Report: CJ McCollum Withdraws from USA Basketball Camp, FIBA Championships
Adam Wells@adamwells1985
Featured ColumnistJuly 20, 2019
USA Basketball's star power is rapidly fading with CJ McCollum reportedly becoming the latest player to pass on playing for the team this summer.
Per Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes, the Portland Trail Blazers star has withdrawn from Team USA training camp next month and the FIBA World Cup that will begin Aug. 31.
The initial list of 20 players invited to attend the training camp included many NBA All-Stars, including McCollum, James Harden, Kyle Lowry and Anthony Davis.
McCollum, Harden and Davis have since withdrawn from consideration so they can focus on the 2019-20 NBA season. Harden told Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle on Friday he was withdrawing to focus on working with new Houston Rockets teammate Russell Westbrook. Davis is getting acclimated to a new team after being traded from the New Orleans Pelicans to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Lowry is hoping to be ready for training camp and the World Cup after having thumb surgery.
USA Basketball still figures to have a loaded talent pool to choose from with Bradley Beal, Tobias Harris, Kyle Kuzma, Damian Lillard, Kevin Love, Donovan Mitchell, Jayson Tatum and PJ Tucker among the players invited to camp.
McCollum received his first invitation to the USA Basketball team pool in 2018. The 27-year-old averaged 21.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 70 games and helped the Blazers reach the Western Conference Finals last season.
