In the recently concluded 2024 Olympics, Anthony Edwards relished the feeling of wearing a Gold medal at the age of just 22. His Gold medal victory in USA colors comes just a year after the 2023 FIBA World Cup debacle, where Team USA couldn’t even land a bronze medal. Therefore, speculations were high on his potential return to the 2027 FIBA World Cup in Qatar to exact his revenge. But Ant-Man has recently made it clear that he is done with World Cups.
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In a recently published piece for the New York Times, The Athletic’s senior NBA writer Joe Vardon speculated on which players can potentially make the 2028 LA Olympics roster.
Vardon revealed in the article that while Edwards is enthusiastic about representing Team USA in the next Olympics, he has no interest in playing in the 2027 FIBA World Cup. He also quoted Edwards’ response to a question about playing the FIBA World Cup, “Hell Nah”.
Edwards lead the USA team in scoring during the last FIBA World Cup, putting up 18.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game. He was the only reliable option on the offensive end for the young squad. However, his 26-points performance wasn’t sufficient to lift Team USA over Germany in the Semi-Final.
To add insult to injury, they fell short by 9 points in the bronze medal game despite another 20+ points performance by the elite scorer. But ANT will leave it to the budding talent during the next World Cup.
Edwards’ decision falls within the norm if you consider elite NBA athletes. They often feature in a single WC event and then solely focus on Olympic competitions in the future.
For instance, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Carmelo Anthony took the floor during the 2006 World Cup and had to settle for a bronze medal. But that was the only time they entered the WC field in their career. However, they appeared regularly in the Olympics.
It indicates that an Olympics gold medal holds way more value to most players than a the FIBA World Cup gold medal. However, Team USA wouldn’t feel the need to prove anything in the next World Cup, because the Olympics helped re-establish America’s dominance in the basketball world.
At any rate, it is unlikely that the superstar trio of Kevin Durant, LeBron James, and Stephen Curry will be there for the 2028 LA Olympics. At least LBJ has indicated that he won’t be there.
Therefore, Anthony Edwards will emerge as one of the top options to carry USA home. He would be joined by Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, and Joel Embiid, among others, who will probably play a much bigger role than they did in the Paris Olympics.
