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Capable Capel
Former NBDL Fayetteville Patriots Head Coach Jeff Capel named Charlotte Bobcats assistant.

07.15.04 – Last season, the Fayetteville Patriots of the National Basketball Development League [NBDL] had four players make the jump to the NBA.

The team's most recent promotion though belongs to Jeff Capel, the head coach that guided the Patriots to the NBDL's postseason last year despite the constant shuffling of the roster.

The Charlotte Bobcats' General Manager and Head Coach, Bernie Bickerstaff, has made Capel a part his coaching crew.

The expansion team's staff will also include Gary Brokaw, John-Blair Bickerstaff, Gary Kloppenburg and John Outlaw.

"I am very pleased to add Jeff Capel to our staff. Jeff is well-known and respected in basketball circles and he will be a perfect fit with our staff and players," Bickerstaff said.
"He has achieved success wherever he has been as a coach, but more impressive is how he imparts his knowledge and relates to the players."

Capel joins the Bobcats after serving two-plus seasons as head coach of Fayetteville in the D-League, where he posted a 69-61 (.531) record.

He took over the head coaching job midway through the Patriots inaugural season in 2001-02 and the following season, he guided the team to the NBDL Finals and a 32-18 record, tops in the NBDL regular season.

In addition to Capel's on-the-floor coaching duties with the Bobcats, he will also serve as an advance scout.

"I want to thank the Charlotte Bobcats and Bernie Bickerstaff for this wonderful opportunity," Capel said. "I'm thrilled to join a great coaching staff and to help build this team from the beginning. I will do whatever I can to help the team progress and succeed."

Jeff believes that his time in the D-League was a boost in his career and will look back with fond memories at his time in the minors.

"My time in the NBDL was a very enjoyable experience and allowed me to realize my dream of coaching in the NBA."

Prior to the NBDL, Capel spent 12 years as a head coach at the collegiate level at Old Dominion, North Carolina A&T and Fayetteville State, with a combined record of 201-162 (.554).

Beyond his successful coaching career, Jeff and his wife are the parents of a pair of former ACC collegiate basketball players.

Jason Capel attended University of North Carolina from 1998-2002, before playing for the Fayetteville Patriots for two seasons with his father as the coach.

Jeff Capel III played at Duke from 1993-97 and is currently entering his third season as head coach at Virginia Commonwealth University, where he is the youngest Division I men's basketball head coach at 29 years old.