John Kuester
Kuester coaching the Detroit Pistons in 2009
Personal information
Born (1955-02-06) February 6, 1955
Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolBenedictine (Richmond, Virginia)
CollegeNorth Carolina (1973–1977)
NBA draft1977: 3rd round, 53rd overall pick
Selected by the Kansas City Kings
Playing career1977–1980
PositionPoint guard
Number5, 10
Coaching career1980–2012
Career history
As player:
1977–1978Kansas City Kings
1978–1979Denver Nuggets
1979–1980Indiana Pacers
As coach:
1980–1981Richmond (assistant)
1981–1983Boston University (assistant)
1983–1985Boston University
1985–1990George Washington
1995–1997Boston Celtics (assistant)
1997–2003Philadelphia 76ers (assistant)
2003–2004Detroit Pistons (assistant)
2004–2005New Jersey Nets (assistant)
2005–2006Philadelphia 76ers (assistant)
2006–2007Orlando Magic (assistant)
2007–2009Cleveland Cavaliers (assistant)
2009–2011Detroit Pistons
2011–2012Los Angeles Lakers (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As assistant coach:

Stats  at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

John Dewitt Kuester Jr.[1] (/ˈkjuːstər/; born February 6, 1955) is an American basketball coach and scout. As a player he spent three seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1977 to 1980 and then coached in the college ranks before moving on to the NBA sidelines as an assistant. Kuester was named head coach of the Detroit Pistons in July 2009 and coached the team for two seasons.

A 6'2" (1.88 m) and 180 lb (82 kg) guard, Kuester played collegiately with the University of North Carolina Tar Heels from 1973 to 1977.[2][3]

Playing career

High school

Kuester played four years at Benedictine for legendary coach Warren Rutledge. Leading his team to three consecutive state Catholic League titles, the Cadets were 31–3 his senior year.

College

Kuester played four seasons with the UNC Tar Heels under head coach Dean Smith, for whom he won two ACC championships and helped reach the NCAA tournament four times, including an appearance in the 1977 NCAA Finals,[3] in which they lost to Marquette 67–59.[4] In both his junior and senior year (1976 and 1977), Kuester was voted UNC's best defensive player. Also in his senior year, he was voted Most Valuable Player of the ACC Tournament and the NCAA East Regionals.[3]

Professional

Kuester was selected with the 9th pick of the third round (53rd overall) in the 1977 NBA draft by the Kansas City Kings. He played 78 games for them in 1977–78, averaging 4.8 points, 1.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game.[1] In his second and third (and final) seasons he played with the Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers, respectively.

Coaching career

After his playing days, Kuester began a basketball coaching career, volunteering as an assistant at the University of Richmond from 1980 to 1981.[3] From 1981 to 1983, he was an assistant to Rick Pitino at Boston University before succeeding him in 1983 as the youngest head coach in NCAA Division I.[2][3][5]

From 1985 to 1990, Kuester was the head coach at George Washington University. His 1988–1989 Colonials team compiled a 1–27 record, one of the worst ever in NCAA history.[3]

He continued his career on the sidelines in the NBA, joining the Boston Celtics in 1990 and serving as an assistant from 1995 to 1997,[3] and from 1997 to 2003 as an assistant for the Philadelphia 76ers under head coach Larry Brown. In 2003–04, Kuester followed Brown to the Detroit Pistons where he also served as an assistant. In 2004–05, Kuester was an assistant with the New Jersey Nets,[2] and returned to the 76ers once more in 2005–06. In July 2006, he was named as an assistant coach for the Orlando Magic.[6] In August 2007, Kuester was named to Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Mike Brown's staff, replacing the departing Kenny Natt.[7]

In July 2009, Kuester was hired as head coach of the Detroit Pistons, replacing Michael Curry.[8] An agreement was made after the Pistons and their first choice, Avery Johnson, broke off contract talks.[9] On June 5, 2011, Kuester was fired from his position as head coach of the Detroit Pistons.[10]

On June 29, 2011, he was hired as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers under new head coach Mike Brown. Since his days in Cleveland, this marked the second time Kuester has worked as an assistant coach under Brown.

On September 7, 2012, Kuester was named an advance scout for the Lakers.[11]

Family

Kuester and wife, Tricia, have a son, John III, and a daughter, Katelyn.[3] Katelyn ("Katie") played basketball at St. Joseph's University.[12][13]

Head coaching record

College

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Boston University Terriers (Eastern College Athletic Conference-North) (1983–1995)
1983–84 Boston University 16–139–5T–2nd
1984–85 Boston University 15–159–75th
Boston University: 31–2818–12
George Washington Colonials (Atlantic 10 Conference) (1985–1990)
1985–86 George Washington 12–167–116th
1986–87 George Washington 10–196–128th
1987–88 George Washington 13–157–11T–6th
1988–89 George Washington 1–271–1710th
1989–90 George Washington 14–176–127th
George Washington: 50–9427–63
Total:81–122

NBA

Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Detroit 2009–10 822755.3295th in Central———— Missed Playoffs
Detroit 2010–11 823052.3664th in Central———— Missed Playoffs
Career 16457107.348————

References

  1. 1 2 John Kuester statistics, Basketball-Reference.com
  2. 1 2 3 Nets Name John Kuester Assistant Coach, July 23, 2004
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Orlando Magic Basketball Operations" (PDF). NBA.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 25, 2012. @ nba.com (2.63 MiB); retrieved August 14, 2007
  4. ↑ 1977 NCAA basketball tournament Archived September 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, shrpsports.com
  5. ↑ "Philadelphia 76ers Front Office Staff" (PDF). NBA.com., nba.com (1.35 MiB); retrieved August 14, 2007
  6. ↑ Orlando magic hire John Kuester as assistant coach, July 6, 2006
  7. ↑ Cavs interested in retired guard Allan Houston Archived June 15, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, ohio.com, published August 12, 2007
  8. ↑ Kuester: 'There is no magic formula', espn.com, published July 10, 2009
  9. ↑ Sources: Pistons turn to Kuester
  10. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 9, 2011. Retrieved June 5, 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. ↑ "Lakers hire Eddie Jordan, Steve Clifford and Bernie Bickerstaff as assistant coaches". Archived from the original on September 28, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2012.
  12. ↑ Bayou Prospect Watch, hoopgurlz.com, by Glenn Nelson, posted July 28, 2007
  13. ↑ SJU player profile Archived May 29, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
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