April 9, 2021
Adia Barnes joins USA Basketball staff
By Zack Ward
Arizona's coaching star to help with 2021 AmeriCup
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Arizona announced on Friday that its former player and current head coach Adia Barnes will work under South Carolina’s Dawn Staley as an assistant coach for USA Basketball during the AmeriCup in 2021.
“I am incredibly honored to represent the United States and assist coach Dawn Staley and USA Basketball for the 2021 AmeriCup,” Barnes said. “This has been a basketball dream of mine and I can’t wait to represent my country. The opportunity to work alongside coach Staley and coach (Jennifer) Rizzotti and the most talented basketball players in the world is an honor. I cannot wait to get in the gym with these athletes and represent USA Basketball with pride.”
Barnes made a name for herself on the national stage this past season, leading her Arizona team to the national championship game as a No. 3 seed. The Wildcats lost to the Stanford Cardinal by just one point in the Final. Along the way, they upset a storied, 11-time champion UConn Huskies program in the Final Four.
“Adia Barnes has quickly proven herself to be one of the top coaches in our country,” Staley said.
Current college basketball players will make up the team that represents the U.S. in the AmeriCup, which is from June 11 to June 19 in Puerto Rico. Trials to make the team will be held at the University of South Carolina from April 18 to April 21 and the players chosen to participate in those tryouts have not been determined yet.
Countries from North, South, and Central America, as well as the Caribbean, are eligible for the 2021 AmeriCup with a total of 10 competing. The tournament is a stepping stone toward qualifying for the 2022 FIBA World Cup. A top-four finish would advance the U.S. to a qualifying tournament.
Barnes took over the head job at Arizona before the 2016-17 season after five years as an assistant at the University of Washington. She has led the Wildcats to three 20-win seasons in a row.
Barnes played seven seasons in the WNBA and was a member of the Sacramento Monarchs, Minnesota Lynx, Cleveland Rockers, and Seattle Storm.
