STANFORD, Calif. – Adam Cohen, recognized as one of the nation’s top rising basketball coaches, has been named an assistant coach at Stanford, Anne & Tony Joseph Director of Men’s Basketball Jerod Haase announced on Wednesday.
“Adam has risen quickly in the profession,” Haase said. “He has developed a stellar reputation in the industry as a high-level recruiter and an excellent coach. His vision for the program is the same as mine - which is to play for championships. We are thrilled to welcome him to Stanford."
Cohen comes to The Farm after serving as an assistant coach at Vanderbilt the past two seasons. He helped guide the Commodores to 40 combined victories and postseason berths in each of the past two years in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt won 19 games, reaching the NCAA Tournament in 2015-16.
“I am honored, humbled, and ecstatic to be joining the men’s basketball program at Stanford under Coach Haase," Cohen said. "Coach and I share a vision for what this program will become, and I am eager to work with our outstanding student-athletes to help them achieve their dreams on and off the court. It is a privilege to work with these amazing student-athletes, and I am excited to achieve our goals together.”
With eight seasons of experience, including the last four as an assistant coach, Cohen is regarded as one of the game’s rising young coaches. The National Association of Basketball Coaches named Cohen to its prestigious 30-under-30 Team, recognizing the nation’s top assistant coaches, at the 2016 Final Four in Houston.
Prior to Vanderbilt, Cohen was an assistant coach at Harvard. During the 2013-14 campaign with the Crimson, he helped guide the program to its fourth straight Ivy League title, an NCAA Tournament appearance, and program records for overall victories (27) and conference wins (13). He helped develop several All-Ivy selections, including Player of the Year Wesley Saunders.
Cohen broke into coaching during the 2012-13 season, serving as an assistant coach at Rice. He oversaw the Owl’s recruiting efforts, where he recruited all-conference and all-academic selection Marcus Jackson.
Cohen’s Pac-12 ties are deep, as a student manager at Arizona and the Director of Operations at USC. A 2008 graduate of the University of Arizona with a degree in political science, Cohen served as a student manager and assistant video coordinator under Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson.
After a year as a graduate assistant at New Orleans, Cohen joined the staff at USC as the Trojans’ video coordinator. He was elevated to Director of Operations after just one year. Cohen spent three seasons at USC (2010-12), prior to joining the coaching staff at Rice.
Cohen, who serves on the Board of Directors for Rising Coaches Elite, has overseen several elite camps, including the 2007 Nike Basketball clinic in Chengdu, China.
A native of Buffalo, New York, Cohen attended Williamsville North High School, where he served as a captain for the Spartans basketball team.