The plot continued to thicken for Team USA men's basketball on Thursday when Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard became the latest to decline an invitation for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Shams Charania of The Veritcal reported on Lillard's decision not to suit up for the U.S. in the upcoming Summer Games, which puts the Americans down another top-tier option to run the offense.
Sam Amick of USA Today reported Lillard is frustrated with Team USA for pushing him to make a decision, adding that Lillard could potentially have played if given more time to decide while rehabbing plantar fasciitis.
Washington Wizards floor general John Wall, back-to-back NBA MVP Stephen Curry and two-time gold-medal winner Chris Paul are all out with injuries. Oklahoma City Thunder star Russell Westbrook also announced on June 10 he was withdrawing his name from Olympic consideration.
Although there are other players on the USA squad with high usage rates such as Lillard who are fully capable of being ball-handlers, the personnel to pull from is becoming rather thin.
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Article written by Matt Fitzgerald
Damian Lillard Declines Invite to Play in Rio 2016 Olympics
June 23rd, 2016 by Matt Fitzgerald Leave a reply »
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