Sligo native Michael Bree named new head coach of Irish men's basketball team
The appointment comes ahead of the FIBA EuroBasket 2029 Pre-Qualifiers, which begin in November. Bree will take charge of the team from September 1st and has signed a four-year contract.
Bree - who won over 40 caps for Ireland between 2000 and 2006 – is currently assistant with Denmark's senior men's team and will start his new role at the conclusion of their FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifying campaign. Bree has been with the Danish national team since 2023.
Previously, the 45-year-old spent five years as Sweden's U16 and U18 men's head coach and worked with Gothenburg's Högsbo Basket, following an eight-year professional playing career in France, Germany, Spain, Poland and Sweden between 2002 and 2010.
After leaving Sligo in 1998, Bree played college basketball at NCAA Division 1 programme Davidson College in North Carolina. He captained the team in his junior and senior season, earning MVP honours in each. Only one other person has managed to achieve this in school history - four-time NBA champion Steph Curry - who was recruited to the school at the end of Bree's time there.
'I am delighted and honoured to be taking on this new role within Basketball Ireland," said Bree.
"I'm ecstatic to have the good fortune to represent our basketball nation once again on the international stage. We are an emerging nation within the international basketball community and to have the opportunity to add value to the programme is immensely motivating and makes me very proud.
"Throughout my career, Irish basketball has presented me with so many wonderful experiences and opened numerous doors to new and exciting possibilities. My wish is to offer at least as much in return, as we navigate the potential challenges that high-level competitive international basketball can present.'
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