Ben Gordon looking forward to play for Great Britain in the 2012 London Olympics - NBA Update
Ben Gordon, the Detroit Pistons shooting, is eagerly waiting to play for Great Britain in the 2012 London Olympics.
“It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” Gordon said, “The Olympics is the biggest stage and it is great to be involved. “We’ve got a very good team and I’m looking forward to meeting up with the guys. “Obviously, there will be a lot of good teams at the Olympics but with the players we’ve got I don’t see why we can’t go far. “We’ve just got to make sure we work hard together and play for each other. We’ve just got to go out and try and win as many games as possible.”
Gordon, the number third draft pick of 2004 who became the first rookie ever to win the NBA sixth man of the year, hasn’t been having the best of times in NBA ever since he joined the Pistons.
He was tipped to be a top shooting guard when he joined the league, but his performance has seen a decline in the last few years, and a weak roster around him is partly to blame for his woes.
However, at the Olympics, he will be playing alongside his old Chicago Bulls team-mate Luol Deng, one of the top small forwards in the league.
The British born, New York native player has long waited for this opportunity and this will be the first time he will be able to wear the UK jersey in any competition.
Gordon finished the 2011-12 regular seasons after averaging 12.5 points, 2.4 assists and 2.3 boards in 52 games. Although he is primarily a shooting guard, but given the weakness of British team at the one guard position, he is likely to fill in that role;
“I think I’ll be playing more point,” he added. “It is different than what I play at Detroit but it should be good fun. “It’ll give me the chance to set up the offence as well as do some scoring. So I’ll bring that and obviously hard work.”
The team coached by Chris Finch will have its first big test when they face the reigning Olympics and World Champions, Team USA team on July 19 at the Manchester Arena.
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