Omri Casspi and Marcin Gortat opt out of Men’s FIBA Eurobasket – NBA Report
With the Men’s FIBA Eurobasket tournament right around the corner, teams have started preparing in full flow. While most teams’ rosters have been finalized, some players have doubtful for the past few weeks. This week, however,
it was revealed that Omri Casspi and Marcin Gortat will not be able representing the respective nations (Israel and Poland) at the event.
Omri Casspi, who was part of the Sacramento Kings, was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this summer. Although he was all set to join the Israeli team in the tournament, he has apparently backed out due to health and fitness
issues.
It is reported that Israel’s star man suffered a knee injury two weeks ago, which has ruled him out of the championships to be held in Lithuania in a week’s time. This has been a huge loss to the Israeli team as Casspi was their
top man and a lot rested in his shoulders. He averaged 16.9 points per game in the qualifying stage of the Eurobasket.
The Israeli Basketball Association was at hand to state that Casspi’s injury was going to take more time to heal. "Omri Casspi has spoken to coach Arik Shivek on Tuesday to inform the coach that his knee is still not right and
he has been told it will take more than the expected two weeks to recover," the Israel Basketball Association representative said.
"Under the circumstances, the coach has decided to release Omri Casspi from his squad that will depart on Monday for the EuroBasket in Lithuania."
There is one more name will not be joining his native countrymen to fight for the Eurobasket prize and a trip to the 2012 London Olympics. Marcin Gortat of the Phoenix Suns will not be able to represent Poland at the championships
due to unresolved insurance issues.
The loss of Gortat will be huge for the Polish International team as he was their star man, who led all the players in rebounding, the last time the championships were held in 2009.
Poland was also the host nation in 2009, which really helped them bring their best game to the platform.
Just in case these two names were not enough, another name better known as Real Madrid’s Novica Velickovic has also confirmed that he will not be able to participate in the tournament as part of the Serbian national team.
Velickovic’s coach only had high regards for the player and explained what a huge loss his absence will be to the team. "There is no need to talk about how important Velickovic is to this team," Coach Dusan Ivkovic said. "Not just
at his position, but also as someone who creates a good atmosphere within the group. Unfortunately, the hard work he has put in to try to recover was not enough."
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