Zach Cooper had gotten his NBA break in Portland just this season. The 32-year-old worked as a video assistant, primarily working with the team’s big men, and worked out players on the court before games.
Cooper died over the weekend. No cause of death has been released.
The Trail Blazers were shocked and saddened by the news, first broken by Shams Charania of The Athletic.
A video assistant on the Portland Trail Blazers, Zach Cooper, has died unexpectedly. Quotes from Portland President Neil Olshey and head coach Terry Stotts. pic.twitter.com/GJD6Y3mxie
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 13, 2020
Zach was an incredibly nice young man, RIP.
— Casey Holdahl (@CHold) April 13, 2020
I never got to know Zach Cooper, but I did know he worked hard and was very much a part of the fabric that makes the Blazers’ family. Here he is working out players before a Feb. 25 game. He is in white shirt and black shorts. pic.twitter.com/E8gFeUqcpn
— Jason Quick (@jwquick) April 13, 2020
Cooper came to the Trail Blazers from the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream. Before that, he spent three years as a video coordinator and assistant with the University of Houston.
Our thoughts go out to Cooper’s family, as well as the Trail Blazers family.
