Last month, Sue Bird was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, which is often seen as the culmination of one’s basketball journey. While being enshrined in Springfield, Mass., undoubtedly marks the end of Bird’s playing days, she’s far from finished when it comes to her overall basketball career. That became evident on May 8 when USA Basketball made Bird the first-ever managing director of the U.S. Women’s National Team.
This newly created position is the same one that Grant Hill, another Hall of Famer, currently has with the Men’s National Team. As managing director, Bird is essentially the general manager of the Women’s National Team. She will be tasked with identifying the coaches and players to compete at major international events such as the Olympics—with the next coming in 2028 in Los Angeles—and the FIBA World Cup, with the next women’s tournament set for Germany in September 2026.
