MIAMI (USA) - Erik Spoelstra, on the bench as one of Steve Kerr's assistants when USA captured the Olympic gold medal last year in Paris, is the new head coach of the national team.
USA Basketball’s Men’s National Team managing director Grant Hill selected Spoelstra as Kerr's successor and the USA Basketball Board of Directors then approved the choice.
Spoelstra, entering his 18th season at the helm of the Miami Heat - a team he led to NBA titles in 2012 and 2013 and to the Finals on four other occasions - will lead USA Basketball through 2028, with the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Qatar and the 2028 Olympics as his main objectives.
An incredible honor
"It’s an incredible honor to be named head coach of the USA Basketball Men’s National Team,” Spoelstra said in a USA Basketball announcement.
"Representing our country and leading world-class athletes to marquee competitions is one of the greatest privileges in sport. I look forward to carrying on the tradition of excellence and teamwork that defines USA Basketball."
Hill is excited about having Spoelstra in charge of the national team.
Spo is the perfect choice
"I have known Erik Spoelstra for the better part of two decades and have gotten to know him better throughout our time with USA Basketball," Hill said. "Spo is not only an outstanding coach, but a great colleague, friend and father, all of which make him the perfect choice to continue the USA Basketball Men’s National Team coaching legacy through 2028."
Spoelstra, 54, is the longest tenured coach in the NBA with one team. In addition to the two title runs, he has led the Heat to four other NBA Finals appearances (most recently in 2023).
He was also an assistant coach for Miami’s 2006 NBA Championship team after starting as video coordinator with the organization in 1995.
Spoelstra is a "perfect choice" also according to Golden State Warriors coach Kerr.
"He’s gonna be great," Kerr said after a Warriors practice.
"I mean, Spo is incredible. He’s a phenomenal coach. And, just watching him the last two summers and getting to know him up close, rather than just from afar, where I've admired him for so long, I got a first-hand glimpse at what a great coach he is."
The USA will attempt to qualify and win the World Cup for the first time since 2014 and then capture Olympic gold for the sixth consecutive time.
Spoelstra's first role with USA Basketball was as coach of the USA Select Team that trained with and against the Olympic team before it travelled to the Tokyo Games, when Kerr was an assistant to Gregg Popovich.
The highlight of Spoelstra's USA career came in France last year. After the Olympics, he returned home and spoke to the Miami Herald about being a part of the gold medal run.
"It was an iconic team," he said. "Those are life core memories. It was an incredible life experience. It was just a great basketball experience.
"You know, and the coaching staff, we got along really well. We're on a text chain that we're still texting today."
Kerr's other assistants were Los Angeles Clippers coach Tyronn Lue and Gonzaga Bulldogs coach Mark Few.
"So it was a blast," Spoelstra said. "We had a great time and it was one of those things, it’s like lightning in a bottle, you just want to capture it forever."
Spoelstra was so happy after the Summer Games that he expressed the desire to stay with the team.
"They can ask me to do anything, I'm in ..." he said.
"If I was asked to help out in the equipment room, I'm in."
Will Spoelstra lead the USA back to the top of the podium at the FIBA Basketball World Cup? Since the inaugural 1950 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the USA have won the competition five times. The Americans last won the event in 2010 and 2014.
USA have not been on the podium since. They fell to France in the Quarter-Finals of the 2019 World Cup in China, and to Germany in the Semi-Finals of the 2023 event.
Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton were the only members of the World Cup team to play for the USA at the Olympics.
Even with Spoelstra bringing coaching excellence to the job, and providing continuity, the challenge will be big. He was an assistant in 2023 when USA finished fourth at the World Cup in Manila, Philippines - the native country of his mother - while in France, USA had to fight back from a large deficit in the fourth quarter to beat Serbia in the Semi-Finals. The Americans also prevailed in a thrilling Final against France.
The competition was so stiff at the Paris Games that USA great Shaquille O'Neal predicted after that the USA will not win the gold in Los Angeles, saying "Europe has caught up and is only slightly behind, but it will soon overtake the USA."
All eyes will be on the USA when they select their team to play in Qatar where not only will the Naismith Trophy be up for grabs. It will also be an opportunity for the USA to prepare for Los Angeles.
USA Basketball's first mission is to clinch a place in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027.
It will take part in the Americas Qualifiers campaign and square off against Dominican Republic, Mexico and Nicaragua in Group A.
Both of USA's games in the upcoming window will be against Nicaragua, in Managua on November 28 and in Atlanta on December 1.
FIBA