Netflix's newest comedy, Hoops, surprisingly serves as a New Girl reunion based on the shared cast among the two very different shows. The adult animated series was created by Ben Hoffman, a comedian who is also recognized as Wheeler Walker Jr. ,his musician stage name. New Girl alum Jake Johnson leads Hoops as the main character, but he's certainly not the only cast member from the beloved Fox sitcom to make the jump to the animated series.
Hoops follows a small-town high school basketball team consisting of a rag-tag group of athletes. At the center of the series is Coach Hopkins (Johnson), a man who cherished vulgarity as a way to get through to his players and peers. Despite the lack of skill from his team, the coach has his eyes on something bigger and better, wishing to one day make it to the big leagues like his father.
New Girl came to an end just two years ago, but much of the main cast came together to support Johnson's Netflix series. One of the key absences, however, is that of Zooey Deschanel, but there's always a chance for her to rejoin Johnson if Hoops gets a season 2. For now, here's every New Girl cast member to be involved in Hoops.
Jake Johnson
Jake Johnson plays the central character, Ben Hopkins, in Hoops. Ben is a very short-tempered coach of the Lenwood High School basketball team. Though he wants his team to succeed, his foul mouth and anger outbursts often get him in trouble. Ben also deals with being in the shadow of his father, a former professional basketball player. In New Girl, Johnson portrayed Nick Miller, the lovable, but immature, roommate of lead character Jess Day (Deschanel). As the series continued, he and Jess became one of the key romantic couples.
Max Greenfield
Max Greenfield served as one of the fellow roommates of Nick and Jess in New Girl, playing the role of Schmidt. The character, known for being high-maintenance, acted as if he was the leader of the loft. In Hoops, Greenfield voiced the recurring character named Lonnie. The figure worked as the ethics teacher at Lenwood, and he was clearly not a fan of Ben or the way he coached his team.
Damon Wayans Jr.
Aside from Greenfield, Damon Wayans Jr. served as the final roommate featured in New Girl to voice a character in Hoops. Wayans appeared in the New Girl pilot as Ernie Tagliaboo, a.k.a. "Coach," but the character disappeared for a bit before returning in season 3. In Hoops, the actor joined his old co-stars to voice Damian Chapman, Ben's arch-nemesis who coaches at a nearby high school.
Hannah Simone
The final New Girl main cast member to have a role in Hoops is Hannah Simone, who played Cecilia "Cece" Parikh for all seven seasons of the Fox series. Cece was the childhood best friend of Jess and the eventual interest of Schmidt. Despite not being one of the primary roommates, Cece was always involved in the primary plot. For Hoops, Simone voiced Dr. Brooks, the grief counselor that came to Lenwood after the deaths of a former coach and the local chicken delivery man.
Hoops Recurring Cast That Appeared On New Girl
Rob Riggle: The veteran actor plays the role of Barry Hopkins, the former basketball player and father of Ben who owns a popular steak restaurant featured on Hoops. In New Girl, Riggle played Big Schmidt, the cousin of Greenfield's character for three episodes.
Cleo King: After playing Sergeant Dorado, a member of the police academy training program in New Girl season 4, Cleo King has rejoined some of the cast members for Hoops. The actress plays Opal Lowry, the no-nonsense principal at Lenwood High.
Ron Funches: The actor portrayed a street musician in underwear who interrupted Winston's date in New Girl before joining Hoops as Ron. The character served as the assistant basketball coach and best friend of Ben — despite the fact that he's dating Ben's estranged wife.
Ben Hoffman: The creator of Hoops also made a direct appearance on New Girl, playing a character named Sherman in the show's debut season.