Team USA will have to do without Kevin Love at the Olympic basketball tournament. The Big Man left the training camp in Las Vegas, as his agent told Adrian Wojnarowski (ESPN) confirmed.
The reason for Love’s cancellation is apparently a calf injury that already bothered him during the past NBA season and is probably not yet completely healed.
“I am extremely disappointed not to be able to travel to Tokyo with Team USA. But I have to be at the absolute highest level to be able to compete in the Olympics, and I just am not,” said an official statement from 32 year olds.
Head Coach Gregg Popovich’s team now has to replace two players from the 12-man squad after Bradley Beal is also unable to take part in the Olympic Games. The Wizards star was included in the Corona protocol on Thursday.
It is still unclear who will replace the duo. Most recently, Tobias Harris from the Sixers and Christian Wood from the Rockets were discussed as possible candidates. Team USA is in the already bumpy preparation, both against Nigeria and against Australia they have lost in two of the three previous friendly matches, thus greatly weakened.
Since Jerami Grant is currently in quarantine and Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton will only join the team after the end of the NBA Finals, Coach Popovich only has six active players available. A planned test match against Australia on Friday (local time) has already been canceled.
Basketball at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo: The groups
| Group A | Group B | Group C |
| USA | Australia | Argentina |
| France | Nigeria | Japan |
| Iran | Germany | Slovenia |
| Czech Republic | Italy | Spain |
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