Team USA’s scheduled pre-Olympic exhibition game against Australia on Friday in Las Vegas has been canceled due to health and safety concerns. USA Basketball announced the news on Thursday night in a statement on Twitter:
Out of an abundance of caution, the USA Men’s National Team exhibition versus Australia on Friday has been cancelled. The USA Women’s National Team’s matchup with Australia will be played at 2:30 PM ET on NBCSN.
Earlier in the day, USA Basketball announced that Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal will not participate in the Olympics after he was placed in the health and safety protocols. In addition, Detroit Pistons forward Jerami Grant has also been entered into the protocols, though he is still expected to travel to Tokyo later this month. A replacement for Beal has not yet been announced.
Team USA arrived in Las Vegas earlier this month for training camp ahead of the Olympics, which are set to begin in less than two weeks on July 23. In addition to practices and scrimmages against the Team USA Select Team, there have also been exhibitions against other countries participating in the Olympics.
Those have not gone to plan for Team USA, however, They were stunned by Nigeria in one of the biggest upsets in international basketball history, and also lost their first matchup with Australia over the weekend. While they did bounce back and secure an easy win over Argentina, they haven’t looked like the powerhouse that has won the last three gold medals.
Prior to departing for Tokyo, Team USA has one more exhibition scheduled against Spain on Sunday. At this point, it’s unclear if that game will be played.
Team USA’s first group stage game in the Olympics is set for July 25 against France. They will play three group stage matches before advancing to the knockout stage — assuming they qualify.
Courtesy: CBS Sports
