Los Angeles is about to see a very familiar face pacing a different sideline. Hall of Famer Michael Cooper is set to become the head coach of Cal State Los Angeles' men's basketball team, with a news conference scheduled for Wednesday inside University Gym. The move follows Jim Saia's announcement that the 2025-26 season would be his final year leading the Golden Eagles, and it drops a major NBA name into a Division II program that has already been trending up.
According to NBC Los Angeles, the announcement was expected at a 12:30 p.m. Wednesday news conference and comes after Saia compiled a 121-134 record over 10 seasons, including a 9-18 mark this season. Cooper joined the Golden Eagles' staff in 2023 and was set to be formally introduced at the campus event.
Cooper's Hall-of-Fame Resume
Cooper was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024, the capstone to a 12-year NBA run that featured five championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. He won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award in 1987 and earned multiple All-Defensive honors, per Basketball-Reference. In other words, Cal State LA is handing the whistle to one of the defining perimeter stoppers of the Showtime era.
A Deep Coaching Resume
Cooper's coaching career stretches across the WNBA, the NBA's development league, and the pro ranks, with plenty of postseason hardware on the shelf. The WNBA notes he was Coach of the Year in 2000 and led the Los Angeles Sparks to championships in 2001 and 2002. He also guided the Albuquerque Thunderbirds to the 2006 D-League title and had a brief interim head-coach stint with the Denver Nuggets, per ESPN. For a Division II locker room, that is a serious dose of big-league experience.
What It Means for the Golden Eagles
Cal State LA has seen its profile rise in recent seasons, and Cooper has already been part of that rise. The Golden Eagles set a program record with 24 wins and captured their first CCAA Tournament title while he was on staff. As outlined by Cal State LA, coaches and administrators credited Cooper with helping sharpen the team's defensive identity and boost its national recognition. Now he will be the one calling the shots from the first chair.
Next Steps
The midday news conference was expected to formally introduce Cooper on campus, according to NBC Los Angeles. Cal State LA's athletics site had not posted a full, formal release at the time of reporting. Updates will follow once the university issues its official statement and Cooper lays out his vision for the program.
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