Michael Cooper

Michael Jerome Cooper ( born April 15, 1956 in Los Angeles, California) is an American professional basketball coach and former player. Between 1978 and 1990 he played in the U.S. professional league NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers. Cooper is 1,96 m tall and played mainly on the position of the Shooting Guards. In the 1980s, he was one of the best defenders for winger.

In 1994, he began as an assistant coach with the Lakers his coaching career. He was head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA in 1999 and was elected back in 2000 for WNBA Coach of the Year. 2001 and 2002 he led the Sparks to each WNBA Championship. In 2004 he again took on an assistant coach position in the NBA, this time with the Denver Nuggets. Last Cooper was hired as interim coach of the Nuggets.

Cooper received in 1986 the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award for community involvement.