Former Hopkins Forward Dan Coleman Continues Career Overseas

Former Hopkins forward Dan Coleman led the Royals to the 2002 state title, their first since 1953. They have gone on to win five more titles since then, including , making them the top basketball program in the state.

Coleman signed with Boston College, but left before playing a game with the Eagles. He transferred back home to Minnesota and finished his career as the 15th all-time leading scorer. He is eighth in school history with 114 career blocks and he played in 127 career games, tied for the second most.

Coleman was named Honorable Mention All-Big Ten by the coaches and media as a senior and was named to 2007-08 NABC All-District First Team.

He has continued his playing career, spending the past three years overseas. Hopkins Patch caught up with Coleman at the Howard Pulley Pro-Am Summer League to talk about playing pro ball and memories of his career at Hopkins.

Hopkins Patch: You have played overseas the past three years. What is that experience like?

Dan Coleman: It has been good. I can’t complain. My agent has gotten me into three good situations. Their style of play has allowed me to show a lot of my game in that, so I have been able to be used quite a bit, so I have been fortunate. 

Hopkins Patch: Where have you played overseas?

Coleman: The last two years I was in France and my first year, I was in Portugal. 

Hopkins Patch: Do you know where you are going to be playing next year?

Coleman: No, I don’t. With the collective bargaining agreement being as it is in the NBA, it kind of affects everybody. All my other jobs, I would have already been signed and known where I am going and had the date where I am leaving. It is a different year

Hopkins Patch: Is that going to be tougher for you because more players might want to play overseas because of the NBA lockout?

Coleman: Yes. I think that it is just changing the perspective of the teams, the actual clubs in Europe. They are so confident that the market is saturated right now. They are not trying to get just anybody. They are going to be really patient, because they don’t know who is coming out. 

Hopkins Patch: What is the main difference in playing overseas compared to what fans might expect? 

Coleman: You have to understand the systems a little bit more. Playing over here, your athleticism can take you a long way. If you don’t understand the schemes of the teams, your athleticism can only do so much, because in the European leagues, it is a little more controlled; a little more set. Everybody knows what they are doing, so you actually have to have skills and be able to play. 

Hopkins Patch: It is also a lot more half-court game than American basketball?

Coleman: It’s a half-court game and every coach has their little system, so you have to be able to find your game in the system. You can’t just be an athlete.

Hopkins Patch: They also practice a lot more, too.

Coleman: They routinely practice twice a day. It may be a weights conditioning practice and then a shooting practice or a shooting practice and a real practice or a preseason running and a practice. It is a lot of practice. 

Hopkins Patch: Is that tough to adjust to or have you gotten used to it?

Coleman: It wasn’t so bad for me. I was kind of a gym rat before. Obviously, you learn how to maintain yourself for the duration of ten months. It wasn’t like, “I hate being in the gym” or something like that.

Hopkins Patch: How has your game changed since leaving Minnesota?

Coleman: Each team has used me differently. The last three years, I have been a three (small forward), where I am a mismatch as a three. I don’t shake and bake a lot, but I can shoot and I can pick and make shots. I just play over people and be bigger. At Minnesota, I played more of the four (power forward) and professionally, I’ve played more of the three. I can play the four, but the majority of my matches are at the three. 

Hopkins Patch: Would you still like to play in the NBA? Do you think about that?

Coleman: That is everyone’s dream. I would love to play in the NBA, but at the same time, I have kids and responsibilities. When the jobs come up overseas, it is in June through August and NBA jobs, if you don’t have a guaranteed contact, you have to go to the “D” League (NBDL). You have to go to camp and that is in September, so all the jobs that are for sure are on the table well before the NBA camps. The “D” League is a great opportunity, but it is not a lot of financial gain.

Hopkins Patch: Your brother is going to be a freshman at the University of Minnesota. How does that make you feel that he is following in your footsteps?

Coleman: I am proud of him. I have been taking Joe around, literally since he was a teeny-bopper. I am just proud of him. I have been working him out, since when he didn’t want to work out to now, when he wants to work out. It has been good to see him grow through the whole process. It has been a fun experience. 

Hopkins Patch: Does he ever give you a hard time about winning three titles, compared to your one?

Coleman: He does, but I always jab him back with Minnesota basketball might not be as good as it was back then. We go back and forth on that. He’s got three titles and I can’t take that from him. It is what it is. He’s got me on that.

Hopkins Patch: What things are you working on this summer to improve yourself as a player?

Coleman: Mostly, just refining. I have a good understanding of what my game is now, so it is not like exploring what I need to do. It is making sure that everything is tight and that everything feels good. I have my little moves down.

Hopkins Patch: Do you enjoy playing in the Howard Pulley Pro-Am Summer League? You get to see a lot of guys that you played with or played against.

Coleman: Oh, yes. I enjoy playing in the Howard Pulley. I don’t understand why some guys don’t play in it, but it is their preference. It is a fun league. It is not our job, but it is still a good place where you can still work on your game and play in a real game-like situations with refs and atmosphere. I enjoy it.

Hopkins Patch: When you look back at your time in Hopkins, you had a great team with you, Darren Clarke and Kris Humphries. What stands out as some of the top memories?

Coleman: We won a lot of games. North was better than us our senior year. They had a better chemistry and a better feel to their style of play. They beat us and they were better than us. We won a lot of games and a lot of people actually sacrificed a lot of their games to win games, because we had so much talent. We had Darren, Kris and Mitch Henke. We had younger guys that were coming up. There was a lot of talent there and it shows even after Joe’s teams and so on and so forth. It’s a program. They have a lot of guys who can play. 

Hopkins Patch: Your team won the 2002 state title and your group really started the run that Hopkins has had recently. 

Dan Coleman: Getting state championships, that’s for sure. I think the groups before like the Mike Amoses, the James Wares, the Jared Nunesses and the Jeff Mailhots. I think that they started the tradition and it just trickled down. They took a lot of guys underneath their wings and showed them how to play and so on and so forth. That is how Hopkins goes. Guys come back and play and try to teach them and have guys that consequentially get better because of it.