Jay Triano will coach Georgia part-time (he'll stay with the Raps) as they attempt to climb into the European A division.
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Triano, 47, led Canada to some of its best results — being placed seventh despite a 7-2 record at the 2000 Sydney Olympics — before failure to qualify for the 2004 Games cost him his job. Canada has since failed to qualify for the world championships to be played next month in Japan.
The Georgia team, which is currently in the European `B' group with a chance next year to move up to the top classification, boasts a handful of players with NBA experience: Zaza Pachulia of the Atlanta Hawks; Nikoloz Tskitishvili, recently waived by the Portland Trail Blazers; and former San Antonio draft pick Viktor Sanikidze. As well, former NBAer and North Carolina Tar Heel Shammond Williams is listed as a player on the national team's website.
The team will try to first gain a spot in the European `A' pool with the giants of the sport and then try to earn a berth in the 2010 world championships. Triano's job is part of a four-year plan to take the team to a global tournament for the first time.
The job will take about six weeks each summer for the native of Niagara Falls. The team's training camp and games are held in August and early September, which is a down time for the NBA.