Who is Mike Woodson?
American former professional basketball player and current head basketball coach of the Indiana Hoosiers – Michael Dean ‘Mike’ Woodson – was born in Indianapolis, Indiana USA, on 24 March 1958, under the zodiac sign of Aries. He’s probably best known for the 10 years which he spent playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA), while he’s also attracted some attention with his coaching skills; prior to coaching the Indiana University Bloomington’s Hoosiers, Mike was the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks and the New York Knicks of the NBA.
Education and early life
Chester and Odessa Woodson raised their son Mike in Indianapolis, alongside his 11 siblings; they worked multiple jobs while Mike was growing up, as feeding 14 people was not an easy undertaking. The family lived in a two-bedroom home. Chester mowed people’s lawns, managed laundromats, and delivered heavy items such as pianos, while Odessa was a nurse.
Mike studied at the high school Broad Ripple in Indianapolis, and has revealed that he felt the excitement about basketball in his hometown and the entire state, which is widely known as Hoosier Hysteria. It was while at Broad Ripple that he began playing basketball, and started thinking about going professional; Mike also played both football and baseball, but eventually quit these so that he could focus on basketball.
Upon matriculating in 1976, Mike enrolled at Indiana University Bloomington, and began playing for their basketball team the Hoosiers under the coaching of Bob Knight. He was his team’s lead scorer in 1979, and led them to win the 1979 National Invitation Tournament; they then won the Big Ten Championship, and reached the 1980 Sweet Sixteen.
Mike graduated in 1980, having scored a total of 2,062 points.
Career as a professional basketball player
In 1980, Mike was picked by the New York Knicks in the NBA Draft, and spent two years with them, however, he didn’t attract a lot of attention with his playing skills.
He was traded to the New Jersey Nets in 1982, but played only seven games their prior to being traded to the Kansas City Kings.
Mike did well with the Kings, and was with them nearly to the end of his playing career in 1991; the team eventually became the Sacramento Kings, and Mike continued playing with them. He also played for the Brooklyn Nets, the Houston Rockets and the Cleveland Cavaliers prior to retiring.
Career as a basketball coach
Mike remained retired, and didn’t work between 1991 and 1996, when he chose to venture into coaching.
He was hired as the assistant coach of the Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA in 1996, and stayed with them for the following three years, while he then spent a year with the Cleveland Cavaliers. In 2001, ‘02 and ‘03, Mike was the assistant coach of the Detroit Pistons, and helped them win the NBA Championship during his final year with them.
Mike began attracting attention in 2004, when he became the Atlanta Hawks’ head coach. For the 2007-2008 season, he led the team to the playoffs, for the first time since 1999; they then went on to reach the playoffs three times in a row, but Mike’s contract wasn’t renewed in May 2010.
He became the New York Knicks’ assistant coach on 29 August 2011, their interim head coach on 14 March 2012, and their full-time head coach two months later, but on 21 April 2014, Mike and the rest of his coaching staff were all fired.
He was next hired to work as the Los Angeles Clippers’ assistant coach on 29 September 2014, and stayed with them for the following four years, reaching the playoffs in 2015, ‘16 and ’17 – Mike announced his resignation on 15 May 2018.
He became the New York Knicks’ assistant coach on 4 September 2020, but quit in the following year.
Welcome home, Coach Woodson. pic.twitter.com/jrIeKcYawR
— Indiana Basketball (@IndianaMBB) March 28, 2021
On 28 March 2021, Mike began coaching the Indiana Hoosiers basketball team, and led them to a 21-14 record during his first year there. They then reached the 2022 men’s basketball tournament Big Ten, the first time for the Hoosiers since 2013, and also the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I tournament in the same year, the first time for the Hoosiers since 2016.
Love life and wife
Mike hasn’t shared a lot about his love life with his fans, but it’s known that he’s a married man, as well as a father of two. He exchanged vows with non-celebrity American Terri Woodson in a private ceremony, attended by some of their closest friends and family; neither Mike nor Terri have shared the date of their wedding, but it’s believed that it took place sometime in the second half of the ‘80s.
Mike and Terri have two daughters together, Alexis and Mariah – Alexis studied at Georgia Tech, and today holds a Bachelor’s degree in business and management, while she was also on the university’s volleyball team. Younger daughter Mariah followed in her sister’s footsteps and also attended Georgia Tech, and played volleyball for the university’s team.
Mike hasn’t mentioned other women whom he‘s perhaps been with – he’s married to Terri Woodson as of September 2022, and they have two daughters together.
https://www.facebook.com/COACHWOODSONinv/photos/a.943257482353547/1060005930678701/
Interesting facts and hobbies
Mike isn’t a big fan of social media networks, and doesn’t have an Instagram account; he still has a Twitter account, which he launched in May 2014, while he’s since tweeted only about 300 times.
He’s passionate about travelling and has been to nearly all US states, thanks to his playing and coaching career. Mike’s also visited various European countries, and his favorite city to travel to is Prague, Czech Republic.
He enjoys playing a couple of other sports rather than just basketball, including tennis, golf and soccer.
Mike’s favorite actors are Martin Lawrence and Will Smith, and some of his favorite movies include “The Karate Kid”, “National Security” and “Big Momma’s House”.
Height, eyes and net worth
Mike’s age is 64. He’s bald, his eyes are brown, his height’s 6ft 5ins (1.96m) and his weight is about 195lbs (88kgs).
Mike’s net worth’s been estimated at over $12 million, as of September 2022.
