USA Basketball is set to make massive shifts in its structuring later this week, and among some of the most shocking moves includes the introduction of WNBA legend Sue Bird as the new managing director for the women’s national team, according to a person with knowledge of USA Basketball’s decision. The person requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly until USA Basketball made an announcement.
Bird, 44, is a women’s basketball legend, particularly as a member of the U.S. national team. She won five Olympic gold medals and four World Cup titles on the squad. Now, she’ll be responsible for a hefty chunk of the team’s success, taking on the ‘Grant Hill’ role for the team, making her in charge of things like player roster and coaching staff decisions for events like the Olympics and World Cup.
In previous years, a committee had been used to determine the rosters and coaches for these events. However, Bird’s expertise and respect in the basketball community seemingly has earned her the power to make those decisions on her own moving forward.
Will the men’s national team make the same shift?
The men’s national team does not need to. They’ve operated with a managing director for nearly two decades at this point, dating back to Jeff Colangelo, who took on the role from 2005 to 2021. George Hill took over the role in 2021, hence why Bird’s new position is being referred to as the ‘George Hill role.’
Much like how Hill now reports to the men’s national team day-to-day operations manager Sean Ford, Bird will now report to Briana Weiss in a similar manner.
When does the women’s national team play next?
The next big event for the women’s national team will be the FIBA World Cup in September 2026, with the first qualifying event for the tournament set to take place in November this year.
The short timeframe between now and the qualifying event makes Bird’s life much tougher as she’ll have to navigate a field of worthy candidates for the roster and coaching staff all while meandering through politics in her decisions. It’s hard to forget the drama that ensued ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics when it was announced that Caitlin Clark had been left off the roster.
Sue Bird making moves as a podcaster as well
Coincidentally, news of Bird’s new position comes at a time when Bird also is announcing the start of a new WNBA podcast with Vox Media titled ‘Bird’s Eye View.’ The podcast is set to debut May 16 and will be available on most major podcast platforms such as Spotify, YouTube and Apple.
The show will cover WNBA news with Bird offering her expert opinions and analysis while speaking with several influential figures from around the league.
‘It’s going to be rooted in the ways in which the conversation that I can have might be different from an analyst or journalist. It’s going to be player to player, in a sense,’ Bird told The Hollywood Reporter.