The USA roster for the 2019 World Cup second qualifying round this September will be receiving a much-needed boost with Sacramento Kings point guard Frank Mason III and Charlotte Hornets swingman Dwayne Bacon joining the fray, per WEEI Sports Radio Network.
Another NBA player in Henry Ellenson of the Detroit Pistons will also play for the team that is mostly composed of NBA G-League players. If you're confused why the likes of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant are not playing in this round, here's the explanation.
“The first two games of the second round are later this month. The first two windows were in November and February, when NBA players were prevented from playing, and the June-July window conflicted with free agency and summer league. The Americans used mostly G League players under coach Jeff Van Gundy for those games.”
“The Americans play Uruguay on Sept. 14 in Las Vegas and visit Panama on Sept. 17.”
Van Gundy steered that team to a successful championship run in the FIBA AmeriCup in 2017, but they suffered a loss against Mexico in the first round of qualifying just last June. It served as a wake-up call for Team USA and this could arguably be the reason why Mason, Bacon, and Ellenson were tapped to reinforce the young team.
During his rookie season, Frank Mason III showed glimpses of being a stabilizer at the point guard position for the Kings. Serving a backup role for De'Aaron Fox, the 24-year old normed averages of 7.9 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 18.9 minutes of quality play.
Dwayne Bacon was also rewarded with a consistent spot in the Hornets' rotation last year, even cracking the starting lineup when key players of the team got injured. Ellenson is yet to blossom into his true potential as a former lottery pick, but his size in the power forward position combined with his impressive outside shooting will make him an interesting prospecting moving forward.
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