USA Basktball named Davidson Coach Bob McKillop as head coach of the US Under-18 National Team which will compete in the FIBA U18 championship in Argentina in mid-July. Here is the official release information:
After leading Davidson College to a Cinderella storybook season, head coach Bob McKillop has been selected to head the 2008 USA Basketball Men’s U18 National Team that will compete in the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship scheduled for July 14-18 in Formosa, Argentina. Virginia Commonwealth University’s Anthony Grant and Georgetown University’s John Thompson III will serve as assistants. The coaching staff selections were made by the USA Basketball Men’s Collegiate Committee, chaired by USA Men’s Senior National Team assistant and Syracuse University head coach Jim Boeheim, and approved by USA Basketball’s Executive Committee.
"It is an honor to represent our country," McKillop said. "Any time you have the opportunity to put on the red, white and blue it is a special feeling. There is a sense of pride that comes with wearing the USA symbol. I am excited to wear it proudly and to be working with such talented and respected colleagues. It is sure to be an educational experience and a growing experience and I look forward to seeing what we can accomplish together for this USA team."
The 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship will qualify the top four finishing teams for the 2009 FIBA U19 World Championship that is slated to be held July 2-12 in New Zealand.
Trials for the USA U18 National Team will be held July 1-3 at the Verizon Center, home to the Washington Wizards, in Washington, D.C., with approximately 30 U.S. hopefuls, born on or after Jan 1, 1990, participating. Following the selection of finalists, the Americans will continue to train July 4-10 in Washington before departing for Argentina.
The FIBA Americas U18 Championship format divides eight teams into two preliminary round groups consisting of four teams each. Preliminary round play will be held July 14, 15 and 16, as each team will compete against the other three teams in its preliminary group. The top two finishing teams in each preliminary round group will then advance to the July 17 medal round semifinals and the gold medal will be contested
July 18. Teams placing third and fourth in each preliminary round group will advance to the consolation semifinals and play for 5th-8th places.
In addition, USA Basketball and Las Vegas Events started cranking up the buzz for this summer's pre-Olympic Game mini-camp and training. The Las Vegas Review ran this story on Wednesday:
Las Vegas camps will determine men's basketball squad for Olympics
By STEVE CARP
REVIEW-JOURNAL
With the Beijing Olympics less than three months away, Team USA's quest to recapture the men's basketball gold medal will resume in June in Las Vegas.
USA Basketball will have a minicamp June 27 to 29 at Cox Pavilion to decide the final 12-man roster. That group will reconvene July 20 to 25 at a Las Vegas site to be determined, ending with the Americans' lone pre-Olympic tuneup against the Canadian National Team at 5 p.m. July 25 at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Tickets, priced from $12 to $75, will go on sale at 10 a.m. today at the Thomas & Mack box office and UNLVTickets.com.
Jerry Colangelo, the team's managing director, said only a few roster spots will be up for grabs in Las Vegas, and the roster must be turned in by July 1 to FIBA, basketball's world governing body. The competition will be fierce.
"Right now I think we're looking at 15, 16 (players) in the mini-camp," Colangelo said Tuesday from Chicago. "But it's a moving target. That number may change because of injuries and availability."
Colangelo will spend the next few weeks meeting with players to make sure they will be able to play in Las Vegas and Beijing. He is to meet with Dwyane Wade today to check on the Miami Heat guard's progress after left knee surgery. Wade did not play for Team USA last summer when it won the FIBA Americas Tournament in Las Vegas.
Colangelo also needs an update on the condition of forward Chris Bosh, the Toronto Raptors All-Star who hurt his right knee in March. A foot injury caused Bosh to miss last summer with Team USA.
Among other players with injury concerns are the Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant (back, finger), the Detroit Pistons' Chauncey Billups (hamstring) and the Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (back). Bryant and Billups are still competing in the NBA playoffs.
"There's no one who has a serious enough injury that they're eliminated from consideration, but we have some people we need to talk to and see where they're at," Colangelo said. "We have to be very careful about not using up a roster spot on someone who can't (play in the Olympics)."
Colangelo said players such as Lamar Odom and Carlos Boozer could be considered for the roster, even though neither participated with Team USA in the last two years because of personal reasons and injuries.
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