Team USA Basketball added four players to their 2010-2012 National Team roster yesterday, per a press release.
The four guys that have been added to the pool of players of 31 American basketball players are Tayshaun Prince of the Detroit Pistons, who was apart of the 2008 USA Basketball Team that won a gold medal in Beijing, Jeff Green of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors, and Tyreke Evans of the Sacramento Kings, who was named rookie of the year this season.
Players from this 31 man group will be selected to travel to Turkey for the 2010 FIBA World Championships this summer and to London for the 2010 Olympic Games.
“We’re excited about the addition of these four outstanding players. Tayshaun is a versatile veteran who returns to the program after helping the United States win gold in the Olympics and at the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship which served as our zone’s Olympic qualifying tournament. Jeff was part of the 2008 USA Select Team that trained against the Olympic team and he was again impressive last summer at the national team mini-camp. And in adding Tyreke and Stephen we’ve brought into the national team fold two of the game’s most exciting and promising newcomers,” said Team USA Chairman Brian Colangelo.
Tayshaun brings several things to the Team USA program with his leadership and length on the defensive end being two things that stood out to Colangelo and his staff. Jeff Green is another versatile forward who has the ability to shoot the ball from the perimeter, finish at the rim and run the floor, which is an essential asset for Team USA. Curry and Evans both bring playmaking ability to their national team. Evans is one of the best athletes in the NBA and is virtually unstoppable when penetrating to the cup. Curry, on the other hand, is one of the best shooters in the world and should find himself as a deadly threat from the shortened three-point line in International play.
“The addition of Tayshaun, Jeff, Stephen and Tyreke to our national team roster adds additional veteran experience, versatility, and young talent,” said Team USA and Duke University head coach Mike Krzyzewski. “Although we have a number of players who were members of the 2006-08 national team returning to the 2010-12 national team pool, we are beginning a new selection and team building process and I believe the addition of these four players will help strengthen our national team program in several areas over the next three years.”
Here are the remaining 27 players in the pool:
Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets); Carlos Boozer (Utah Jazz); Chris Bosh (Toronto Raptors); Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers); Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic); LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers); Chris Paul (New Orleans Hornets); Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat); and Deron Williams (Utah Jazz), Lamar Odom (Los Angeles Lakers), Amar’e Stoudemire (Phoenix Suns), LaMarcus Aldridge (Portland Trail Blazers); Chauncey Billups (Denver Nuggets); Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder); Rudy Gay (Memphis Grizzlies); Eric Gordon (Los Angeles Clippers); Danny Granger (Indiana Pacers); Andre Iguodala (Philadelphia 76ers); Al Jefferson (Minnesota Timberwolves); David Lee (New York Knicks); Brook Lopez (New Jersey Nets); Kevin Love (Minnesota Timberwolves); O.J. Mayo (Memphis Grizzlies); Kendrick Perkins (Boston Celtics); Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls); Gerald Wallace (Charlotte Bobcats) and Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder).
Team USA Basketball also announced dates for their training camp this summer. The 31 players mentioned above are expected to attend a training session from July 19th-24th in Las Vegas, Nevada, with a Showcase between the blue and white teams capping off the camp on the 24th at the Thomas and Mack Center, located on the UNLV Campus.
