As the USA Basketball mini-camp in Las Vegas winds to a close, a public scrimmage will be held featuring all of the players who have been in attendance since the beginning of the week.
The rosters have been set, and at least a couple of names will draw interest from the more casual observers trying to gain an insight as to who will make the final team that will compete in this summer’s FIBA World Championships. From the official release:USA Basketball today announced the rosters for the USA Blue and USA White teams that will square off in the USA Basketball Showcase that will be held Friday, 6 p.m. (PDT) at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. The USA White Team, led by 2012 Olympic gold medalists Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder) and James Harden (Houston Rockets), will go against the USA Blue squad led by 2012 Olympic gold medalist Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans), and 2010 World Championship gold medalists Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) and Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls) ...
The USA White Team, coach by USA assistant coach and Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau, includes Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards); DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings); Andre Drummond (Detroit Pistons); Durant; Harden; Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers); Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers); Paul Millsap (Atlanta Hawks); Chandler Parsons (Dallas Mavericks); and Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors).
The USA Blue Team, which will be led by USA assistant coach and New Orleans Pelicans head coach Monty Williams, includes Curry; Davis; DeMar DeRozan (Toronto Raptors); Kenneth Faried (Denver Nuggets); Paul George (Indiana Pacers); Gordon Hayward (Utah Jazz); Kyle Korver (Atlanta Hawks); Plumlee; Rose; and John Wall (Washington Wizards).
It’s only an exhibition, but just like last year, USA Basketball organizers will be looking for fit as well as production in the final event of the week’s training camp in advance of real competition later this summer.
It’s interesting that Plumlee and Cousins will be on opposing squads, but there’s no guarantee that they’ll actually face off against one another. And even if they do, the likely decision against including Cousins on the roster has little to do with his on-court performance.
