Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas is not a fan of the Team USA FIBA Basketball World Cup roster. He thinks the group is “sorry” and believes Trae Young should be on it. Arenas went as far as blaming Nike for keeping Young, an Adidas athlete, off the roster. Is Agent Zero right, or is he just running his mouth?
Did Nike Keep Trae Young Off The Team USA Roster?
“It’s that sorry a** other brand! It’s that other brand! It’s that other brand, man! They be doing too MFing much!”
For context, during his playing days Arenas was also an Adidas athlete. He even had his own signature shoe. The Adidas “Gil Zero.”
While Team USA has been outfitted by Nike for years and they’ve been the exclusive on court and apparel provider of the USA Basketball men’s and women’s national teams since 2006, plenty of non-Nike athletes have repped Team USA in the past.
Now, it would be naïve to think that Nike doesn’t have any input on who is selected to Team USA, but that’s a more nuanced discussion.
Team USA executive director Grant Hill and head coach Steve Kerr have a vision of the type of players they want and system they want to run. Maybe they feel that Young, despite his elite offensive ability, is not someone they want on the squad.
If you look at the makeup of this team there are plus defenders and size everywhere, except for Jalen Brunson. The New York Knicks point guard might be the toughest competitor on the squad, so what he lacks in size he makes up in other areas.
Team USA Is A Good, Deep Squad
This tournament will be played under FIBA rules and small, non physical guards tend to get manhandled.
“You see that list they got, sorry-ass group,” Arenas said. “I’m sorry. I’m happy for the people who make it, it’s cool for some of the guys who got there, some of them probably don’t even start on their teams, I don’t know, I don’t want to look at it. Because it’s embarrassing sometimes when you have star players who do want to participate, and you just automatically say ‘Yeah he’s not gonna fit our style.’ How the f— you know if he’s gonna fit the style, you didn’t give the man a chance.”
Arenas’ lack of knowledge on who is on the team is laughable but also predictable. He played the game and has a certain knowledge base and experience. When he speaks, there is some credibility there.
But how much current NBA basketball is he watching on a daily basis?
The only non-starter on this squad is Bobby Portis. He and Paolo Banchero (a rookie) were the only net negative players in EPM last season. But they’re 6-11 and 6-10, respectively, so…
Every other player starts for his NBA team, and there are All-Stars, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year and a host of players in the 85th percentile or better in EPM.
This is a good, deep squad. They lack collective international experience and that “alpha” player fans are obsessed with. But the latter tends to sort itself out over the course of training camp and pre-pool exhibition play.
