The entire USA National Basketball Team and everyone rooting for them to win the title in the upcoming 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain were stunned when news broke out that the reigning NBA MVP, Kevin Durant, withdrew his participation with less than two weeks to go before the start of the tournament.
In a statement released to the press as per CNSWashington, Durant had this to say, "This was an extremely difficult decision as I take great pride in representing our country. I know that I owe it to my USA Basketball teammates to be totally invested in the experience. After going through training camp with USAB, I realized I could not fulfill my responsibilities to the team from both a time and energy standpoint. I need to take a step back and take some time away, both mentally and physically in order to prepare for the upcoming NBA season. I will be rooting for USAB and look forward to future opportunities with them."
His sudden withdrawal created some speculations around the USA Basketball camp. Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago said that President of USA Basketball Jerry Colangelo has probably though that the star forward had a lot going on in his mind. From the rigorous physical demands of training camp, to the gruesome leg injury that Paul George suffered during the team's scrimmage just a couple of weeks ago, and with reports pointing to Durant signing a huge multimillion dollar deal with Under Armour , Colangelo might have thought that all of it has taken its toll on the player. It is to note that Team USA is sponsored by Nike.
"I was at the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies this past weekend when I got the call from Kevin, and I wasn't surprised. That was predicated on his week in Vegas where I thought he was ... he had a lot of things on his mind. So for him to indicate that he was mentally and physically exhausted, it kind of came but not as a surprise," Colangelo was quoted as saying.
Des Bieler of Washington Post also suggests that Durant might have opted to drop out from USA Basketball because he found that it was the best decision for his NBA title aspirations this season. Playing for a National Team in international competitions can be an exhausting ordeal and Durant knows it very well when he carried USA on his back and led the National Team to the title back then in 2010 in Turkey.
What do you think led Durant on dropping out of Team USA? Is it because of a "contractual situation" as Colangelo suggests or is is the fear of becoming injured? Or perhaps its because he is preparing himself for shot at an NBA championship in the coming season? Let us hear your comments below!
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