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2015 NBA Finals - Game Six

Source: Ezra Shaw / Getty

2016 is around the corner and USA Basketball is looking to get things rolling for the quest for Gold. After winning in 2012 in convincing fashion behind the likes of Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Carmelo Anthony, USA Basketball has a bevy of players hoping for a chance to get a crack at a coveted roster spot for next year’s competition.

For this year’s mini-camp in Vegas, several newbies like Victor Oldiapo, Michael Carter-Williams, Mike Conley, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green, and DeAndre Jordan will be participating against the big dogs.

In terms of coaching staff, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski will be back at the helm alongside Jim Boeheim, Tom Thibodeau, and Monty Williams serving as his assistants. Practices will be conducted Aug. 11 and Aug 12. in Las Vegas, while the exhibition game itself will be televised Aug. 13. Last year, many were devastated by the gruesome injury of Pacers’ Forward, Paul George, after he landed horribly and broke his leg.

Check out the official press release below.

USA National Team members confirmed for the 2015 Las Vegas minicamp include: LaMarcus Aldridge (San Antonio Spurs); Carmelo Anthony (New York Knicks); Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards); DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings); Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors); Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans); DeMar DeRozan (Toronto Raptors); Andre Drummond (Detroit Pistons); Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder); Kenneth Faried (Denver Nuggets); Rudy Gay (Sacramento Kings); Paul George (Indiana Pacers); Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers); James Harden (Houston Rockets); Gordon Hayward (Utah Jazz); Dwight Howard (Houston Rockets); Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers); LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers); Kawhi Leonard (San Antonio Spurs); Kevin Love (Cleveland Cavaliers); Chandler Parsons (Dallas Mavericks); Chris Paul (Los Angeles Clippers); Mason Plumlee (Portland Trail Blazers); Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors); John Wall (Washington Wizards); and Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder).

 

“With this being a summer where we do not have an official competition that we need to prepare for, this year’s minicamp is an opportunity to continue and expand the brotherhood and camaraderie that has been built,” said Colangelo, who has served as managing director of the USA National Team since 2005. “It will be a celebration of all that we’ve accomplished with USA Basketball since the National Team program was formed in 2006 while also looking ahead to 2016. The minicamp is going to be low key with light workouts, no contact, and the USA Basketball Showcase on Aug. 13 will be a fun all-star type game.

 

“We recognize and understand that some of our players’ availability to participate is still up in the air. Some players are coming off of injuries and are not yet ready to actively participate, or they are getting ready for their NBA seasons. So, it’s a good thing that we don’t have a competition to get ready for this summer. […] We’re also excited about the eight players who have been added to the National Team roster. Seven of the players have been involved in past national team training camps or have participated in past camps as a member of our select teams. All of them enjoyed outstanding NBA seasons in 2014-15 and have been on our radar for a while,” added Colangelo.

 

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LeBron James & Stephen Curry Headline USA Basketball’s Official Roster For Mini-Camp  was originally published on theurbandaily.com