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Bill Pope begins his first season as the club’s assistant coach/advance scout. In his current position, Pope will assist the coaching staff during training camp and the playoffs and serve as advance scout for the 2005-06 season. Pope joined the Pistons as assistant coach/video coordinator in 2004.
Pope spent the 2003-04 season as an assistant coach at Youngstown State after serving six years as head basketball coach at NCAA Division II Lincoln University. He was responsible for a dramatic turnaround at Lincoln as the school’s head coach. He led the Blue Tigers to three consecutive winning seasons, a feat that had not been accomplished in 30 years.
During his tenure the school had nine all-conference selections, two all-region performers, an All-American, a conference newcomer of the year and a conference player of the year in Kenny Dye in 2001-02. His 2000-01 squad shared the Heartland Conference Championship, posting 20-7 overall record and a 9-3 record in conference play. Pope was named Heartland Conference Coach of the Year following that season and the school was named NCAA Division II’s Most Improved Team.
Pope graduated from Kansas in 1988 with a Bachelor’s Degree in education, where he also served as a manager for the Jayhawks basketball team and head coach Larry Brown for five seasons. He joined Brown’s staff with the San Antonio Spurs in 1989. Pope and his wife, Lesa, have two children, Ryan and Hallie. | 