that earned the Western Conference Championship title and NBA Finals run in 2021. Throughout his career, Zipfel has worked as assistant coach/advance scout for the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

(NBA),

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

, and

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

, while also serving as an assistant coach for 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 ...

and

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

. In October 2015, Zipfel accepted the head coach position at Mansfield University, located in Mansfield, Pennsylvania to help restore the program before returning to the NBA in 2018.

Early years

Zipfel earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

from

Cabrini College Cabrini University was a private Catholic university in Radnor Township, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in 1957, and was named after the first American naturalized citizen saint, Mother Fran ...

in English/communications in 1989.Catching Up With: Former Centenary College Men's Basketball Coach Pat Zipfel – Lehigh Valley Express-Times
/ref>

Coaching career

Zipfel was an assistant men's basketball coach at

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

The Citadel The Citadel Military College of South Carolina (simply known as The Citadel) is a public senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. Established in 1842, it is the third oldest of the six senior military colleges ...

from 1989 to 1992. He was awarded his first head coaching job at Bucks County Community College in 1993. In 1994, Zipfel moved on to Centenary College of New Jersey, where he served as their director of athletics and head men's basketball coach."Zipfel is set for a homecoming". ''Intelligencer Journal''. February 6, 1996. C4. Accessed through ProQuest. He worked for the NBA's

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 ...

as an advance scout, responsible for scouting the Clippers' upcoming opponents and preparing game plans for coaches and players.Zipfel an Interesting Possibility – Wilmington Star News
Zipfel spent the 2003–04 season as head coach of the New Jersey Squires of the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

, leading the Squires into the quarterfinals, where they were defeated by the Kansas City Knights. From 2004 to 2007, he was an advance scout for the NBA's

. From 2007 to 2011, Zipfel was an assistant coach and advance scout for the NBA's Houston Rockets. Houston General Manager

Daryl Morey Daryl Morey (born September 14, 1972) is an American basketball executive who is the president of basketball operations of the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His basketball philosophy, heavily reliant on analyt ...

said Zipfel was a "secret weapon" in the Rockets' first-round playoff series victory in 2009, their first playoff series win in more than a decade. "We felt like we were a little tick ahead because we had Pat Zipfel on the bench," said Morey. Zipfel spent the summer of 2011 serving as the advance scout for the Ukraine National Team under head coach

Mike Fratello Michael Robert Fratello (born February 24, 1947), nicknamed "the Czar", is an American sports broadcasting, sports broadcaster and former professional basketball coach. He is currently a part-time Color commentator, analyst for FanDuel Sports Net ...

. On December 6, 2011, he was hired by the

as an assistant coach and advance scout. In Summer of 2012 Zipfel served as the

Dominican Republic national basketball team The Dominican Republic national basketball team () represents the Dominican Republic in men's international basketball competitions. In 2011 and 2012, John Calipari, the head coach of the University of Arkansas men's basketball team, served as ...

advance scout under head coach

John Calipari John Vincent Calipari (; born February 10, 1959) is an American basketball coach who is the head coach at the Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball, University of Arkansas. He has been named Naismith College Coach of the Year three times (1996, 2 ...

for this country's Olympic entrant for Men's Basketball. The team won a gold medal in Centro Basket, and lost in the pre-Olympic Qualifying tournament. Zipfel has been called "one of the sharpest strategic minds in the NBA." ESPN.com says Zipfel's NBA peers rate him "one of the league's best" advanced scouts.The Life of an Advance Scout – ESPN.com
/ref> He currently serves on the NBA Coaches Association technology committee.

References

https://www.nba.com/suns/directory/staff# {{DEFAULTSORT:Zipfel, Patrick 1967 births American Basketball Association (2000–present) coaches American men's basketball coaches Cabrini University alumni College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Centenary Cyclones athletic directors The Citadel Bulldogs basketball coaches Houston Rockets assistant coaches Junior college men's basketball coaches in the United States Los Angeles Clippers assistant coaches Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coaches Portland Trail Blazers assistant coaches Living people