23
Jun
Basketball CoE
Czepil inherits one of basketball's biggest jobs
Incoming Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence men's head coach Michael Czepil reacts during the first half of Sacramento State's game against the Air Force Falcons at Clune Arena on November 27, 2024 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Czepil returns to Australia after seven seasons in the NCAA to lead one of the country's most important development programs. Photo: Andrew Wevers/Getty Images
Michael Czepil says leading Basketball Australia's Centre of Excellence is every young coach's dream
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Incoming Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence (CoE) men’s head coach Michael Czepil understands the assignment.
“The Australian basketball pathway is very unique in comparison to the rest of the world,” the 40-year-old Victorian said.
“The magnitude of the CoE is that every young, talented athlete in the country grows up dreaming to be a part of the environment.
“Over the last 10 years I've seen a lot of Australia’s junior athletes at various points of the pathway, both at home and abroad. So I do have a pretty good idea of both the behaviours and abilities required for them to one day push for senior national team selection,” he added.
“Having held leadership positions in the college system for a number of seasons now, I do understand the importance of setting and maintaining a high-performance environment and how that influences the development of both athletes and coaches.”
Czepil, who takes over from Robbie McKinlay on July 8, began his coaching career as an assistant at Nicholls from 2010 to 2013 before leading the Werribee Devils from 2015 to 2017 and working with Basketball Victoria's High Performance program between 2016 and 2018.
He then moved to the United States, serving as an assistant coach at UC Riverside from 2018 to 2022 and as associate head coach in 2021-22, before joining Sacramento State as associate head coach from 2022 to 2024 and stepping into the interim head coach role for the 2024-25 season.
Australian Boomers head coach Adam Caporn said: “Michael Czepil is an outstanding coach and person whose experience spans multiple facets of high-performance basketball.
“His breadth of expertise, combined with strong technical acumen, innovative thinking, and a commitment to continuous improvement, make him the ideal person to build on the CoE’s proud legacy and continue its lasting impact on Australian basketball.”
McKinlay led the program for eight years before stepping down on June 12, 2026.
Czepil arrives just after the Australian Emus’ campaign at the FIBA Under-17 Men’s World Cup in Türkiye starting on Saturday, June 27 against Serbia.
Australian Crocs – Final 12 for FIBA U17 World Cup
- Riak Akhuar (Victoria Metro)
- John Aryang (Western Australia Metro)
- Ahmet Yahya Basaran (Victoria Metro)
- Antonio Browne (New South Wales Metro)
- Lucas Byrne (Victoria Country)
- Tom Dammers (Victoria Metro)
- William Hamilton (Victoria Country)
- Alexander Mabbott (Victoria)
- Josh McCann (Victoria Metro)
- Luke Paul (Western Australia Metro)
- Andrew Watene (Queensland South)
- Alex Edwards (Western Australia)
The NBL1 East Men’s Finals start late next month. CoE has jammed 20 games into the first half of the season due to its players' international commitments.
CoE is 13-7, fourth on the ladder, and has played more games than any other team in the league.
2026 CoE NBL1 East Roster
- Ajak Nyuon — Forward (#11)
- Alexander Dickeson — Guard (#4)
- Antonio Browne — Guard (#21)
- Ashton Law — Forward
- Connor Spencer — Forward
- Curtis Evic — Forward (#16)
- Emin Joldic — Forward
- Flynn Pavely — Centre (#15)
- Harry Cook — Centre (#12)
- Isaac Riddle — Forward (#9)
- Jai Fa'ale — Guard (#8)
- Jongkuch Mach — Centre (#18)
- Luke Paul — Guard (#7)
- Reuben Ritchie — Guard
- Riley Saville — Guard
- William Hamilton — Guard (#13)
- Yahya Basaran — Centre (#17)
NBL Next Star Luke Paul, Yahya Basaran, William Hamilton and Antonio Browne are all in the Emus 12-man squad, while Jai Fa'ale and Jongkuch Mach all missed time while competing at the adidas Eurocamp in Italy earlier this month.
Basketball Australia’s general manager of pathways Peter Lonergan said: “Michael is a product of the established BA pathway, having developed as a player through the Basketball Victoria performance program and then coaching in that same program.
“His experience as both a collegiate assistant and head coach brings a skill set in developing young players, and we are excited to have him lead the COE Men’s program.”
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