Kerr Supports Spoelstra in Olympic Relay
In a recent meeting, Steve Kerr, former coach of the United States men’s basketball team, expressed his full confidence in Erik Spoelstra, the current coach, to lead the Olympic team. Kerr highlighted Spoelstra’s preparation for the challenge, emphasizing his knowledge of FIBA basketball and his ability to adapt to the dynamics of the international game.Spoelstra will take the reins of the American team at the 2027 World Cup in Doha, Qatar, and at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Kerr, for his part, coached the team at the 2023 World Cup, where they obtained fourth place in Manila, and then at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where they won the gold medal. Spoelstra was part of Kerr’s coaching staff in both events. The United States will begin its path to the 2027 World Cup this weekend in South Florida. A 12-player team will gather for the first two qualifying matches, which consists of 12 games. Training will take place at the University of Miami before traveling to Nicaragua for the first match on November 28. The qualifying matches will extend until March 2027. Spoelstra has not yet contacted Kerr to discuss specific details about the transition of NBA basketball to international, but plans to do so at some point.“It was a great choice. He’s one of the great coaches of all time. Great awareness of what FIBA is, the difference between coaching a team for seven weeks and coaching one for nine months, all that. He has his finger on the pulse of everything. It’s going to be great.”
Steve Kerr
“I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to be on your coaching staff for the last two summers. All the staff, we had a great time. It was a life experience. It was Basketball 101. We all grew with it, just from the experience of developing basketball training. It’s the same four lines, two baskets and a basketball, but it’s a different sport, FIBA. And we felt humbled in that first year and in the second year, I think the experiences we had the previous summer helped us for that Olympic experience.”
Erik Spoelstra
The United States men’s team has won the last five Olympic gold medals. Spoelstra will be tasked with maintaining that streak, and he witnessed in Paris how difficult the job can be, with the Americans needing to come back from a double-digit deficit in the semifinals against Serbia, and then fend off France to win gold.
When “The Star-Spangled Banner” sounded in Paris to celebrate the Olympic gold, Kerr turned to Spoelstra and said, “Good luck.” The announcement that Spoelstra would take over as coach of the team was more than a year away, but Kerr already seemed to know who should be the next coach. Spoelstra praised Kerr’s management during his time as a coach, highlighting his ability to manage expectations and bring the team to its best level at the right time.
