On Saturday, Team USA put the finishing touches on the roster it will bring to Rio de Janeiro later this summer for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Kyrie Irving has agreed to join the roster, per ESPN's Marc Stein, rounding out the 12-man group that'll be defending the Americans' gold medal. The roster was shortly confirmed on Monday.
Here’s the roster USA Basketball is bringing to the 2016 Olympics
The roster that’ll be heading to Rio later this summer looks a bit different than the one from four years ago.
Meet the 2016 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) June 27, 2016
Roster: https://t.co/SVpGiA5Dxl#UNITE #RoadToRio #USABMNT pic.twitter.com/hcg1tqPUOX
Many of the choices for managing director Jerry Colangelo and head coach Mike Krzyzewski, who's coaching in his last Olympics, weren't easy to make. With lots of key players opting not to participate this year, including LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul and Anthony Davis, Team USA had to dig deeper into its player pool than we usually see. There were some surprise picks in addition to the complete no-brainers.
Still, even without so many key names, the roster that Colangelo and Coach K put together for Rio looks pretty darn good. The Americans will be the clear favorites in the Olympic tournament once again, a testament to the country’s massive talent advantage even when so many stars aren’t playing. And for those participating, it’ll be a special opportunity to represent the U.S. on one of the sporting world’s biggest stages, and hopefully win another gold.
Here’s the full Team USA roster for the 2016 Summer Olympics:
| Position | Name | NBA team |
| G | Kyrie Irving | Cavaliers |
| G | Kyle Lowry | Raptors |
| G | Jimmy Butler | Bulls |
| G | DeMar DeRozan | Raptors |
| G | Klay Thompson | Warriors |
| F | Carmelo Anthony | Knicks |
| F | Harrison Barnes | Restricted free agent |
| F | Kevin Durant | Unrestricted free agent |
| F | Paul George | Pacers |
| F | Draymond Green | Warriors |
| C | DeMarcus Cousins | Kings |
| C | DeAndre Jordan | Clippers |
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