Los Angeles Lakers legend Michael Cooper has been named the head coach of the Cal State LA Golden Eagles. Cooper has previously served as an assistant there in 2023, but will now take over the NCAA Division II program, replacing Jim Saia who retired after 10 seasons.
For Cooper, who has coached at numerous levels since 1994, the opportunity to be a head coach once again at a college close to home is admittedly emotional.
“A little bit,” Cooper told Jim Hill of Sports Central LA. “I think I’m a little bit more manly now to where I don’t get too emotional or my eyes water and I seem like I wanna cry, but it is. It’s a special day because again, being back here at Cal State LA is a very, very special place for me.”
Cooper has head coaching stints with the Los Angeles Sparks and Atlanta Dream of the WNBA, the USC women’s basketball team and most recently was the head coach of the Culver City High School boy’s basketball team in addition to assistant coaching stints with both the Lakers and Denver Nuggets throughout the years. But Cooper believes this stop at Cal State LA will almost definitely be his last.
“Almost the apex of everything, Jim. This is, like I said, probably be my last coaching stint,” Cooper said. “I’ll be 70 years old in about three or four days so yeah, this is it. Great place to end it.”
Cooper is a staple of the Southern California basketball world having played at Pasadena High School and Pasadena City College before transferring to New Mexico University. He played his entire 12-year NBA career with the Lakers, winning five NBA Championships and being named to five NBA All-Defensive First Teams while also winning the Defensive Player of the Year award in 1987.
Cooper has given everything to the game of basketball and now in what is likely to be his final coaching stop, the Lakers legend and Hall of Famer will again look to impart his wisdom and work ethic to the kids in the Cal State LA program.
Lakers celebrate UCLA women’s basketball championship team
Another college program celebrating greatness at the moment is the UCLA women’s basketball team which just won it’s first ever NCAA Championship with a dominant performance over one of the premier programs in women’s basketball, South Carolina.
And at their most recent home game, the Lakers celebrated the Bruins championship team, honoring them at center court during the contest.
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