LAS VEGAS — Jerry Colangelo admits: He was done. Finished. Ready to walk off into the USA Basketball sunset with three gold medals and a legacy as the man who rebuilt a floundering men’s program back into a basketball powerhouse.
Then, he needed a new coach.
He wanted Gregg Popovich.
And Gregg Popovich wanted him.
“Pop said he would do it, but under one condition: That I stay,” Colangelo told SI.com. “At the time, I was thinking maybe I wouldn’t. But if it meant him coaching, it was an easy decision.”
Preparations for the FIBA World Cup are in full swing in Las Vegas.