The NBA is a grand basketball league that has produced and groomed enormous talent over the years. Since the beginning of the league in 1946, there have been many players who have made a name for themselves and represented their respective countries at the international level. As a result, the NBA has attracted a lot of foreign talent, including both players and coaches.
Each team in the NBA has a head coach and an assistant coach on their support staff and many of these coaches are foreign coaches. A foreign NBA coach is a coach who was born outside the USA. Igor Kokošov became an assistant coach in 2000 and won the NBA championship in 2004. He is the only non-American coach to win the NBA championship and the first non-American to hold a full-time assistant coaching position. He was also the first non-American coach to serve on the coaching staff of an NBA All-Star Game, after which he became the first European head coach in the NBA.
Below is the list of the foreign head coaches in the NBA:
Foreign NBA Head Coaches
| Nationality | Birthplace | Head coach | Career | Yrs | Notes |
| Canada | South Africa | Steve Nash | 2020–2022 | 3 | — |
| Canada | — | Jay Triano | 2008–2011; 2017–2018 | 4 | — |
| Israel | United States | David Blatt | 2014–2016 | 2 | Dual U.S. and Israeli citizenship. |
| Italy | United States | Mike D'Antoni | 1998–1999; 2003–2014; 2016–2020 | 16 | Dual U.S. and Italian citizenship. |
| Nigeria | United States | Ime Udoka* | 2021–present | 1 | Dual U.S. and Nigerian citizenship. Was Suspended for the 2022–23 season. |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia(Serbia) | Igor Kokoškov | 2018–2019 | 1 | Also holds U.S. citizenship as of 2010. |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia(Serbia) | Darko Rajaković* | 2023–present | 0 | — |
| United States | Lebanon | Steve Kerr* | 2014–present | 9 | Born in Lebanon to Malcolm H. Kerr, a Lebanese-born American citizen. |
| United States | Russian Empire(Ukraine) | Eddie Gottlieb | 1946–1955 | 9 | Born in the Russian Empire, moved to the United States as a child, became a naturalized U.S. citizen. |
| United States | West Germany | Kiki VanDeWeghe | 2009–2010 | 1 | Holds both American and Canadian passports. |
Foreign NBA Assistant Coaches
| Nationality | Birthplace | Assistant coach | Career | Yrs | Notes |
| Argentina | — | Pablo Prigioni | 2018–present | 5 | Also holds Italian citizenship. |
| Australia | — | Adam Caporn | 2022–present | 1 | — |
| Australia | — | Damian Cotter | 2020–present | 3 | — |
| Australia | — | Trevor Gleeson | 2021–present | 2 | — |
| Australia | — | Matthew Nielsen | 2021–present | 2 | — |
| Belize | United States | Marlon Garnett | 2015–present | 8 | Born in the United States to Belizean parents, has dual U.S. and Belize citizenship. |
| Brazil | — | Leandro Barbosa | 2022–present | 1 | — |
| Brazil | — | Tiago Splitter | 2019–2023 | 4 | — |
| Canada | — | Gordon Herbert | 2008–2009 | 1 | — |
| Canada | — | Jamaal Magloire | 2013–2016 | 3 | — |
| Canada | — | Scott Morrison | 2017–2021, 2023–present | 4 | — |
| Canada | Great Britain England | Roy Rana | 2019–2022 | 3 | — |
| Canada | — | Jay Triano | 2002–2008; 2012–2017; 2018–present | 16 | — |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | Zaire | Patrick Mutombo | 2012–2015; 2016–2020 | 9 | Also holds Belgian citizenship. |
| Croatia | SFR Yugoslavia | Neven Spahija | 2014–2017; 2019–2020 | 4 | — |
| Eswatini | — | Jama Mahlalela | 2012–2018; 2020–present | 9 | Also holds Canadian citizenship. |
| France | United States | James Wade | 2023–present | 0 | Born in the United States, became a naturalized French citizen. |
| Germany | West Germany | Detlef Schrempf | 2005–2007 | 2 | — |
| Georgia | United States | Tyrone Ellis | 2017–2018 | 1 | Born in the United States, became a naturalized Georgian citizen. |
| Great Britain Scotland | — | Alex McKechnie | 2013–2020 | 7 | — |
| Great Britain | United States | Nate Reinking | 2021–present | 1 | — |
| Greece | — | Fotios Katsikaris | 2018–2019 | 1 | — |
| Ireland | United States | Jay Larrañaga | 2012–present | 11 | Born in the United States to Irish parents, has dual U.S. and Irish citizenship. |
