According to Insider and other sources, the Men’s basketball roster for the Olympics is official. Gregg Popovich will serve as head coach of the 12 man team. The US is trying to win their fourth straight gold medal.
Projecting the starting lineup
There are plenty of NBA players to choose from to make a great starting five. The bench is deep like it always is. Here is a possible starting combination.
PG – Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
SG – Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
SF – Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets
PF – Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors
C – Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
Well, that’s terrifying to an opposing team. Adebayo usually plays power forward with Miami but can play center, as can Green. The starting lineup could also change at any point.
Elite Backups
Naturally, some really good players will have to come off the bench. Here they are.
PG – Jrue Holiday, Milwaukee Bucks
SG – Bradley Beal, Washington Wizards
SG – Zach Lavine, Chicago Bulls
SF – Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics – the first Celtic to attend since Larry Bird in 1992.
SF – Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks – who can also play guard.
SF – Jerami Grant, Detroit Pistons
PF – Kevin Love, Cleveland Cavaliers – this is a surprise addition since he was injured and averaged his lowest point total since his rookie year.
Players almost always wear different numbers during international competition, no word on what those are yet. During the last Olympics, Durant wore #5. Even though there are some other NBA players scattered on other countries rosters, the US remains the heavy favorite.
The Insider article link can be found here.
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