Veteran bench boss Bruce Palmer has been named the JBL champion Link Tochigi Brex's new head coach, the team announced on Saturday.
Palmer replaces fellow American Thomas Wisman, who stepped down as coach after guiding the Brex to the title last month. Wisman will now serve as the Japan national team's head coach.
The 54-year-old Palmer played college ball at the University of the Pacific (Calif.). His pro career began in the Australian National Basketball League (NBL) in 1977. Starting in 1982, when he was a player/coach with the Coburg Giants, he had a long coaching career in Australia, compiling a record of 184-114.
He was named the NBL coach of the year in 1988 while leading the North Melbourne Giants. He also coached in Australian's WNBL and served as an assistant coach on Australia's under-22 national team in 2005.
His coaching career also includes stops in Asia. He was a consultant coach for Korean Basketball League club Naray in 1997-98. A year later, he was the Japan national team's head coach. In 1999-2000, Palmer was an adviser for Toyota Motors' JBL squad.