August 3, 2011WARRIORS PAGEWARRIORS VIDEO
CSNBayArea.com staff
Nate Bjorkgren has been hired as head coach of Golden State's D-League affiliate Dakota Wizards, the team announced Wednesday.
Bjorkgren, 36, spent the past four seasons as an assistant coach with the NBA D-Leagues Iowa Energy.
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"We're really pleased with the selection of Nate as our head coach," said Larry Riley, Warriors executive VP of basketball operations in a press release. "We believe he is a quality young coach and the right individual to lead the Wizards and, most importantly, oversee the development of our team in Bismarck. The tremendous success he enjoyed in Iowa and his overall knowledge of the D-League will be an added benefit and certainly aid him in this transition. Our entire staff, including Mark Jackson, Bob Myers, Travis Schlenk, Kirk Lacob and myself, were impressed with his pedigree during the interview process and are confident he is the right fit."
A graduate of Buena Vista University in 1998 with a degree in Exercise Science, Bjorkgren played for the Beavers and the University of South Dakota, where he began his college career in 1994.
"I'm really excited about this opportunity to lead the Wizards and provide the fans of Bismarck with a hard-working and exciting team," Bjorkgren said. "I have learned a lot during the last four years on the staff of the Iowa Energy and look forward to implementing my philosophy in this new position. Additionally, I was very impressed with the vision and goals of the Warriors' staff during our meetings and I'm eager to work closely with them as we move forward."