Myles Turner begins training camp with USA Basketball in Las Vegas
The USA Basketball training camp officially began on Monday in Las Vegas in preparation for the FIBA World Cup. Myles Turner is a member of the official pool of players that have a chance to make the final 12-man roster.
The opportunity to practice with USA Basketball is known for being a great time for players to help learn from some of the top coaches in the world while competing with elite players. Myles is particularly intrigued about the idea of learning from Gregg Popovich and Jay Wright.
“Obviously being under (Gregg) Popovich is huge,” Myles said. “Gaining knowledge from a coach like him is unbelievable. Hall of Fame coach, one of the best coaches there is. I’m looking forward to working with Jay Wright too, I like him. From the college side of things, I’ve worked with him quite a few times and I like being under him as well. As far as that, just being able to work with the coaches, man. These coaches are the best coaches in the world.”
Based on the makeup of the player pool, Myles will be competing with Brook Lopez, Bam Adebayo, and Mason Plumlee for the center spots on the 2019 FIBA World Cup roster. It is unknown how many centers will make the final cut but it is highly unlikely that all four will remain.
Having to earn a spot on the team can bring the best out of players. It will be an ideal opportunity for Myles to showcase the benefits of his extensive workout routine that he has done throughout the summer and to apply it to against high-level competition.
This summer has not featured much traveling for Myles as he has kept himself busy at the Athletic Performance Ranch in Texas. He will have plenty of chances to put some extra stamps on his passport if he ends up making the final USA Basketball roster.
The training camp in Las Vegas runs from Aug. 5-8 with the USA White vs USA Blue scrimmage taking place on Aug. 9. The next training camp will be conducted in Los Angeles from Aug. 13-15 with an exhibition match against Spain in Anaheim on Aug. 16. The members of the final roster will be announced on Aug. 17.
The players that will participate in FIBA competition will then fly to Australia where they will continue to prepare together from Aug. 19-24 in Melbourne. They will play exhibition matches with Australia on Aug. 22 and Aug. 24. After spending time in Melbourne, they will spend time in Sydney from Aug. 25-28 that will feature a matchup against Canada on Aug. 26.
The final stop for USA Basketball will be in China and they will be there from Aug. 29 with the potential of staying until Sept. 15 if they make it all the way to the Finals. The official game schedule shows that they are scheduled to play Czech Republic (Sept. 1), Turkey (Sept. 3), and Japan (Sept. 5) in Shanghai.
The Second Round of the FIBA World Cup will take place across China in Foshan, Nanjing, Shenzen, and Wuhan from Sept. 6-9. The Quarterfinals will take place in Dongguan and Shanghai from Sept. 10-11 while the Semifinals (Sept. 13) and Finals (Sept. 15) will be held in Beijing.
There is more international travel scheduled for Myles as the Indiana Pacers will face off against the Sacramento Kings on Oct. 4 and Oct. 5 during preseason action in India.
