Steve Kerr Appointed Head Coach for Team USA at 2024 Paris Olympics

Basketball, with its roots tracing back to 1891 when James Naismith mounted a peach basket in a western Massachusetts YMCA gymnasium, is deeply embedded in American culture. Despite its international growth over the last three decades, a trend prominently visible in NBA line-ups, the United States still serves as an incubator nurturing many of basketball’s elite players. In recent years, while the gap has narrowed significantly, the United States’ dominance in the sport remains apparent on the global theater, particularly in the Olympics.

The fact that Team USA has clinched seven out of the last eight Olympic basketball gold medals is testament to their prowess on the court. This triumphant epoch was launched by the iconic Dream Team at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. Given this backdrop, when the views of American sports enthusiasts are taken into account, securing first place in the Olympics becomes an expectation rather than merely an achievement.

This set of expectations imparts a significant duty not only on the players but also on the all-important role of the coach. Leading the U.S. Olympic basketball team is a position that commands great focus due to its opportunity to guide some of the world’s top players and the importance it holds symbolically. From when basketball was inducted into the Olympics nearly nine decades ago, this role has been served by some of the most triumphant and revered personalities in basketball coaching, with an Olympic gold medal often being a crowning accomplishment on their extensive list of accolades.

As we excitedly anticipate the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Team USA is primed to safeguard its champion title. To offer some insight into the coaching helm guiding them into this major tournament: Who will be leading the USA Basketball team for the 2024 Paris Olympics?

The baton to lead the United States national basketball team in the upcoming 2024 Olympics stands with coach Steve Kerr. While this will be his inaugural stint as the head coach of the Olympic team, he played a crucial assistant coach role alongside Gregg Popovich during the gold-medal-conquering U.S. run in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Steve Kerr’s competence as a leader is well reflected through his solid record with the Golden State Warriors. Having recently wrapped up his 10th season, Kerr has guided the team to an impressive four NBA championships during his tenure. The Warriors have boasted a 519-274 triumph under Kerr’s coaching baton, including a staggering 207-39 touchline performance in his first three seasons. This record made him the first coach in NBA history to rack up at least 67 wins across three consecutive seasons.

Kerr’s accomplishments didn’t go unnoticed. In 2016, he was named the NBA coach of the year after leading the Golden State Warriors to an NBA-record 73 regular-season victories. Further recognition came Kerr’s way in the 75th anniversary celebrations of the league in 2022. On this occasion, he was named among the 15 greatest coaches in NBA history.

Supporting Kerr in his Olympic endeavor, assistant coaches Erik Spoelstra from Miami Heat, Tyronn Lue from the Los Angeles Clippers, and Mark Few from Gonzaga are set to join him on the bench. In Steve Kerr’s first major international tourney at the helm, the U.S. Team finished fourth at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. They ended the tournament with a 5-3 record, with losses to Lithuania, eventual champions Germany, and Canada in an overtime match for the third position.

The World Cup squad consisted mostly of young players, with Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton being the only two who will join Kerr for the Olympic venture to Paris. As Steve Kerr takes up his new role at the helm, attention turns to the formidable lineup of Team USA for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

The testament to USA’s basketball prowess is the star-studded 12-man roster set to compete in the Paris Olympics: Running the courts, the guardian positions will be filled by Steph Curry from Golden State Warriors, Anthony Edwards from Minnesota Timberwolves, Jrue Holiday from Boston Celtics, Devin Booker from Phoenix Suns, and Tyrese Haliburton from Indiana Pacers.

Adding power to the forward positions, the team features LeBron James from the Los Angeles Lakers, Kevin Durant from Phoenix Suns, Kawhi Leonard from the Los Angeles Clippers, and Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics. The versatile role of forward/center is set to be fulfilled by Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Rounding out the promising roster are centers Joel Embiid from Philadelphia 76ers and Bam Adebayo from Miami Heat. With Kerr leading this ensemble, Team USA appears poised for a triumphant showing at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

Coach Kerr now joins the prestigious roll call of coaches who have led the U.S. basketball delegation in the summer Olympics, making him the 17th. A distinguished record comprised of some of basketball’s most accomplished figures at both the college and professional levels, nearly all of them completed their Olympic campaigns with at least one gold medal, a reflection of the team’s perennial championship caliber.

Assuming Kerr remains in charge for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, he would be among the rare few to serve multiple tours of duty. Only Henry Iba and Mike Krzyzewski have had the honor of coaching the U.S. basketball team in more than one Olympics.

Here, then, is a historical timeline showcasing the legacy of the U.S. basketball coaching role, with the respective coach and the year of the Olympics they served: James Needles in 1936, Omar Browning in 1948, Warren Womble in 1952, Gerald M. Tucker in 1956, Pete Newell in 1960, Henry Iba between 1964 and 1972, Dean Smith in 1976, Dave Gavitt in 1980, John Thompson in 1988, Chuck Daly in 1992, Lenny Wilkens in 1996, Rudy Tomjanovich in 2000, Larry Brown in 2004, Mike Krzyzewski from 2008 to 2016, Gregg Popovich in 2020, and Steve Kerr in 2024.