Ed Cooley to be Assistant on Billy Donovan’s Staff of USA U19 Team

After a successful campaign at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship that saw Team USA dominate the competition and finish 5-0 to get the gold medal last summer, USA Basketball announced on Tuesday that University of Florida head coach Billy Donovan and his entire coaching staff would return to coach the U19 team for the 2015 U19 World Championships. That means Providence head coach Ed Cooley and Arizona head coach Sean Miller will again join Donovan on the Team USA coaching staff.

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Making the selection of the coaching staff was USA Basketball Junior National Team Committee. Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim chairs that committee.  “Our U19 team is going to really benefit from another year with Coach Donovan, Coach Cooley and Coach Miller,” said Boeheim. “They had great success last summer, winning the gold medal, and we’re confident the squad is going to continue to improve with this staff in place.”

“Sean Miller and Ed Cooley are both great guys and excellent coaches,” said Donovan. “It was very rewarding for me working side by side with them on the U18 team last summer, and it will be great to have that continuity with the staff again with the U19 team.”

Ed Cooley can often be seen wearing a USA Basketball t-shirt or polo and is clearly very proud to be part of the USA Basketball family again. “I have so much respect for USA Basketball,” said Cooley. “It is an honor to be asked to help coach this squad. I feel blessed to be able to come back and help after we won the gold medal last summer.” Cooley began his involvement in the summer of 2012 when he was selected to be a court coach for the U18 training camp. Last summer was his first as an assistant coach for USA Basketball. “I learned so much last summer working with Billy and Sean. I believe that we have a great chemistry. I feel very fortunate to be asked to work with such talented individuals,” said Cooley.

The 2015 U19 World Championships will be held in Crete, Greece from June 27-July 5th. Training camp will be held at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO from June 12-26. This 2015 U19 squad will be looking to defend the gold medal won by the 2013 U19 team in Prague at the last U19 World Championships which are now held every other year. That 2013 team included current college stars Jahlil Okafor, Justice Winslow, Nigel Williams-Goss and Montrezl Harrell and current NBA players like Marcus Smart, Elfrid Payton and Aaron Gordon.

Here is the roster from the U18 team last season (not all player guaranteed to be on 2015 U19 team):

• Isaiah Briscoe – 2015
• Jaylen Brown – 2015
• Jalen Brunson – 2015
• Chase Jeter – 2015
• Stanley Johnson – 2014
• Tyus Jones – 2014
• Luke Kennard – 2015
• Tyler Lydon – 2015
• Allonzo Trier – 2015
• Myles Turner – 2014
• Justice Winslow – 2014
• Stephen Zimmerman – 2015

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Mike Hopkins

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