Avi Shapira joined the Fighting Saints in July of 2025 as an assistant coach for the men’s basketball team. The 2026-27 season will mark Shapira’s second year as assistant coach.
At St. Francis, Shapira assists the program in coordination of practice plans, individual player development, assisting in training sessions, implementation of game strategies, video breakdown & analysis, as well as creation of scouting reports.
Prior to joining the Fighting Saints staff, Heffernan spent four seasons (2021-25) as a student manager at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. During his four years there, Shapira twice helped the Wolverines reach the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 - once in 2022 under Coach Juwan Howard and again in 2025 under Coach Dusty May. His responsibilities with the Wolverines consisted of assisting in player development and in the creation of scouting reports.
While in high school at Evanston Township HS in Evanston, Ill., Shapira served as a student manager where he helped the Wildkits reach the 2019 IHSA 4A state championship game as well as the 2020 IHSA 4A sectional finals that were ultimately canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Shapira graduated from the University of Michigan in 2025 with a bachelor’s degree in Cognitive Science and a minor in Judaic Studies.
