Coby Joseph Karl (born June 8, 1983) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player who is an assistant coach of the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). He is the son of NBA head coach

George Karl George Matthew Karl (born May 12, 1951) is an American former professional basketball coach and player. After spending five years as a player for the San Antonio Spurs, he became an assistant with the team before being appointed as a head coach ...

High school career

Karl attended Homestead High School in

Mequon, Wisconsin Mequon () is the most populous city in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,142 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on Lake Michigan's western shore with significant commercial developments along Int ...

, and lettered in basketball. He was an All-Suburban selection, a first team All-Conference selection, and an All-State Honorable Mention selection as a senior. Karl graduated in 2002.

College career

Karl played basketball at

Boise State Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It ...

while majoring in Mass Communications. The shooting guard led the Broncos in points (17.2) and assists (4.0) as a junior, and he averaged 14.8 points and 4.0 assists during his senior season en route to First Team All-WAC honors in 2007. Karl had weighed whether to return to college for his senior year or to enter the

2006 NBA draft The 2006 NBA draft was held on June 28, 2006, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. c ...

, attending a few pre-draft workouts for various professional teams. However, he decided to return to college.

Professional career

Karl was not drafted by an NBA team, but made the Lakers' 15-man roster as a free agent. Karl made his NBA debut on October 30, 2007, with the Lakers versus the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

, playing 37 seconds and registering no statistics. He was assigned to the

Los Angeles D-Fenders The South Bay Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California, that competes in the NBA G League. Founded in 2006 as the Los Angeles D-Fenders, the team is owned by the Los Angeles Lakers, who were the first ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

. On February 19, 2008, Karl joined Lakers' second-year guard

Jordan Farmar Jordan Robert Farmar (born November 30, 1986) is an American-Israeli former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In high school, he was named the ''Los Angeles Times'' High School Player of the Y ...

as the only other player in league history to see action in same-day D-League and NBA games. Karl was then recalled from the

for the third time that season, which is the most any player can be recalled in one season. In April 2008, the Los Angeles Lakers played the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the

2008 NBA Playoffs The 2008 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2007–08 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Conference champion Los Angeles ...

, Karl and his father became the first father and son to ever oppose each other in the NBA playoffs. Karl was a reserve for the Lakers, and his father was the head coach for the Nuggets. Karl was released by Los Angeles on October 27, 2008. Karl joined the Spanish pro club

Joventut Badalona Club Joventut Badalona, S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional basketball club based in Badalona, Catalonia, Spain, playing in the Liga ACB and the EuroCup. Known to their fans as ''La Penya'' (in English, ''The Club''), it is one of only two team ...

of the

Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administered by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, w ...

in January 2009. In September 2009, Karl reached an agreement to attend training camp with the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

, where he competed for a regular-season roster spot. On October 22, 2009, the Cavaliers made three final cuts, ensuring Karl a spot on their opening day roster. The Cavaliers waived Karl on January 6, 2010, sending him to free agency. On January 30, 2010, Karl was signed to a 10-day contract by the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

. After his stint with the Warriors, he returned to the NBA D-League as a member of the

Idaho Stampede Idaho ( ) is a landlocked state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington and Oregon to the west; the state s ...

. On April 11, 2010, Karl was signed to the Nuggets to an undisclosed contract. He was waived by the Nuggets on August 16, 2010. In September 2010, he returned to play in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, signing a one-year contract with

CB Granada Club Baloncesto Granada, S.A.D. was a professional basketball team based in Granada, Andalusia. The team was founded in 1994 and has had notable players during its history, including Curtis Borchardt, Darvin Ham, Jerod Ward, Giorgos Sigalas, Scott ...

. In May 2011, after being relegated to the second division in Spain with

, he signed with Armani Jeans Milano in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

until the end of the season. In September 2011, he signed with Fabi Shoes Montegranaro in

Lega Basket Serie A The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club (sport), club basketball list of basketball leagues, league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball ...

in Italy. In October 2012, Karl rejoined the Idaho Stampede. On July 30, 2013, Karl signed with

Pallacanestro Reggiana Pallacanestro Reggiana, also simply known as Reggiana or Reggio Emilia, currently known for sponsorship reasons as Unahotels Reggio Emilia, is an Italian professional basketball team based in Reggio Emilia, Emilia-Romagna. It plays in the LBA as ...

of Italy. He left them in December 2013. He then signed with MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg. On March 12, he left Riesen Ludwigsburg with the intent of going to the D-League. On March 17, 2015, he signed with Reno and made his debut. On August 21, 2015, Karl retired.

Coaching career

On October 27, 2015, Karl was hired as an assistant coach by the

Westchester Knicks The Westchester Knicks are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in White Plains, New York, and are affiliated with the New York Knicks. The Knicks play their home games at Westchester County Center in White Plains, N ...

, the NBA Development League affiliate of the New York Knicks. Westchester made significant improvement during the one season Karl spent on the bench, upping its record from 10–40 in 2014–15 to a 28–22 mark during the 2015–16 campaign. On September 12, 2016, Karl took over his first head coaching role with the NBA D-League's Los Angeles D-Fenders, the affiliate team of the Lakers. He was not retained by the organization prior to the 2021–22 season. On September 28, 2021, Karl became the new head coach of the

Delaware Blue Coats The Delaware Blue Coats are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Wilmington, Delaware. They are the G-League affiliates of the Philadelphia 76ers. The Blue Coats play their home games at Chase Fieldhouse. The Bl ...

. On April 7, 2023, he won the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

title with the Blue Coats. On September 5, 2023, Karl became an assistant coach for the

. On May 15, 2025, Karl and the 76ers parted ways.

Thyroid cancer

Karl also underwent radioactive iodine treatment, a painless and simple

outpatient A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other healt ...

treatment, for papillary carcinoma, a

thyroid The thyroid, or thyroid gland, is an endocrine gland in vertebrates. In humans, it is a butterfly-shaped gland located in the neck below the Adam's apple. It consists of two connected lobes. The lower two thirds of the lobes are connected by ...

cancer considered by doctors to be one of the most treatable forms of cancer. After his senior year, Karl again had another surgery to remove cancerous cells. His father left the Nuggets to be with his son during the seven-hour surgery and returned to the team after the completion of the surgery.Karl says son is doing well after cancer surgery
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NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, 3 , , 0 , , 1.7 , , – , , – , , – , , .7 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" , Golden State , 4 , , 1 , , 27.0 , , .344 , , .182 , , .667 , , 4.0 , , 3.8 , , .8 , , .3 , , 7.0 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , , 24 , , 1 , , 7.6 , , .345 , , .250 , , .750 , , 1.3 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , .1 , , 2.4

Playoffs

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2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, align="left" , L.A. Lakers , 1 , , 0 , , 2.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , .0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0

Notes

External links

*
NBA D-League player profileACB.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karl, Coby 1983 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Spain American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Montana Basketball coaches from Wisconsin Basketball players from Montana Basketball players from Wisconsin Boise State Broncos men's basketball players CB Granada players Cleveland Cavaliers players Delaware Blue Coats coaches Golden State Warriors players Idaho Stampede players Joventut Badalona players Liga ACB players Los Angeles Lakers players Los Angeles D-Fenders coaches Los Angeles D-Fenders players Olimpia Milano players Pallacanestro Reggiana players People from Mequon, Wisconsin Philadelphia 76ers assistant coaches Sacramento Kings assistant coaches Sportspeople from Ozaukee County, Wisconsin Reno Bighorns players Riesen Ludwigsburg players Shooting guards South Bay Lakers coaches Sportspeople from Great Falls, Montana Undrafted NBA players Westchester Knicks coaches