USA Basketball expects Leonard, Haliburton and Embiid to be ready for Olympic camp in Vegas next week

Kawhi Leonard, Tyrese Haliburton and Joel Embiid are all set to participate in the start of USA Basketball men’s national team training camp in Las Vegas next week, the first step toward what the Americans hope will be a fifth Olympic medal. consecutive Olympic gold.

Leonard missed 12 of the Los Angeles Clippers’ final 14 games last season due to inflammation in his right knee. Haliburton was hampered late in the Indiana Pacers’ playoff run by left hamstring issues. And Embiid struggled with left knee issues throughout his season with the Philadelphia 76ers.

“We expect everyone to be ready to go,” U.S. coach Steve Kerr said Thursday. “We’ve been in contact with everyone, not just these three guys. … We’re in constant communication, so we expect all 12 guys to be ready to roll.

Leonard was perhaps the biggest question mark. Haliburton said at the end of the Pacers’ season that he thought he had enough time to prepare for the Olympic run, and Embiid was at the NBA Finals about two weeks ago and proclaimed himself ready for which will be his first Olympic experience.

But Leonard’s status remained a mystery. USA Basketball has been monitoring Leonard, who has been practicing for the past few weeks, and likes where he is right now.

“We will continue to stay in touch with the entire group as we head to Vegas next week,” Kerr said.

It’s a big sigh of relief for the Americans, who will head into the Paris Games as the favorites and the highest-ranked men’s team in the world — even if no one expects these Olympics to be a piece of cake. France, with Victor Wembanyama, has the advantage of being at home. Germany won the World Cup last year and has essentially the same team this summer. Canada has its best chance at an Olympic medal since winning silver in 1936.

“We are well aware of the challenge we face,” Kerr said. “The basketball world has gotten a lot better, a lot stronger. We know how good these teams are and we know we’re going to have to do our best. So we couldn’t be more excited. »

The United States has yet to make any changes to the list since it was initially announced in April, although contingency plans are in place at each position. The original 12 names remain unchanged: Leonard, Haliburton, Embiid, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday, Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker, Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis.

“Winning is the pinnacle of sports,” Haliburton said. “And winning a gold medal is at the top of the list. …How can you not want to do that?

The group includes seven Olympic gold medal-winning players; Durant has three, James has two, while Adebayo, Booker, Holiday, Tatum and Booker each have one. It is still possible for the list to change, if necessary. The list was in flux before the Tokyo Games three years ago until just before the start of the competition.

“Every spot on the roster is important,” Kerr said. “You never know how these things are going to play out.”

The Americans will play their first match against Canada on July 10, then play matches in Abu Dhabi and London before the start of the Paris Games. The United States opens the Olympics on July 28 against Serbia and will also face South Sudan and the winner of next month’s qualifiers in Puerto Rico – Mexico, Lithuania, Ivory Coast, Italy, Bahrain or Puerto Rico – in their other group matches.

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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games