Joonas Iisalo
Iisalo in 2023 with Heidelberg
Personal information
Born (1986-01-05) 5 January 1986
Berlin, Germany
NationalityFinnish
Listed height190 cm (6 ft 3 in)
Career information
Playing career2002–2004
PositionShooting guard
Coaching career2005–present
Career history
As player:
2002–2004Kouvot
As coach:
2005–2009Tapiolan Honka (youth coach)
2009–2010Espoo Basket Team (youth coach)
2010–2011Espoon Honka (assistant coach)
2012–2013KaU Koris Karkkila
2013–2015Bisons Loimaa (assistant coach)
2015–2016Forssan Koripojat
2016–2019Vilpas Vikings
2019–2021Crailsheim Merlins
(associate head coach)
2021–2022Telekom Baskets Bonn
(associate head coach)
2022–2024MLP Academics Heidelberg
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As head coach:

Joonas Iisalo (born 5 January 1986) is a Finnish basketball coach and former player. He was most recently served as head coach of the MLP Academics Heidelberg.

Standing at 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in), Iisalo played as shooting guard during his playing career. He capped for Finnish youth national teams on many occasions.

Early life

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

Both Joonas and his older brother Tuomas 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 describes the story of the Iisalo family.[1]

Coaching career

Joonas coached as an associate head coach to his brother Tuomas for the Crailsheim Merlins and for the Telekom Baskets Bonn. For the 2022–23 season, he switched teams to become head coach of the Bundesliga competitor MLP Academics Heidelberg. On 27 September 2023, he extended his contract with Heidelberg, signing a deal until the end of 2025–26 season.[2]

Coaching style

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

Personal

Joonas Iisalo is married and has three children.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Zwei Brüder, ein Stil Stefan Koch - Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 6 November 2022. Accessed 11 May 2023.(in German)
  2. ↑ "HEADCOACH JOONAS IISALO VERLÄNGERT BEI DEN MLP ACADEMICS BIS 2026" (in German). mlp-academics.de. 27 September 2023.
  3. ↑ Schröer, Michel (3 April 2023). "BBL-Trainer muss VOR dem Spiel wieder los!". Sport Bild (in German). Retrieved 19 May 2023.
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