USA Basketball names 30 finalists for 2016 Rio Olympics – USA TODAY
Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY Sports 
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Two-time Olympic gold medalists LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony top the list.
USA TODAY Sports
Two-time Olympic gold medalists LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony headline the 30 finalists for the 2016 Rio Olympics team, USA Basketball announced on Monday.
James is not a sure thing to play, but if the NBA season doesn’t completely exhaust him, there’s a good chance James comes back for a chance at a third gold medal.
“I haven’t thought about it,” James said Monday morning about eight hours before the Cleveland Cavaliers played the Golden State Warriors. “The last time I thought about Team USA was Kobe taking his name out of the pool. That’s the last thing I kind of really thought about, so I’m not any inch closer to playing or not any inch closer to not playing. I haven’t really thought about it much.”
The U.S. will take a 12-man roster to the Olympics, and on Saturday, Bryant removed his name from consideration and was not on the 30-man list. That will allow a more qualified player to go, but USA Basketball will have tough decisions, potentially leaving some players unhappy about not going to Rio.
“Obviously selecting the official roster of 12 players for the Olympics in 2016 will be a very, very difficult process,” USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said. “As has been the case with past USA Basketball teams, the goal once again is to select the very best team possible to represent the United States.”
Here is the list: James, Paul, Anthony, LaMarcus Aldridge, Harrison Barnes, Bradley Beal, Jimmy Butler, Mike Conley, DeMarcus Cousins, Steph Curry, Anthony Davis, DeMar DeRozan, Andre Drummond, Kevin Durant, Kenneth Faried, Rudy Gay, Paul George, Draymond Green, Blake Griffin, James Harden, Gordon Hayward, Dwight Howard, Andre Iguodala, Kyrie Irving, DeAndre Jordan, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Love, Klay Thompson, John Wall and Russell Westbrook.
“This selection process was difficult from the start, and obviously it is only going to get more difficult as we look to get to the official, 12-man roster,” U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “I’m excited about the possibilities this team has. Among the finalists we have multiple players who won gold medals at the Olympic or World Cup level. The roster of finalists features incredible talent, great balance, outstanding leadership, and I believe like we had with our previous teams, this team will have a special chemistry.
“Having a deep, very talented, and extremely versatile roster is of critical importance in our pursuit of the Olympic gold medal in Rio.”
Some players because of injury or other commitments or reasons may withdraw their names, giving Colangelo and Krzyzewski some relief. But there will be several worthy players contending for two final spots.
Likely going to Rio: James, Paul, Anthony, Curry, Davis, Durant, George, Irving, Leonard and Westbrook. That’s 10 players right there.
Love was once touted as the future of USA Basketball but it’s not a given he makes the team, and Cousins has made strides with USA Basketball’s leadership. But Drummond, Green, Butler, Aldridge and Griffin will make compelling cases. A player such as Iguodala has equity into USA Basketball program, and that’s important to Colangelo and Krzyzewski who understand their difficulty of their jobs but have been through it before in previous high-profile international events.
Chicago’s Derrick Rose, who won championships in the 2010 and 2014 FIBA World Cups, was not on the 30-man roster. Portland’s Damian Lillard, Miami’s Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade, who both won gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, are also not among the finalists. Mason Plumlee, who played in the 2014 World Cup, is not on the list, joining Rose as the two players from that team not among the 30 players in contention for Rio.
Tyson Chandler, Deron Williams and Bryant are the three players from the 2012 London Olympics who were not on the 30-man list.
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Kobe Bryant made the difficult decision to withdrawal his name from consideration for the Team USA basketball roster at the Rio Olympics.
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