Andre Drummond of the Detroit Pistons and LaMarcus Aldridge of the San Antonio Spurs will participate in USA Basketball's training camp in August, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
San Antonio's LaMarcus Aldridge and Detroit's Andre Drummond will participate in the Team USA training camp in August, league sources tell ESPN. Team USA is putting together a roster for the FIBA World Cup in China in September.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 5, 2019
The minicamp, held from August 5th-8th, is in preparation for the 2019 FIBA World Cup. The tournament, re-branded from the FIBA World Championships several years ago, takes place in China, tipping off on August 21st and concluding on September 15th. Among the more notable players previously announced for the 18-man training camp roster are the Houston Rockets' James Harden, New Orleans Pelicans' Anthony Davis, and the Portland Trail Blazers' Damian Lillard.
Team USA has won two consecutive World Cups, first in Turkey at the top the decade and later in Spain in 2014. Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving, then with the Cleveland Cavaliers, was named MVP of the 2014 Worlds, while Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant won the award four years prior at age 21, as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
It's unclear whether Drummond or Aldridge will make the 12-man roster that goes to China. Team USA has constructed its roster in an almost stereotypically modern manner in recent years, prioritizing skill, versatility, and athleticism ahead of size, but that could change going forward as Gregg Popovich takes the reins from Mike Krzyzyewski. The Spurs have been more hesitant to embrace small ball than perhaps any other team in the league, a development owed as much to the team's more traditional personnel as it is Popovich's well-known preference for playing two traditional big men.
Andre Drummond played sparingly on the Americans' 2014 squad, and won two gold medals with USA Basketball at the youth level. Aldridge, on the other hand, has no official experience playing for Team USA.
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