Tuomas Iisalo
2019 as head coach of Merlins Crailsheim
Paris Basketball
PositionHead coach
LeagueLNB Pro A
EuroCup
Personal information
Born (1982-07-29) 29 July 1982
Helsinki, Finland
NationalityFinnish
Listed height195 cm (6 ft 5 in)
Listed weight89 kg (196 lb)
Career information
Playing career2000–2014
PositionShooting guard
Coaching career2014–present
Career history
As player:
2000–2003Kouvot
2003–2006Espoon Honka
2006–2009Kouvot
2009–2011Espoon Honka
2011–2012Torpan Pojat
2012–2014Espoon Honka
As coach:
2014Finland U-20
2014–2015Tapiolan Honka
2016–2021Crailsheim Merlins
2021–2023Telekom Baskets Bonn
2023–presentParis Basketball
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As head coach:

Tuomas Iisalo (born 29 July 1982) is a Finnish basketball coach and former player. He is currently serving as head coach of Paris Basketball of the French LNB Pro A and the EuroCup.

Standing at 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in), Iisalo played as shooting guard during his playing career. He also played for the Finnish national basketball team.

Early life

Tuomas Iisalo's father worked as a foreign correspondent in East Berlin in the 1980s.[1]

Both Tuomas and his younger brother Joonas later became professional basketball coaches. Their sister Meri Valkama became a journalist who won the 2021 prize for best debut novel in Finland with her book "Sinun, Margot" where she tells the story of a family in East Berlin.[1]

Coaching career

After the end of his playing career he was appointed as head coach of Tapiolan Honka and was an assistant with Finland U15.[2]

Crailsheim Merlins

In March 2016, he signed with Crailsheim Merlins.[3] With the team, he won the promotion from the ProA to the Basketball Bundesliga.[4]

In the 2017–18 season, Crailsheim was promoted to the Bundesliga once again as the ProA season's runners-up.[5][6] Iisalo managed to establish the club in the Bundesliga and in 2020-21 guided the Merlins to their first ever Bundesliga playoff berth.[7]

Telekom Baskets Bonn

In May 2021, he inked a two-year deal with fellow Bundesliga side Telekom Baskets Bonn.[8] In 2022, he was named the Bundesliga Coach of the Year.[9] Iisalo repeated as the Bundesliga Coach of the Year in the 2022-23 campaign.[10] In May 2023, he won the Basketball Champions League with Bonn and was presented with the Champions League Coach of the Year honours.[11] He helped the Bonn team to a trip to the 2023 Bundesliga finals, where they eventually fell short to Ulm.[12] Iisalo parted company with the Bonn outfit at the end of the 2022-23 season.[13]

Paris Basketball

On June 29, 2023, Paris Basketball of the French LNB Pro A and the EuroCup, announced the appointment of Iisalo as a head coach on a three-year deal.[14][15]

In December 2023, Iisalo was named the head coach of the Team World (French: Team Monde) in the LNB All-Star Game.[16]

Iisalo led Paris to a strong start in 2023–24 EuroCup, and after the first half of the season, Paris had a record of 12 wins and only one loss.[17]

Coaching style

According to reports, the Iisalo style has been based on pace, many three-point shots and strong offensive rebounding.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Zwei Brüder, ein Stil Stefan Koch - Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 6 November 2022. Accessed 11 May 2023.(in German)
  2. ↑ "Crailsheim Merlins - Herzlich Willkommen, Tuomas Iisalo!" (in German). Retrieved 2017-03-13.
  3. ↑ "Ingo Enskat über sein Aus und den neuen Merlins-Coach", SWP.de (in German), 2016-03-15, retrieved 2017-03-13
  4. ↑ "Tuomas Iisalo bleibt Headcoach der Merlins", SWP.de (in German), 2016-04-14, retrieved 2017-03-13
  5. ↑ "Rasta Vechta ist ProA Meister 17/18 – neuer Außenauftritt der 2. Liga ab Juli 2018". 2. Basketball-Bundesliga (in German). Retrieved 2018-05-06.
  6. ↑ "Aufstieg für Vechta & Crailsheim". 2. Basketball-Bundesliga (in German). Retrieved 2018-05-06.
  7. ↑ "HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim - Historisch! HAKRO Merlins schlagen Bonn und qualifizieren sich erstmals in der Vereinsgeschichte für die Playoffs! Freitag kommt der MBC". hakro-merlins.com. Retrieved 2021-05-30.
  8. ↑ "Tuomas Iisalo ist der neue #HEARTBERG-Dirigent". www.telekom-baskets-bonn.de. Retrieved 2021-05-30.
  9. ↑ "Boiling like Salin, glacial like Sasu". FIBA. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
  10. ↑ "TJ Shorts named the MVP of the German BBL". Eurohoops. 2023-05-04. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
  11. ↑ "Succétränaren Tuomas Iisalo lotsade uppstickaren Bonn till titeln i Champions League-basketen: "Ni kan kalla oss mästare"". svenska.yle.fi (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-05-16.
  12. ↑ "BBL: Bonn beendet Traumsaison ohne Meisterschaft". Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger (in German). 2023-06-17. Retrieved 2023-06-17.
  13. ↑ ""Völlig nachvollziehbar": Erfolgstrainer Iisalo verlässt Bonn". Kicker (in German). 2023-06-21. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  14. ↑ Pitet, Gustave (2023-06-29). "Tuomas Iisalo : le coach qui gagne". Paris Basketball (in French). Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  15. ↑ Hyyppä Emma, Vuolle Jouko (2023-06-29). "Menestysvalmentaja Tuomas Iisalo pääsee Pariisissa nauttimaan luksuksesta: "Aivan uskomattoman näköinen kompleksi" – palkkakin kelpaa". YLE (in Finnish). Retrieved 2023-07-08.
  16. ↑ Suomalaisluotsille kova meriitti Ranskassa, Ilta-Sanomat, Juha Kanerva, 2 December 2023
  17. ↑ T.J. Shorts, Paris: 'We feel like nobody can stop us', euroleaguebasketball.net, 25 December 2023
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