Michael Cooper, a five-time NBA champion as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, is now a head coach in college basketball.
Cooper has been hired by Cal State Los Angeles, a Division II school, according to Benjamin Royer of The Orange County Register.
Division II Cal State LA hires Lakers great Michael Cooper as men’s basketball head coach.
— Benjamin Royer (@thebenroyer) April 7, 2026
Cooper had served as associate head coach since 23’.
Cooper has led teams in the WNBA (LA Sparks, Atlanta Dream), women’s college basketball (USC) and in what’s now called the G League.
Cooper has been an assistant at Cal State LA since 2023, and he is now the head coach after Jim Saia stepped down following 10 seasons in charge of the program.
Cooper was a member of the Lakers from 1978 through 1990, and he played on the legendary Showtime Lakers squad alongside Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Cooper does have head coaching experience, although not in college. He was the Los Angeles Sparks head coach from 2000 to 2004, then coached the Albuquerque Thunderbirds in the NBA G League before returning to the Sparks in 2007.
Cooper was a WNBA head coach again, this time with the Atlanta Dream from 2014 to 2017, before spending time in LA as the head coach for Chadwick City High School and Culver City High School.
Even though Cal State LA is in Division II, hiring a Lakers legend such as Cooper is a splashy move, and it could attract some players to the program.
Cal State LA finished with a 9-19 record this season.
