The United States is bringing a young, but talented, men's basketball team to the Pan American Games, where it has not won gold since 1983, when a guy named Michael Jordan led the squad.
There might not be any Jordan's on this roster, but it does have University of Memphis forward Joey Dorsey and Final Four participant Roy Hibbert, the center from Georgetown and Big East rookie of the year Scottie Reynolds, a guard who plays for U.S. coach Jay Wright at Villanova.
Other notables are Michigan State guard Drew Neitzel, who made the Big Ten's all-conference team; and two players who sparked the turnaround at Washington State, forward Kyle Weaver and guard Derrick Low. Both of them made the Pac-10 first team.
"The trials were as competitive as any we have ever had," said Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, chairman of the selection committee. "With the group of 14 finalists there is really good balance. We've got good inside guys, we've got good wing players and the point guards have really come on.
"I don't know that we have a superstar type player, but we've got really good balance and the players worked very hard, and they look like they'll be good teammates - guys who will play well together, which is tremendously important."
Also on the squad is all-conference selection Eric Maynor of Virginia Commonwealth (Colonial).
Forwards Josh Carter of Texas A&M, Shan Foster of Vanderbilt, James Gist of Maryland, Maarty Leunen and Bryce Taylor of Oregon, and D.J. White of Indiana also made it. So did guard Wayne Ellington of North Carolina.
Among the players who did not make the squad were forwards Jon Brockman of Washington, Tasmin Mitchell of LSU and Randal Falker of Southern Illinois; guards Chris Lofton of Tennessee, Mario Chalmers and Sherron Collins of Kansas, Eric Devendorf of Syracuse, Dominic James of Marquette, DeMarcus Nelson of Duke and Sean Singletary of Virginia.
"This was definitely the most difficult choice we've ever had to make, but I just love this group. I think we have great options. We've got shooters. We've got penetrators. We've got size. We've got post people. A guy like Hibbert could be a game-changer," Wright said.
