USA Basketball today announced that Clippers center DeAndre Jordan has been selected to its official 12-man 2016 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team. This is the first trip to the Olympics for Jordan, and marks the second consecutive Olympics the Clippers have been represented (Chris Paul, 2012).
"It is an honor to represent my country in the Olympics," Jordan said. "I am excited to begin the process of bringing home a gold medal to the United States.”
Jordan and the U.S. Olympic Team will face China in an exhibition game as part of the USA Basketball Showcase presented by Verizon at STAPLES Center on July 24 at 5:00 p.m. PT. For tickets, click here.
Joining Jordan on the team seeking a third consecutive Olympic title are Carmelo Anthony (New York Knicks); Harrison Barnes (Golden State Warriors); Jimmy Butler (Chicago Bulls); DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings); DeMar DeRozan (Toronto Raptors); Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder); Paul George (Indiana Pacers); Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors); Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers); Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors); and Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors).
Just the third second-round pick (Michael Redd, 2004; Draymond Green, 2016) to make the U.S. Olympic Men's Basketball Team, Jordan is coming off a career season where he was named First Team All-NBA and First Team All-Defense.
Jordan led the NBA with a 70.3 field goal percentage last season, becoming the first qualifying player in NBA history with multiple seasons shooting at least 70 percent. He also averaged a career-high 12.7 points, pulled down 13.8 rebounds and blocked 2.3 shots per game.
“I think I can speak for the entire coaching staff and say we’re extremely excited about the team we will field for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro,” said Jerry Colangelo, who has served as managing director of the USA Men’s National Team since 2005. “I love our depth, which is another indication of the depth of talent our national team program is blessed with. We’ve got a great mix of talent, scorers, past gold medal winners and outstanding youth.”
The 2016 USA coaching staff is led by Duke University Hall of Fame mentor Mike Krzyzewski, who has compiled a spectacular 75-1 record since 2005 and led the USA to 2008 and 2012 Olympic gold medals and 2010 and 2014 FIBA World Cup titles. He will be assisted by Syracuse University Hall of Fame mentor Jim Boeheim, Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau and Monty Williams.
The USA National Team will train July 18-21 in Las Vegas. Training concludes July 22 (6:00 p.m. PDT) with the USA Basketball Showcase presented By Verizon that features the USA facing Argentina at the T-Mobile Arena.
The U.S. will play two exhibition games versus 2015 FIBA Asia zone champ China, the first at the Staples Center in Los Angeles at 5 p.m. (PDT) on July 24 and the second at 7 p.m. (PDT) on July 26 at Oracle Arena in Oakland. Continuing its exhibition tour in Chicago, the USA will play on July 29 at 8 p.m. (CDT) at the United Center versus 2015 FIBA Americas gold medalist Venezuela and will conclude the USA Basketball Showcase facing 2015 FIBA Africa zone champion Nigeria on Aug. 1 at 7 p.m. (CDT) in Houston at the Toyota Center.
Tickets for the USA Basketball Showcase exhibition games are on sale now. VIP ticket packages available in select markets. For ticket information visit axs.com and usab.com/showcase.
The 2016 Summer Olympic Games will be held Aug. 5-21 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Twelve nations will compete in the 2016 Olympic men’s basketball competition.