Former BYU star Jimmer Fredette has a new job in basketball

SALT LAKE CITY — Former BYU star Jimmer Fredette retired less than a week ago, but the U.S. Olympian didn't stay on his couch for long.

No, the former Naismith, Wooden and Oscar Robertson national player of the year in 2011 won't be sipping drinks on the beach in retirement, after he accepted a job as USA Basketball's managing director of 3x3 hoops Monday.

Described as one of the most prolific 3x3 athletes in the game, Fredette — a 2024 Olympian who was once ranked the No. 1 3x3 basketball player in the world, is the first managing director for the 3x3 men's national team in USA Basketball history, according to a release.

His responsibilities will include hiring a coaching staff and personnel for the squad that will represent the country at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles as well as the FIBA 3x3 pro circuit over the next three years.

"It's definitely different," Fredette said in a USA Basketball news release. "It's a lot more mental than physical and something where you're watching a lot more film, you're watching a lot more tape on players and games. ... It's a different brain muscle that I'll be flexing, but I'll really enjoy being able to dig into the weeds of some of these players and try to figure out a system."

Fredette retired from basketball last Wednesday at the age of 36 after a globetrotting basketball career that took the former first-round draft pick of the Sacramento Kings to China, Greece and Lebanon, as well as stops in the NBA D-League and The Basketball Tournament.

The 2021 inductee in the BYU Athletics Hall of Fame left college as one of the most decorated athletes in the Cougars' history, rewriting the history books and setting BYU and Mountain West Conference record books in career points, points in a season (1,068), points in a game (52) and season scoring average (28.9).

He led the Cougars to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in 2010-11, the program's first since 1981 and a feat that wasn't matched until Kevin Young's inaugural campaign in 2024-25. Fredette earned unanimous national player of the year honors by 10 organizations, including the NABC, Sporting News and CBS Sports.

"When you think of USA Basketball, you think of gold medals and excellence," Fredette said. "To be put in that position, to be able to strive for that in an emerging sport that people don't know much about is an absolute honor. The goal is to build a program, get people to understand that 3x3 basketball is such a fun sport and that it's great for development. It's about putting in the effort, putting in the time and the work, and I'm willing to do that.

"I'm going to take it seriously. Absolutely seriously."

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