Mody Maor (Hebrew: מודי מאור; born June 27, 1985) is an American-Israeli college basketball coach who is an assistant coach for the Michigan Wolverines of the NCAA Division I and Big Ten Conference. He was previously the head coach for the New Zealand Breakers from 2022 until 2024, and the Nagasaki Velca from 2024 until 2026.
| Michigan Wolverines | |
|---|---|
| Position | Assistant coach |
| League | Big Ten Conference |
| Personal information | |
| Born | June 27, 1985 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Nationality | American / Israeli |
| Coaching career | 2012–present |
| Career history | |
Coaching | |
| 2012–2014 | Hapoel Holon (assistant) |
| 2014–2016 | Maccabi Ashdod (assistant) |
| 2016–2017 | Hapoel Jerusalem (assistant) |
| 2017–2018 | Hapoel Jerusalem |
| 2019–2022 | New Zealand Breakers (assistant) |
| 2022–2024 | New Zealand Breakers |
| 2024–2026 | Nagasaki Velca |
| 2026–present | Michigan (assistant) |
| Career highlights | |
As assistant coach:
| |
Early life
editMaor was born in Los Angeles and moved to Israel when he was eight. He began his national service at the age of 18. He joined the Special Forces and was an officer for the final three years of his five-year term in the army. He embarked on a career as a professional basketball coach in 2012.[1]
Coaching career
editIn 2019, Maor joined the New Zealand Breakers of the Australian National Basketball League as an assistant coach under Dan Shamir.[1] In 2022, he was elevated to head coach of the Breakers.[2][3] He guided the Breakers to the 2022–23 NBL grand final series, where they lost 3–2 to the Sydney Kings.[4] On May 23, 2024, he left the Breakers to pursue a coaching opportunity in Asia.[5][6] Maor was hired in Japan to become the head coach of Nagasaki Velca in the B.League on a two-year deal.[7] On May 10, 2026, it was announced that Maor was hired by head coach Dusty May and the University of Michigan to serve as an assistant coach for the defending national champion Wolverines.[8]
Personal life
editMaor has two daughters, both of whom were born in New Zealand.[1]
References
edit- 1 2 3 Long, David (25 October 2023). "Breakers coach Mody Maor: 'My family is in shelters, my friends are at war'". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
- ↑ Hinton, Marc (11 May 2022). "Dan Shamir quits as head coach of NZ Breakers, Mody Maor confirmed to assume top job". Stuff. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
- ↑ Hinton, Marc (30 September 2022). "Mody Maor embraces Kiwi identity as he guides NZ Breakers back to NBL normality". Stuff.
- ↑ Hinton, Marc (15 March 2023). "Sydney Kings outlast NZ Breakers in decider to claim back-to-back NBL championships". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
- ↑ Hinton, Marc (23 May 2024). "Basketball bombshell: Mody Maor quits as head coach of NBL's NZ Breakers". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
- ↑ "NBL: Mody Maor quits as NZ Breakers coach to take up deal in Japan". nzherald.co.nz. 23 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
- ↑ "Coach Mody Maor to leave NZ Breakers". ESPN.com. 23 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
- ↑ Zuniga, Alejandro (10 May 2026). "Michigan basketball hiring Mody Maor as an assistant coach". 247Sports.