Corey Gaines facts for kids
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 1, 1965 Los Angeles, California |
| Nationality | American |
| High school | Saint Bernard (Playa del Rey, California) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College |
|
| NBA Draft | 1988 / Round: 3 / Pick: 65th overall |
| Selected by the Seattle SuperSonics | |
| Pro career | 1988–2004 |
| Coaching career | 2003–present |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 1988–1989 | Quad City Thunder |
| 1989 | New Jersey Nets |
| 1989 | Calgary 88's |
| 1989–1990 | Omaha Racers |
| 1990 | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 1990 | Omaha Racers |
| 1990 | Denver Nuggets |
| 1990–1991 | Yakima Sun Kings |
| 1991–1992 | Sioux Falls Skyforce |
| 1992 | Montreal Dragons |
| 1992–1993 | Yakima Sun Kings |
| 1993 | La Crosse Catbirds |
| 1993–1994 | New York Knicks |
| 1994–1995 | Scavolini Pesaro |
| 1995 | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 1995–1996 | Galatasaray |
| 1996 | Mash J. Verona |
| 1996–1997 | Hapoel Eilat |
| 1997–1998 | Japan Energy Griffins |
| 1999–2000 | Maccabi Rishon LeZion |
| 2000–2003 | Maccabi Haifa |
| 2003–2004 | Long Beach Jam |
| As coach: | |
| 2003–2004 | Long Beach Jam (assistant) |
| 2005 | Long Beach Jam |
| 2006–2007 | Phoenix Mercury (assistant) |
| 2007–2013 | Phoenix Mercury |
| 2013 | Phoenix Suns (assistant) |
| 2015–2016 | Phoenix Suns (assistant) |
| 2016–2018 | New York Knicks (assistant) |
| 2019–2021 | Washington Wizards (assistant) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
As player:
As coach:
|
|
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 248 (3.1 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 69 (0.9 rpg) |
| Assists | 247 (3.1 apg) |
Corey Yasuto Gaines, born on June 1, 1965, is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He played for five seasons in the NBA. He was also a four-time leader in assists in the Israeli Basketball Premier League. Later, he became the head coach for the Phoenix Mercury, a team in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).
Contents
Corey Gaines' Playing Career
Corey Gaines was chosen by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1988 NBA draft. He was picked in the 3rd round as the 65th player overall. Gaines, who is 6 feet 3 inches tall, played as a guard. He went to college at UCLA and Loyola Marymount University.
Playing in the NBA
Gaines played in the NBA for five seasons with four different teams. He played for the New Jersey Nets (1988–89), Philadelphia 76ers (1989–90, 1994–95), Denver Nuggets (1990–91), and New York Knicks (1993–94). During his time in the NBA, he played in 80 games and scored a total of 248 points.
Playing Outside the NBA
Besides the NBA, Gaines also played in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) for several teams. He also played in different international basketball leagues in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including a professional league in Japan. He was known for being a great passer, leading the Israeli Premier League in assists four times (in 1999, and from 2001 to 2003). His last team as a player was the Long Beach Jam in the American Basketball Association. The Jam won the ABA Championship in 2004, partly because they had talented players like Dennis Rodman on their team.
Corey Gaines' Coaching Career
After winning the ABA Championship, Gaines stopped playing basketball and started coaching.
Early Coaching Roles
He began as an assistant coach for the Long Beach Jam. During that season, he became the head coach when the previous coach left for an NBA job. After the Jam's second season, the team moved to Bakersfield to join the NBA Development League, and Gaines moved on.
In 2006, he became an assistant coach for the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA. On November 7, 2007, Gaines was promoted to head coach of the Phoenix Mercury. He was familiar with the team's playing style because he had played for their previous coach, Paul Westhead, in college and with the Denver Nuggets.
Winning a WNBA Championship
Gaines kept the same offensive strategy, and in 2009, he led the Mercury to win their second WNBA title! Under his coaching, Diana Taurasi became only the second player in WNBA history to win four major awards in the same season: the regular season scoring title, the WNBA MVP Award, the WNBA Championship, and the WNBA Finals MVP Award.
In November 2011, Gaines also took on the role of general manager for the Mercury. However, on August 8, 2013, the Phoenix Mercury announced that Gaines was no longer their head coach or general manager.
Coaching in the NBA and Beyond
Gaines then gained coaching experience in the NBA with the Phoenix Suns as a player development coach, starting in the 2010–11 season. In January 2013, he was temporarily promoted to assistant head coach for the Suns. He continued to work for the Suns as a player development coach through the 2013–14 and 2014–15 seasons.
On July 30, 2015, Gaines was promoted back to a full-time assistant coach for the Suns for the 2015–16 season. He was even considered for the interim head coach position after Jeff Hornacek was fired in February 2016. However, after a tough season, his contract with the team was not renewed.
Before the 2016–17 season, Gaines joined Jeff Hornacek again as an assistant coach for the New York Knicks. Later, before the 2018–19 season, the Detroit Pistons hired him as a Coaching Consultant. Before the 2019–20 season, Gaines became an assistant coach with the Washington Wizards.
Corey Gaines also coached the Japan men's national basketball team at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup and the 2024 Summer Olympics. In January 2025, news from Japan reported that Gaines was expected to be named the head coach of the Japan women's national basketball team.
Corey Gaines' Personal Life
Corey Gaines' father is African-American, and his mother is of Japanese descent.
See also
In Spanish: Corey Gaines para niños
