Now that Team USA has accomplished its mission to bring home a gold medal from the 2024 Paris Olympics, people are already starting to look four years into the future.
The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics is far away, but it’s also not too early to imagine what the composition of the United States men’s basketball squad would look like, especially when presuming that LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry will not be part of it.
Team USA basketball managing director Grant Hill already has at least one player in mind.
Via Joe Vardon of The Athletic:
Paolo Banchero, another member of USA’s last World Cup team, was under serious consideration for the Paris Olympics and is a player Hill wants to feature in Olympiads to come.
Banchero is no stranger to carrying Team USA colors as he was part of the American squad that competed at the 2023 World Cup in Manila. However, the United States failed to have a podium finish in that tournament. In that tourney, the Orlando Magic star forward averaged just 9.3 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.
Banchero is viewed as one of the best rising stars in the NBA. By 2028, he could already be a bona fide NBA superstar and a virtual shoo-in for Team USA.
In the 2023-24 NBA season, the former Duke Blue Devils star averaged 22.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game while getting his first NBA All-Star nod.
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