It's getting close. The Olympics are right around the corner and, once again, there's very lofty expectations surrounding Team USA Basketball. And why not. With the list of talent that is eligible, it's possible for the USA to not only win, but win big. At the end of the day, 12 names will be chosen later this year to wear the Red, White, and Blue.
Picking this team won't be an easy decision. It's going to find the right mix of talent for the twelve men that will make up this basketball team. Gregg Popovich is running the team as head coach, with his assistant coaches being Steve Kerr, Lloyd Pierce and Jay Wright. There's a lot of tough decisions that have to be made as to who's going to make this team, and these seem like the right guys to be able to do it. Now, for the lot of the guys to choose from. A lot of that fall's on the shoulders of Jerry Colangelo, who has been running USA Basketball Men’s National Team since 2005.
Here's the full list of players that could make the roster:
Jarrett Allen (Cleveland Cavaliers); Eric Gordon (Houston Rockets); Jerami Grant (Detroit Pistons); Blake Griffin (Brooklyn Nets); Jrue Holiday (Milwaukee Bucks); DeAndre Jordan (Brooklyn Nets); Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls); Julius Randle (New York Knicks); Duncan Robinson (Miami Heat); Mitchell Robinson (New York Knicks); Fred VanVleet (Toronto Raptors); John Wall (Houston Rockets); Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans); Christian Wood (Houston Rockets); and Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks), Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat); LaMarcus Aldridge (San Antonio Spurs); Harrison Barnes (Sacramento Kings); Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards); Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns); Malcolm Brogdon (Indiana Pacers); Jaylen Brown (Boston Celtics); Jimmy Butler (Miami Heat); Mike Conley (Utah Jazz); Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors); Anthony Davis (Los Angeles Lakers); DeMar DeRozan (San Antonio Spurs); Andre Drummond (Cleveland Cavaliers); Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets); Paul George (LA Clippers); Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors); James Harden (Brooklyn Nets); Montrezl Harrell (Los Angeles Lakers); Joe Harris (Brooklyn Nets); Tobias Harris (Philadelphia 76ers); Gordon Hayward (Charlotte Hornets); Dwight Howard (Philadelphia 76ers); Brandon Ingram (New Orleans Pelicans); Kyrie Irving (Brooklyn Nets); LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers); Kyle Kuzma (Los Angeles Lakers); Kawhi Leonard (LA Clippers); Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers); Brook Lopez (Milwaukee Bucks); Kevin Love (Cleveland Cavaliers); Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors); JaVale McGee (Cleveland Cavaliers); Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks); Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz); Victor Oladipo (Houston Rockets); Chris Paul (Phoenix Suns); Mason Plumlee (Detroit Pistons); Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics); Myles Turner (Indiana Pacers); Kemba Walker (Boston Celtics); Russell Westbrook (Washington Wizards); and Derrick White (San Antonio Spurs).
There's plenty of international experience on this team too. Seven guys on this list were on the 2012 team that ran the table in London on the way to Gold, while three of those guys were also on the 2008 Gold Medal team. We have 24 different NBA teams represented, with the Nets leading the way with six players. Right behind them are the Cavs, Lakers and Rockets with four each. Of the players listed, 55 of them have international game experience, with LeBron leading the way with 68 games played. Eight players listed have been invited to camps but never played international games, while two players, Duncan Robinson and Christian Wood have no prior USA basketball experience at all.
Who do you think has the best shot of making this team?
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