| Ireland | United States | Jim Moran | 2015–2023 | 8 | Born in the United States to Irish parents, has dual U.S. and Irish citizenship. |
| Israel | United States | Josh Oppenheimer | 2013–2017; 2020–present | 8 | Born in the United States, has dual U.S. and Israeli citizenship. |
| Italy | United States | Mike D'Antoni | 1997–1998; 2000–2001; 2002–2003; 2015–2016; 2020–2021 | 5 | Born in the United States to Italian parents, has dual U.S. and Italian citizenship. |
| Italy | United States | Anthony Dobbins | 2018–present | 5 | Born in the United States, became a naturalized Italian citizen. |
| Italy | — | Riccardo Fois | 2019–2021 | 2 | — |
| Italy | — | Ettore Messina | 2014–2019 | 5 | — |
| Italy | — | Sergio Scariolo | 2018–2021 | 3 | — |
| Jordan | United States | Maz Trakh | 2010–2014; 2016–2019 | 7 | Born in the United States, has dual U.S. and Jordanian citizenship. |
| Lithuania | Soviet Union | Darius Songaila | 2019–present | 4 | — |
| Nigeria | United States | Ekpe Udoh | 2023–present | 0 | Born in the United States to Nigerian parents, has dual U.S. and Nigerian citizenship. |
| Nigeria | United States | Ime Udoka | 2012–2021 | 9 | Born in the United States to Nigerian parents, has dual U.S. and Nigerian citizenship. |
| North Macedonia | United States | Shayne Whittington | 2023–present | 0 | Born in the United States, became a naturalized North Macedonian citizen. |
| Palestine | — | Mahmoud Abdelfattah | 2022–2023 | 1 | Also holds U.S. citizenship. |
| Philippines | United States | Chip Engelland | 1999–2000; 2003–present | 21 | Born in the United States, became a naturalized Filipino citizen. |
| Poland | — | Marcin Gortat | 2022–present | 1 | — |
| Russia | United States | Becky Hammon | 2014–2022 | 8 | Born in the United States, became a naturalized Russian citizen. |
| Senegal | — | DeSagana Diop | 2016–2022 | 6 | — |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia | Aleksandar Džikić | 2005–2007 | 2 | — |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia | Igor Kokoškov | 2000–2018; 2019–2020; 2021–present | 21 | Also holds U.S. citizenship as of 2010. |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia | Dejan Milojević | 2021–present | 2 | — |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia | Darko Rajaković | 2014–2023 | 9 | — |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia | Ivo Simović | 2023–present | 0 | — |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia | Ognjen Stojaković | 2016–present | 7 | — |
| Serbia | SFR Yugoslavia | Nenad Trajković | 2010–2011 | 1 | — |
| Slovakia | United States | Kristi Toliver | 2018–present | 5 | Born in the United States, became a naturalized Slovak citizen. |
| Spain | — | Jordi Fernández | 2016–present | 7 | — |
| Spain | — | Sergi Oliva | 2020–2022 | 2 | — |
| Turkey | — | Erdem Can | 2021–2022 | 1 | — |
| Turkey | — | Mehmet Okur | 2016–2017 | 1 | — |
| Ukraine | Soviet Union | Vitaly Potapenko | 2010–2011; | 10 | — |
| United States | Cuba | Octavio De La Grana | 2010–2012 | 9 | Born in Cuba, moved to the United States at the age of 6, became a naturalized U.S. citizen. |
| United States | Jamaica | Patrick Ewing | 2002–2017 | 15 | Born in Jamaica, moved to the United States at the age of 11, became a naturalized U.S. citizen. |
| United States | Romania | Ernie Grunfeld | 1989–1991 | 2 | Born in Romania, moved to the United States at the age of 8, became a naturalized U.S. citizen. |
| United States | U.S. Virgin Islands | Tim Duncan | 2019–2020 | 1 | — |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | United States | David Vanterpool | 2012–2022 | 10 | Born on the United States mainland, represented U.S. Virgin Islands internationally |
FAQs
A. Larry Brown has coached a total of nine teams, which is the most by any head coach in the NBA.
A. There are a total of 15 African-American coaches in the NBA.
A. Igor Kokosov has served as an assistant coach in the NBA for 18 years. He was born in Serbia and was the only head coach with European origin in the NBA. He was the head coach of the Phoenix Suns in the 2018-2019 season.
A. Gregg Popovich has been an NBA coach for 26 seasons and will be entering his 27th season as a head tactician.
