Jerry Colangelo says Olympics list final despite Dwight Howard’s injury - NBA Update
USA basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo announced recently that no new player will be enlisted in the Olympic team despite Dwight Howard’s back surgeryHowards and the existing 12 players in the roster will do just fine.
"We're not going to add anyone," Colangelo said Wednesday. "Even with the losses, we still feel like we're pretty well covered."
Colangelo has already faced some difficulties in the build up to the London Olympics. They started with the season ending injuries to Dwight Howard and LaMarcus Aldridge and there was question raised regarding the compensation
which players get in return for playing in Olympics.
Boston Celtics’ Ray Allen and Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat both highlighted the minimal compensation that the players receive for playing in Olympics, despite sacrificing their training schedule and personal time. The organization
on the other hand earns in billions through player merchandise and promotions.
The committee also had to drop Lamar Odom’s name from the list due to his poor performance throughout the season. As a result the original list of 20 players was narrowed down to 16 and out of those 12 will play.
After it became clear that Howard will not be available, the association tried to contact Los Angeles Lakers centre Andrew Bynum, but he turned down the offer as he is planning to undergo a procedure on his knees in summer from
Germany. Bynum has been struggling with knee issues for quite some time now and after Kobe Bryant successfully underwent the plasma procedure last season, Bynum is planning to try that out.
In the absence of Howard, Aldridge and Odom the team is left with only four reliable bigs in Kevin Love, Chris Bosh, Blake Griffin and Tyson Chandler.
USA Basketball chairman Colangelo also revealed that a lot of players are trying to reach him for a pot in the Olympics;
"We're getting calls from a lot of agents with players who want to play on the select team, which is very good. That's very positive."
However there will be no more induction now and the likes of LeBron James, Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade and Kevin Durant amongst others will be competing for the glory and pride.
Team USA won the gold medal last time and are the favourites this year as well.
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