As U.S. Basketball officials work to assemble a final roster of 12 NBA stars for this summer’s Paris Olympics, a picture is starting to emerge of who will be on the team.
Recent discussions with USA Basketball officials have included Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Joel Embiid, as well as Boston Celtics star guard, Olympic gold medalist and NBA champion Jrue Holiday, Phoenix Suns All-NBA guard and Olympic gold medalist Devin Booker has been named.Barring injury, Jayson Tatum is expected to be the team’s main player, according to multiple NBA officials and people close to the American team. The Athletic.
At least some of these have already begun initial planning and commitments related to Olympic participation, officials said. Multiple U.S. officials said Wednesday that the final Olympic roster has not yet been determined.
In addition to the seven bona fide heavyweights listed above, up-and-coming superstars Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton, members of the U.S. 2023 World Cup team, are also being strongly considered for the Paris Games. The same source said. Edwards and Haliburton were two of the top players on the U.S. national team last summer, a team that finished a disappointing fourth at the Manila World Cup.
If all nine of these players make the U.S. roster, there will be three players remaining for selection. Embiid is the only “traditional” big man (in the modern sense of the position, he shoots 37 percent from 3-point range as a 7-footer), so the Americans will need to add even more size. Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat and Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers are also considered strong candidates for the roster, and Davis said during All-Star Week that he would play for the Americans if asked.
At 6-foot-8 and running around the floor like a freight train on offense, James, who weighs over 260 pounds, could also play as a No. 4 alongside Durant and Tatum on the wing.
Team USA, four-time Olympic gold medalists in men’s basketball, aims to announce its Paris lineup sometime in the early rounds of the NBA playoffs, in late April or late May. There are still major caveats for players who are considered locks. That is the player’s health status at the time of the announcement and then at the start of training camp in early July. That’s the main reason Team USA released a list of 41 players to make the final team last month. If someone were to get injured or sidelined, Team USA could have stayed involved with potential replacement players.
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U.S. officials, led by managing director Grant Hill, Sean Ford, who oversees the day-to-day operations of the men’s national team, and coach Steve Kerr, said he had surgery to repair a torn meniscus earlier this month. He still relies on Embiid, but he could return to the 76ers’ lineup before the end of the regular season. Embiid’s plans to represent the United States at the Olympics remain intact, officials said.
Durant and James, decorated American Olympic veterans, have publicly emphasized their commitment to the Paris Olympics, and USAB could not remove them from the team if they wanted to play. Curry, who has never competed in the Olympics, hopes this year and his team (coached by longtime Warriors coach Kerr) will be his debut.
Team USA has been following Holiday for much of the NBA season, and Holiday has communicated his commitment to USAB officials in recent weeks, officials said. Team officials praise Holiday’s two-way ability, defense at the point of attack, and dynamic playmaking. Holiday was considered Team USA’s second-most important player for the 2021 Tokyo Games, behind Durant.
The lottery to determine who the U.S. team will face in the opening game of the Olympics in Lille, France, will be held on March 19th.
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