Erdem Can

Erdem Can — Biography

Erdem Can is a Turkish basketball coach and former player, born on November 3, 1980, in Ankara. In his youth he played for the junior teams of Sümerbank (1993-1996) and Mülkiyespor (1996-1998), and in 2003 he earned a master's degree in political science and public administration at Ankara University's Faculty of Political Science.

From 2012 to 2021 he served as an assistant coach at Fenerbahçe under Željko Obradović, helping the team win four Turkish League championships, three Turkish Cups and the 2016-17 EuroLeague title, and he was an assistant under Igor Kokoškov during the 2020-21 season; he also served as an assistant coach for the Turkish national team at EuroBasket 2017. In August 2021 he joined the NBA's Utah Jazz as an assistant coach under Quin Snyder. He was named head coach of Türk Telekom in June 2022, leading the club to the EuroCup final and being named coach of the year in both the Basketbol Süper Ligi and the EuroCup. He took over Anadolu Efes in 2023 but left the club in February 2024 after disappointing results, before returning to Türk Telekom for a second stint as head coach in June 2024.

In May 2026 he signed a two-year contract extension with Türk Telekom; he has described representing Turkey on the international stage with pride as his greatest motivation, and in assessing the 2025-26 season said the team had performed well but could still have done better.