Jimmer-Mania may have stepped away from the court, but it’s far from done with basketball.
Just days after the statement of his retirement from professional basketball, Team USA star Jimmer Fredette was announced as the 3x3 Men’s National Team Managing Director for USA basketball.
Fans last saw him take the court at the Paris Olympics in 2024 where early into the competition, he suffered an adductor injury which ruled him out for the rest of the competition. Speaking on his retirement, Fredette said, “There's a lot that went into the decision. After the Olympics, getting injured at a really difficult time and then trying to figure out if I want to come back and play again, just to finish it out on my terms. All those decisions had to come into play the last eight months that I've been rehabbing and trying to get back.
“It just ultimately came down to the fact that I just didn't want to do the daily grind anymore of playing 3x3, playing basketball in general and all the stuff that goes into it outside of the events. I’m someone that has loved to workout throughout my life. That's how I got to be the player that I was, but once that love goes away, I knew that it was probably the right time to let it go and to transition into something else.”
The game wasn’t something the American star wanted to stay away from for too long. He said, “I knew I'd probably stay involved with basketball somehow, but I didn't necessarily want to get into coaching right away. I was trying to figure it out when Jay Demings and Jim Tooley came to me and asked me about this position. They wanted to have someone in charge of the 3x3 side of things, but they wanted someone with experience in order to do that. So, my name popped up and I am excited for the opportunity.”
Experience is something Fredette has in abundance. After a 5-on-5 career that took him across the world, he eventually made the move to 3x3 basketball in 2022 and since then won several tournaments, both as team USA and on the World Tour circuit as team Miami with the usual core of Kareem Maddox, Canyon Barry and Dylan Travis.
“There's so many fun things that I did all the way up to before the Olympics. The 2023 World Cup in Vienna was amazing. Playing in some AmeriCups, playing on the World tour. Just being able to go to all these places all over the world that I would have never really gotten to experience unless I was playing 3x3 basketball, it was a special opportunity,” Fredette said.
“To be able to do it with guys that I ended up having to be basically like my brothers. Having that camaraderie, going from a team that wasn't great to being able to start winning Masters and do that consistently, that whole growth process was something that was really eye opening. Because of it, I got addicted to the sport. I loved it, I wanted to work at it, I wanted to be the best at it, and eventually we got to the top. It was really satisfying. Just something that I won't forget, it was some of the most fun I've had playing basketball.”
For Fredette though, it’s all eyes on what’s ahead for the American contingent in the 3x3 circuit. They have boasted a new-look side since his injury back in 2024, coming into 2025 with a core of familiar faces from the past in Mitch Hahn, James Parrott, Henry Caruso and Dylan Travis. They won gold at the AmeriCup to close out 2024 and have brought momentum into the new season, starting the World Tour with a scintillating repeat at the Utsunomiya Opener.
“Those guys are all veterans that have played on tour a lot so we wanted to group them together. We felt like those are our best guys that we have access to. They're just great dudes. They play super hard. They know all the tricks of the trade. They've been involved in big tournaments. They've won tournaments and they're just continuing to progress and get better. It's now about getting them to continue to be consistent,” Jimmer said.
“There’s a lot of stuff coming up. That's 3x3, there’s always something happening. For us, the immediate thing is obviously to get prepared for the World Cup. That's our next biggest event. We have three masters in between now and then. We want to perform well there as guys that are on Team Miami. So we wanna make sure they’re ready and finding success there. At the same time, I’m trying to figure out who I want to put on the World Cup team and just getting prepared for that.”
With 3x3 basketball confirmed to be returning bigger and better at the next Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028, the clock ticks every day on assembling the right squad to succeed on home soil for USA basketball. The former World Number 1 has insight better than most on what it takes to build an Olympic-level squad.
“In 3x3, the two-ball is so important. So we want to find guys who can shoot the ball in space, guys that can do multiple things, guard multiple positions, be able to dribble the ball, make plays off the dribble and shoot off the dribble.
“You want high IQ guys who can pick up the sport, understand when to slip on the screen or the angles of the screen and to do it in a quick decision manner. And guys that are competitive, it's the kind of sport where you have to be able to be physical and understand that guys are going to grab and hold you and you can do the same.
The process for USA 3x3 basketball is well underway. A development camp, held April 28 - 30, featured 34 top prospects at different points in their hooping career, showcased a glimpse of the talent we could be seeing in the coming seasons in the lead-up to LA28.
“I think that there's an opportunity to have guys start getting in the pipeline. We want to find guys that may be interested in the sport at that point in their careers, where it's like, ‘hey, I really love the sport. And I might play five-on-five to supplement it, but I want to play a full 3x3 season.’ And we're trying to find those guys as well,” Fredette said.
“It could be a standalone thing for some players, but it could also be a pipeline to try to get guys involved in the sport knowing what it is. Even if it's a couple of years down the road, they've played in some things and then they can come back and understand the familiarity of what 3x3 is and they can transition back to the sport.”
Having experienced the game at its different stages and forms makes Jimmer an ideal eye to pick and develop future talent within the sport. He said, ”When you're out there as a player, you know what the physicality is like, you understand what the skill sets that work are. I remember when I first got into it, those first couple of tournaments, I was so mad that we would lose. You have to continue to be resilient and be able to push through that and understand the ‘next tournament up‘ type mentality.
“I want to be able to sell to players as they come through, what my journey was like, what our team's journey was like and that they can have that similar type of journey if they put their efforts into it.”
Fredette is testament to his own statements. His talents and work ethic not only made him one of the top players in 3x3, but allowed them to mark their spot in the Paris Olympics.
“To put USA on your chest in any capacity when you're competing, is something you dream about as a kid. To now be able to do that from a different side and be able to represent basketball in a managing director role is an amazing opportunity. There's pressure with it. We understand that because USA basketball is known for winning gold medals and winning championships, whatever and wherever they're playing.
“It's trying to figure out how we can continue to progress and be the best country in the world at 3x3. In order to do that, you have to build the right program.”
Team USA has been a force in the 3x3 circuit. An unfortunate injury for the now-Managing Director dampened what was a stellar run for the American side. Fredette now has the opportunity to continue making an impact on their next run to the Olympics, with ambitions sky-high.
“I think there's still more to prove. Obviously we didn't win the Olympics, and that's something that's a goal of ours. We want to win World Cups, we want to win a World Tour Championship. There's a lot of things that we haven't done yet that we can progress and get better at.
“From our perspective, I felt like USA basketball did it the right way. They actually put a team together, put them on tour, and we were together a lot. We practiced and played professionally. That's the type of program I want to build moving forward with just more pool of guys to be able to have. If we can continue to move in that direction, we put ourselves in positions to win. And whether we win or not, we'll see, because it's such a variance for sport, but if we get ourselves enough opportunity to start winning stuff, we will win a lot.”