USA Basketball Announces Coaching Staff for Final Two AmeriCup Qualifying Windows; Tickets on Sale Now

FIBA

Former NBA head coach Stephen Silas will serve as head coach for the final two windows of FIBA AmeriCup Qualifiers in November and February 2025 and will be assisted by two-time Olympic gold medalist Patrick Ewing and NBA coaching veteran Keith Smart. Additionally, tickets are on sale now for the pair of games that USA Basketball will host in the second window of FIBA AmeriCup Qualifying on Nov. 22 and 25 at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, D.C.

The USA, who went 1-1 in the first qualifying window versus Cuba in February, will tip off at 7:00 p.m. ET against Puerto Rico on Nov. 22 and the Bahamas on Nov. 25. Both games will take place at Entertainment & Sports Arena, which serves as home to the WNBA's Washington Mystics and the NBA G League's Capital City Go-Go. Tickets, which start at $10 plus taxes and fees, are on sale now at www.usab.com/tickets.

Silas will make his USA Basketball debut as head coach for the U.S. squad. Silas was the head coach of the Houston Rockets from 2020-23 and has been an assistant for seven different NBA teams. Silas has also participated in several camps and clinics around the world to promote the sport of basketball, including the NBA's Basketball Without Borders.

Ewing, who won Olympic gold with the USA in Los Angeles (1984) and Barcelona (1992), will make his USA coaching debut in November in Washington, D.C., Most recently, he was the head coach at his alma mater Georgetown University from 2017-23 and was an NBA assistant coach with four franchises prior to that. The 2008 and 2010 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee was an 11-time NBA All-Star.

Smart returns to the USA bench after serving as an assistant coach for the 1999 USA Pan American Games Team, which took silver. Smart also earned a silver medal as a player at the 1987 Pan American Games. Most recently, he was an assistant coach at the University of Arkansas and has worked in the NBA as both a head and assistant coach. Smart also had an extensive playing career overseas.

Ty Ellis, who has served in multiple roles with USA Basketball, will be a team scout in November.

Additional information, including the team roster, will be announced at a later date.

For more information on AmeriCup Qualifiers, click here.