ASSISTANT COACH/STRENGTH & CONDITIONING

Rich Dalatri returned for his second stint with the New Jersey Nets in 1997-98, having served in a similar capacity from 1987-92. Dalatri was the first full-time strength and conditioning coach in the NBA when the Nets hired him in 1987. Dalatri worked for the Cleveland Cavaliers for two seasons as well as in the Italian Professional League, where he was the athletic coach for Phonola Caserta for two years and Fortitudo Bologna for two seasons. Rich is responsible for coordinating strength, conditioning and flexibility programs during both the NBA season and the off-season. He also assists in developing the players' individual nutritional programs as well as implementing programs for many teams and individual players in Europe. In the summer of 2001, Rich was named the athletic coach for the Italian National Team, who won the silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece.

Rich is considered one of the leading authorities in European basketball circles on strength and conditioning, and spends his summers in Europe speaking and conducting basketball camps and numerous basketball clinics. He uses his extensive knowledge of European basketball to aid the Nets in scouting. In addition to his European experience, Rich's resume includes working for the New York Giants (1988-91), serving as the strength and conditioning coach at the University of Mississippi (1983-86), as well as serving as the personal trainer for recording artist Jon Bon Jovi.

Rich's credentials include: Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist-National Strength and Conditioning Association; Certified Speed and Explosiveness Specialist-National Speed and Explosiveness Association; Certified Expert in Soviet Training-Soviet Institute of Sport Moscow and Certified U.S. Weightlifting Coach for the U.S. Weightlifting Federation. Rich also wrote a chapter on strength training for the NBA's fitness book, "Total Fitness the NBA Way." In addition, Rich has had numerous articles published in Italian sports journals, and his book, "Preparation For Basketball", was published and sold in Europe in 2003. Recently, Rich was appointed to the advisory board of "Pilates Style Magazine".

Rich was an offensive lineman for Villanova and Louisiana Tech in college and graduated from Tech with a bachelor's degree in general studies, with a concentration in exercise physiology. He signed a professional contract with the Denver Gold of the USFL in 1983. He and his wife, Elvy, have four sons, Richard, James, Gian-Luca and Andrea, and one daughter, Isabella, and reside in Wall Township, New Jersey.