It’s official: Anderson Varejao is out for the Olympics, and Chicago Bulls big man Cristiano Felicio will replace him. Brazil is fortunate to be able to plug in another NBA-caliber frontcourt player here.
The 2016 Olympics will be taking in Rio de Janeiro but unfortunately, one of the country’s native sons may not be able to suit up for the Brazilian basketball team. According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, Golden State Warriors center Anderson Varejao will “likely” miss the Summer Olympics because of a lingering back injury.
Varejao is not officially out for the Olympics but Stein reports that a back specialist that examined the Warriors center is recommending that he rest instead of playing. If Varejao misses the Olympics, Stein reports that it won’t keep from being ready to play at the start of the season.
Varejao missing the Olympics would be yet another setback for Brazil as the host country has been dealing with a number of different problems with facilities and safety standards. Plus on the basketball side of things, Brazil is already thin at center as Tiago Splitter will also be missing the Olympics due to injury. Varejao is no longer the player he once was but his heart and tenacity of the game are still there and he is big part of Team Brazil. Without Varejao and Splitter, Team Brazil will now have an even more of an uphill battle in the Olympics.
Courtesy: CBS Sports
