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Portland Trail Blazers guards withdraw from USA Basketball training camp

Aneesh Namburi|
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - AUGUST 19: Mike Krzyzewski of the USA Basketball Men's National Team looks on during practice at the PNY Center on August 19, 2014 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2014 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - AUGUST 19: Mike Krzyzewski of the USA Basketball Men's National Team looks on during practice at the PNY Center on August 19, 2014 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2014 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

Portland Trail Blazers guards Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum withdraw from Team USA camp.

Team USA lost arguably its top player this morning. Portland Trail Blazers guards Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum have officially withdrawn from from the Team USA Basketball training camp and upcoming FIBA World Cup from late August to mid September according to multiple sources.

Coming off a season averaging 25.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 6.9 assists per game whilst leading the Blazers to conference finals and the West’s third seed, Lillard was one of the best players in the NBA last season. It showed in his individual awards, with both an All-Star appearance and All-NBA Second Team to boot.

While McCollum did not have the individual accolades of Lillard, he has just been almost as effective. During the 2018-19 season, McCollum averaged 21 points per game along with four rebounds and three assists.

This is by no means surprising at all, with Lillard last in the line of stars to opt out of the summer festivities. Among others, Bradley Beal and Tobias Harris have also to focus on the upcoming season.

McCollum was on the bubble initially, but decided to exit too early to decide whether he would actually make the cut. On the other hand, Lillard, as one of the league’s biggest stars, was essentially a shoo-in to make the team.

So why he did decide to drop this amazing opportunity?

First, many players decide to focus on their upcoming season. Chris Haynes said as much this morning, stating that with such a seemingly side open NBA title race, many are trying to hone in on what might be a team’s best opportunity to get a ring.

Additionally, with the NBA season so long and tedious, players value their offseason rest. Especially for a player with the caliber of Lillard, they need all the rest they can get in order to get the biggest possible workload during the 2019-20 season.

Unfortunately, we will not be able to get a Blazer in a Team USA uniform this summer, but with the 2020 Olympics on the horizon, there is a good chance that Lillard will have another opportunity to play in Tokyo.