With the lack of basketball that happens during the summer, there has to be some sort of meeting with the best players in the NBA. No, I’m not talking about four stars going on vacation together and while the NBPA’s first annual ‘Players Awards’ had star-studded nominees, not many of them attended. The Team USA Basketball mini-camp is just around the corner and the director of Team USA Basketball, Jerry Colangelo, has made attendance to this event mandatory if a player wants to participate in the 2016 Olympics which take place in Rio De Janero in Brazil.
The upcoming 2016 Olympic roster, barring injury, could be one of the best to ever take the court in a ‘USA’ uniform. While the 2012 and 2008 teams were great, the 2016 team could possibly feature stars like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Blake Griffin, Anthony Davis and NBA MVP Stephen Curry in the prime of their careers coupled with some stars just entering their prime like Bradley Beal, Klay Thompson, Andre Drummond and Kawhi Leonard. It’s an exciting time for Team USA Basketball and the potential promise of quite possibly the best team in Team USA Basketball’s Olympic history.
While some of the usual suspects are expected to attend, some of the biggest names won’t be playing due to an injury or rehab from a recent injury. Still, the list of players expected to make their way to Vegas is large and according to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the roster can get up to 40 players.
Following is the list of players expected to attending according to multiple sources including Marc Stein, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, Sam Amick of USA Today Sports and others.
Expected to attend
Blake Griffin, F, Los Angeles Clippers
James Harden, G, Houston Rockets
Stephen Curry, G, Golden State Warriors
Anthony Davis, F/C, New Orleans Pelicans
Chris Paul, G, Los Angeles Clippers
Klay Thompson, G, Golden State Warriors
Andre Drummond, C, Detroit Pistons
Kawhi Leonard, F, San Antonio Spurs
Mike Conley, G, Memphis Grizzlies
Dwight Howard, C, Houston Rockets
Bradley Beal, G, Washington Wizards
DeMar DeRozan, G, Toronto Raptors
Gordon Hayward, F, Utah Jazz
Mason Plumlee, C, Portland Trail Blazers
Michael Carter-Williams, G, Milwaukee Bucks
Draymond Green, F, Golden State Warriors
Victor Oladipo, G, Orlando Magic
Harrison Barnes, F, Golden State Warriors
Tobias Harris, F, Orlando Magic
LeBron James, F, Cleveland Cavaliers (Will not participate in camp)
Carmelo Anthony, F, New York Knicks (Will not participate in camp due to injury)
Kevin Love, F, Cleveland Cavaliers (Will not participate in camp due to injury)
Paul George, F, Indiana Pacers (Will not participate in camp due to injury)
Kyrie Irving, G, Cleveland Cavaliers (Will not participate in camp due to injury)
Kevin Durant, F, Oklahoma City Thunder (Will not participate in camp due to injury)
Chandler Parsons, F, Dallas Mavericks (Will not participate in camp due to injury)
Undecided on attendance
Derrick Rose, G, Chicago Bulls
Russell Westbrook, G, Oklahoma City Thunder
DeMarcus Cousins, C, Sacramento Kings
John Wall, G, Washington Wizards
Paul Millsap, F, Atlanta Hawks
Kenneth Faried, F, Denver Nuggets
Rudy Gay, F, Sacramento Kings
Kyle Korver, G, Atlanta Hawks
Not expected to attend
Damian Lillard, G, Portland Trail Blazers (Says he ‘doesn’t know why he would go‘.)
Andre Iguodala, G, Golden State Warriors
Deron Williams, G, Dallas Mavericks
Kobe Bryant, G, Los Angeles Lakers
Tyson Chandler, C, Phoenix Suns
David Lee, F, Golden State Warriors
