The NBA formally announced its 34-player roster for the 2015 USA Basketball minicamp, where coach Mike Krzyzewski will begin the process of narrowing the field down to the final 12-man roster that will represent the US at the 2016 Olympics.
Just Announced: @USABasketball Announces 34 Player Roster For 2015 #USABMNT Minicamp in Las Vegas! pic.twitter.com/GBzNjrTwGt
— NBA (@NBA) August 6, 2015
The minicamp, to be held from Tuesday through Thursday of next week in Las Vegas, is a virtual “Who’s Who” of NBA stars. While the majority of the league’s starpower comes on the perimeter — with returning Olympians LeBron James, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Stephen Curry and Chris Paul each in the mix — the field of big men is nearly as impressive. All-Stars Anthony Davis, Dwight Howard, DeMarcus Cousins, Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge and Kevin Love are all in.
One name not on the list is that of 6-foot-10 forward Derrick Favors, who’s coming off a career-year in Utah with 16 points and 8.2 rebounds in 31 minutes per game.
Shortly after the NBA released the names, Favors took to Twitter to say this:
……….. — Derrick Favors (@dfavors14) August 6, 2015
Favors’ teammate Rudy Gobert, however, wasn’t as subtle. Gobert, who likely will start at center for France, immediately threw shade at USA Basketball for their exclusion of his Utah teammate:
Did @dfavors14 retire? https://t.co/Y1Z25GZBBB
— rudy gobert (@rudygobert27) August 6, 2015
Favors has a legit beef in that he’s a better player than some of the other big men on the list of 34, including Kenneth Faried and Mason Plumlee. With those two, Krzyzewski could be doing a favor to players who stuck with USA Basketball during the 2014 FIBA World Cup and have been program mainstays.
That said, the controversy is overblown because of the steep odds they all face in making the final 12-man roster for the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. With Davis, Howard, Cousins, Griffin, Love, Aldridge and Andre Drummond in the mix for only a few spots, Favors would be a very unlikely roster candidate, even if he were there.
Nonetheless, the Jazz were one of the better stories in the NBA down the stretch of last season, as Favors and Gobert’s presence up front helped lead Utah to a 19-10 mark after the trade deadline. With Portland and Dallas poised to take a step back in this upcoming season, a playoff berth in the West could be Utah’s for the taking — and they may now have a motivated Favors to lead the charge.
Ben DuBose is a veteran sports reporter who has followed the Houston Rockets and the NBA since Hakeem Olajuwon was Akeem Olajuwon. He writes for both SheridanHoops and ClutchFans, an independent Rockets blog. You can follow him on Twitter.