Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine will play for Team USA at this summer's Tokyo Olympics, his agent Nima Namakian told Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium.
He joins a star-studded roster that reportedly also includes Bam Adebayo, Jerami Grant, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, Bradley Beal, Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker, Damian Lillard, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday and Kevin Love.
If that roster stays intact, LaVine would be the final addition to the 12-man group.
That may not be the final roster, however, with ESPN reporting on Tuesday that "Paul George and, if healthy, Kawhi Leonard have given some indication to USA Basketball in recent weeks that they would like to play on the Olympic team, though it remains unknown whether they have made a final decision."
But for now, the group of 12 is set. There's little doubt that the United States will be able to score at will—players like Durant, Lillard, Beal and Booker are some of the most talented scorers in the league. The U.S. will likely play small, with Adebayo the only true center and Green able to fill the role in a small-ball group.
As for LaVine, he earned his spot. The 26-year-old was fantastic in the 2020-21 season, averaging career highs in points (27.4 PPG), assists (4.9 APG), rebounds (5.0 RPG), field-goal percentage (50.7 percent), three-point percentage (41.9 percent) and free-throw percentage (84.9 percent).
Those numbers don't appear to be outliers, either—in his past three seasons he's steadily improved in most of those categories. LaVine has hit his prime and established himself as one of the game's better three-level scorers.
The reward? His first All-Star appearance this past season and now a chance to represent the United States at the Tokyo Olympics.
Not a bad year for LaVine, in other words.
Read 0 Comments
Download the app for comments Get the B/R app to join the conversation