Two former Duke Basketball players have reported to Team USA Training Camp in anticipation of making the FIBA World Cup roster.
The superstars that many basketball fans were hoping for, like Zion Williamson, are not playing for Team USA, but the American players are in Las Vegas at the team’s training camp for the FIBA World Cup and two of the players trying to make the team are former Duke Blue Devils.
Jayson Tatum and Mason Plumlee are looking to make the roster that will be headed to China at the end of the month, as both players have experience with Team USA.
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As a rookie in the NBA, Plumlee won the Gold Medal with Team USA at the 2014 FIBA World Cup as well as the Silver Medal at the FIBA U18 Championships in 2008.
Tatum has won two Gold Medals for Team USA at the FIBA U19 Championships in 2015 and at the FIBA U17 Championships in 2014.
While these two Blue Devils will be looking to make the roster, they won’t have the familiarity with the head coach as Mike Krzyzewski has handed the reigns over to his long time friend and former Team USA assistant, Gregg Popovich.
Popovich will have to trim down the 29 player training camp, including the Team USA Select Team, to a 12-man National Team roster by August 17.
Former Blue Devil Marvin Bagley III is a member of the Select Team.
In 2014, Plumlee played in all nine games for Team USA and averaged 2.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 6.7 minutes per game.
In his NBA career with the Brooklyn Nets, Portland Trail Blazers, and Denver Nuggets the middle child of the legendary Plumlee boys has averaged 8.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.
Plumlee is joined by Bam Adebayo, Brook Lopez, Myles Turner, and P.J. Tucker in the USA Front-court.
Jayson Tatum will be competing against his fellow wing players Khris Middleton, Jaylen Brown, Harrison Barnes, Thaddeus Young, and Kyle Kuzma.
The two former Duke Basketball players will see game action on August 16 as Team USA will scrimmage Spain in Anaheim, California and when the team is announced the Americans will travel to Australia for a pre-World Cup Tour all starting on August 22.
The FIBA World Cup offically starts on August 31 and runs through September 15 in China.