Former Lady Vols star Kara Lawson is following in the footsteps of legendary coach Pat Summitt, who led the U.S. women’s national team in 1984 to its first Olympic gold medal in Los Angeles.
Lawson will aim to lead the U.S. to another gold medal 44 years later.
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USA Basketball announced Sept. 22 that Lawson, who starred at Tennessee from 1999-2003 under Summitt, has been named the women’s national team coach for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Lawson will coach the women’s national team in its pursuit of extending its record-breaking Olympic gold medal streak to nine in a row in Los Angeles. She was an assistant coach for the 2024 Paris Olympics when USA went 6-0 to win its eighth straight Olympic gold medal, which became the longest Olympic gold medal streak in a traditional team sport.
“I am honored to be selected as the head coach of the Women’s National Team for this cycle,” Lawson said in a release. “I will work tirelessly to uphold the standards of this storied program. There is no greater honor in our sport than to be chosen to lead the U.S. women in world competition. I understand the responsibility and the challenges that lie ahead. I look forward to meeting them head on.
“This has been something I’ve worked towards for a long time.”
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Lawson was selected by UConn and WNBA legend Sue Bird, who is the first USA Basketball women’s national team managing director. Lawson, who currently coaches Duke women’s basketball, has been coaching in the USA Basketball ecosystem since 2017, starting out as a USA 3×3 coach.
Lawson has won 10 gold medals and has an 82-5 record as a coach with USAB, as a head coach and assistant. She won an Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics as a player.
Most recently, Lawson coached USA to a gold medal at the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup. She also coached the USA 3×3 Olympic team to a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Her first competition as head coach will be at the 2026 FIBA World Cup in Berlin.
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“Having shared the court with her, I know firsthand the leadership, competitive spirit and basketball IQ that she brings,” Bird said in a release. “Kara has always had the respect of her teammates and her players, something she has earned and demonstrated over decades with USA Basketball as a player, 3×3 coach and assistant coach. I can’t wait to work with her and continue to build on the tradition of excellence that USA Basketball stands for.”
Lawson has led Duke to an ACC tournament championship, two straight appearances in the NCAA Sweet 16 and an Elite Eight berth last season. She owns a 97-41 record with the Blue Devils since being hired in 2020.
Lawson was a two-time All-American and four-time All-SEC selection at Tennessee, leading the Lady Vols to three NCAA Final Fours. UT won four straight SEC regular season and tournament crowns during Lawson’s career. She was drafted No. 5 overall by the Detroit Shock in the 2003 WNBA Draft. Lawson won a WNBA championship with the Sacramento Monarchs in 2005 and surpassed 3,000 points, 800 rebounds and 700 assists during her 13-year career.
Cora Hall is the University of Tennessee women’s athletics reporter for Knox News. Email: cora.hall@knoxnews.com; X: @corahalll; Bluesky: @corahall.bsky.social. Support strong local journalism and unlock premium perks:knoxnews.com/subscribe
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Kara Lawson named Olympics coach in 2028 for USA women’s basketball
