Birthplace: Los Angeles, CA
Height: 6'5"
NBA Seasons: 12
NBA Titles: 5
1987 NBA Defensive Player of the Year
Entering his second year with 3’s Company, Michael Cooper brings toughness and leadership during an emotional time for the team. With 3’s Company reeling from the tragic death of its star, Andre Emmett, Cooper will attempt to blend veteran returnees Drew Gooden and DerMarr Johnson and former 3 Headed Monster standout Mario Chalmers into a formidable and cohesive unit.
In his first year as coach, Cooper led the 2019 3’s Company team into the playoffs, where they fell short to Bivouac in the fifth-place game. This year, he aims to finish what he started.
Cooper, a cancer survivor, is as tough as they come, and he knows a lot about winning titles. He is the only person in the world to win a championship as a player or coach in the NBA, WNBA and NBA D-League. Of course, the NBA titles – all five of them – came as a pivotal member of the Los Angeles Lakers’ “Showtime” teams of the ‘80s. One of the league’s best defenders, Cooper was a five-time NBA All-Defensive Team player and the 1987 NBA Defensive Player of the Year. Hall of Famer Larry Bird once called Cooper the best defender he ever faced.
Following his playing career, Cooper made a successful transition to coaching – where he won back-to-back titles with the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA and then led the Albuquerque Thunderbirds to the NBA Developmental League championship.
