USA – Coach K to ‘help in some capacity’ with Team USA’s future

BEIJING (Olympics) – It was mission accomplished for the United States at the Olympics.

Now Team USA’s gold-medal winning coach Mike Krzyzewski says he wants to remain involved with the country’s national team program.

Krzyzewski stopped short of saying he would coach the team again, though.

“I'll help in some capacity in consulting, in whatever they need to do," Krzyzewski said to ESPN.com when asked if he would remain as coach.

Krzyzewski, 61, coached the United States for the past three summers, beginning at the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan and ending at the Beijing Games where his team won all of its games en route to the Olympic title.

He has been the coach at Duke University since 1980 and will lead the Blue Devils again this season.

Though he did not rule out coaching the Americans again, Coach K said: "Right now I just want to help. I enjoy recruiting and coaching Duke but I'll see where all of it goes.

“All I can tell you is that I'll be involved. I want to be with how we go forward.''

The United States finished a disappointing third at the Athens Olympics.

After the 2005 FIBA Americas Championship, Jerry Colangelo, USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team managing director, received three-year commitments from players which came to an end this summer.

Thirty-three players were involved in the program over the three-year period.

In the press conference after the gold medal win in Beijing, Colangelo said: “We are going to celebrate and we’re going to talk about the future going forward.

“But the good news is this … unsolicited, five or six of these guys have already said they want to be part of what we do going forward.

“But, we have plenty of time to sort through it. They need some time off … they really do.”

Colangelo also said had the three-year commitment not been in place, the United States may not have prevailed against Spain in the gold medal game.

“Without continuity,” he said, “without these guys being together for the last few years, I think we might have lost.”

FIBA