Steve Kerr intends to step down as the coach of the United States Men’s Basketball team after the 2024 Paris Olympics. Kerr told The Athletic that his run leading Team USA would end after next summer’s games.
“No,” Kerr said bluntly when asked if he would coach Team USA after the Paris Games. “To me, it’s a two-year; it’s a cycle. Pop coached a World Cup and the Olympics, now it’s my turn to pass the baton. I think that’s kind of how it should be. Frankly, it’s a huge commitment too. I guess I think it was different the last go-around with Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski) and Jerry (Colangelo), when they were really establishing this culture and this system where guys had to commit for a couple years. Made sense for Coach K to stay on. But I think where we are now, one cycle and you move on.”
Many NBA stars have expressed interest in playing for Team USA at the Olympics. Kerr said that roster conversations will start in the coming months.
“That conversation is coming over the next couple of months,” Kerr said. “We’d like to have a roster set sooner rather than later. We don’t have a date, but, you know, obviously, we don’t want to leave guys in limbo.
“You want everybody excited about the prospect (of playing for Team USA); that’s the first sign of, hey, we’re taking this really seriously. A lot of guys are dying to play. Obviously, Grant has to lead the way in terms of building our strategy, and we haven’t made any decisions,” Kerr continued. “It’s highly likely that guys who want to play may not be … whether it’s established guys or guys who have been with us and guys who just played and played really well this last go-around, no matter how you slice it, you can only take 12, so it’s very, very difficult, and it’s a painful process because, you know, you get really attached to guys.
“This last group was so wonderful. In a lot of ways, I wanted to win the gold and just run it back.”
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November 6, 2023 | 10:17 am
