San Antonio Spurs and Team USA head coach Gregg Popovich was encouraged by Jeff Van Gundy's recent showing, leading the U.S. team to an 84-83 win over Argentina to improve to 10-2 and qualify for the upcoming World Cup this summer. Van Gundy, now an ESPN analyst, has yet to coach in the NBA since 2007, but Popovich is more than sure of his capabilities if he makes a comeback to the league.

“He's better than most of us as a coach,” said Popovich, according to ESPN's Ian Begley. “Most people know that… he's certainly somebody who would make a franchise better, without any doubt.”

Van Gundy was allowed to fill in for Popovich as an interim head coach of Team USA, with the task of qualifying the team through schedule-conflicting FIBA qualifying events. He has done his job remarkably well by assembling a roster comprised of G League and overseas talent.

The 57-year-old coach had a very different start to his coaching career — it wasn't in the G League. Van Gundy made the most of an assistant opportunity with the New York Knicks for seven seasons. He then took over as head coach for five seasons in The Big Apple. He coached in the 1999 NBA Finals and coached the Eastern Conference All-Star Team in 2000.

After a two-year hiatus, he coached the Houston Rockets from 2003-2007, when he guided the likes of Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley, and Yao Ming.

Van Gundy is a player's coach, much like his ESPN/ABC booth partner Mark Jackson, but with stronger credentials. Van Gundy has proven with Team USA that his coaching acumen is still intact despite his long absence from the sidelines.