![]() Pat Riley was named the Heat's head coach not long after Spoelstra's hiring. Spoelstra was hired as the Heat's video coordinator in 1995, although at first he was not promised the position past the summer of that year. Coaching career Miami Heat (1995–present) Assistant coach (1997–2008) Ĭhris Wallace, then the director of player personnel for the Heat, convinced then general manager Dave Wohl to offer Spoelstra a position with the team. Although both offers held appeal, he chose to take the Heat position. In 1995, Spoelstra was offered another two-year contract with the club, but the NBA's Miami Heat also offered him a position. He began having back problems after the end of his second year with the team, and contemplated having surgery. It was in this setting where Spoelstra got his first coaching job, as coach of the club's local youth team. He instead went to Germany, spending two years (1993–1995) in Basketball Bundesliga's second division as a player–assistant coach for TuS Herten, a professional club based in Westphalia. However, the paperwork to play in the country got delayed. He had originally planned to play basketball in the Philippines he had watched their games on VHS tape for years. Professional career TuS Herten (1993–1995) Īfter college, Spoelstra initially boxed shoes at a Nike warehouse. Spoelstra graduated from the University of Portland in 1992 with a degree in communications. During a 1990 WCC basketball tournament game against Loyola Marymount, Spoelstra was on the court standing just a couple of yards away from Hank Gathers when Gathers collapsed and died of a heart condition. He is a member of the school's 1,000-point club, and is among the Pilots' career leaders in several statistical categories. Spoelstra was the Pilots' starting point guard for four years, averaging 9.2 points, 4.4 assists, and 2.4 rebounds per game. In 1989, he was named West Coast Conference (WCC) freshman of the year. Spoelstra received basketball scholarship offers, and eventually accepted one from the University of Portland in his hometown. Before his senior year, Spoelstra participated in Sonny Vaccaro's Nike All-Star camp in Princeton, New Jersey, alongside future NBA players Alonzo Mourning, Shawn Kemp, Billy Owens, and Bobby Hurley. He wore number 30 during high school and college in honor of then- Trail Blazer Terry Porter, one of his favorite NBA players. High School in Portland, before attending Jesuit High School in Beaverton, Oregon, where he excelled at point guard on the basketball team. He attended Raleigh Hills Elementary and Whitford Jr. Įrik Spoelstra spent his childhood in Buffalo, New York, before moving to Portland, Oregon by the late 1970s. Spoelstra is also the grandson of Watson Spoelstra, a long-time sportswriter for The Detroit News. Elisa is a native of San Pablo, Laguna, Philippines. Jon, an American of Dutch and Irish descent, is a former NBA executive of the Buffalo Braves, Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, and New Jersey Nets. Spoelstra was born in Evanston, Illinois, to Jon Spoelstra and Elisa Celino. ![]() ![]() The Heat have made six NBA Finals appearances during Spoelstra's tenure, winning consecutive championships in 20. He was promoted to head coach in the 2008–09 season. He served as assistant coach and director of scouting for the Heat from 2001 to 2008, during which time the team won the 2006 NBA Finals. Spoelstra played college basketball with the Portland Pilots before playing professionally and coaching in Germany. A Filipino American, Spoelstra is the first Asian American head coach in the history of the four major North American sports leagues and the first Asian American head coach to win an NBA title. He has won two NBA championships as the head coach of the Heat. ![]() Spoelstra is widely regarded as one of the best coaches in the league and one of the greatest of all time.
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