The last time the United States played in a major international basketball competition, Mason Plumlee was on Team USA. With the Olympic Games coming up in July, will the Detroit Pistons center be called upon again to play for his country?
The United States going for the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics with Mason Plumlee at center might sound a bit far-fetched, but there is a real possibility it could happen.
Detroit Pistons center Mason Plumlee on Team USA
Plumlee is officially one of the finalists for the USA Olympic basketball team. So he is under consideration.
The last time Team USA was in action, the 2019 FIBA World Cup, Plumlee was on the team, albeit in a reserve role. He played in five of the USA’s seven games for a total of 47 minutes and averaged 1.3 points and 2.7 rebounds.
Since Plumlee played for the Denver Nuggets at the time, few in Detroit probably noticed he was on the team.
Although the United States finished seventh, it was good enough to qualify them for the Olympics. Many countries are having to compete in qualifying tournaments scheduled for June to make it.
Plumlee now knows Olympic coach Gregg Popovich’s system, that could be very important considering the circumstances.
The draw for the men’s Olympic basketball tournament was held in Switzerland on Tuesday. Team USA opens pool play on July 25 against France. Their pool also includes Iran and the winner of a qualifier in Canada.
Team USA is scheduled to begin training camp on July 4 in Las Vegas. Of course, for the NBA players in the playoffs, that might present a problem.
There are other obstacles.
Starting with, what if the Tokyo Olympic Committee put in a rule that all athletes had to quarantine for two weeks before competition. That would be a little tough for NBA players still in the playoffs.
A lot of factors at work here.
How Detroit Pistons’ Mason Plumlee could earn a spot on the Olympic team
The NBA finals could last as far as July 22, as currently scheduled. Of course, who knows when the season will actually end. With game postponements piling up, plus the possibility of playoffs being delayed due to positive or inconclusive COVID-19 tests.
Even if it does end on July 22, is LeBron James simply going to hop on a plane to Japan the day after winning a title, having had no practices with the team?
Remember, it took just one inconclusive test for the Pistons game at Denver to be called off. What if, say, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown each had an inconclusive test the day of a playoff game? Do you think the NBA would really make the Boston Celtics play?
There are 12 spots on the Olympic roster and there is no mechanism for replacing a player. Whatever 12 names USA Basketball submits, those are the only ones who can play in Tokyo. The normal roster deadline has been three weeks in advance.
What if, say, Anthony Davis is on the team and he sprains an ankle in Game 7 of the NBA finals and is out for the Olympics? The USA has to go in shorthanded.
The safest thing to do, would be to select Team USA from the pool of teams that did not make the NBA playoffs. That is what ice hockey does for the World Championships, which conflicts with the NHL playoffs.
The NBA regular season is done on May 22. Players not in playoffs will be rested and fully recovered from any lingering injuries by July. They can also quarantine and live in a bubble.
They can prepare to face international play and be fully invested in training camp and exhibition games.
Under that scenario, Plumlee is a shoe-in to make the team. He has international experience and plays a position of need. In case it mattered, in two games against the Jazz, Plumlee outplayed French center Rudy Gobert, who the United States will face in its opener.
Actually, a team of non-playoff players like Karl-Anthony Towns, Russell Westbrook, Bradley Beal, Plumlee, probably Jerami Grant as well, would likely do pretty well, particularly if the other countries are shorn of their top players because they are still in the NBA playoffs.
Of course, NBC, the network that paid billions to televise the Tokyo Games, would not be very happy if most of the big names had to sit out. The casual fan wants to see LeBron and Durant and Steph Curry.
So far, FIBA has not announced the roster deadline. Don’t be surprised if it’s like an AAU tournament, the final roster is made at the start of the first game.
Other countries depend even more on their NBA stars than the USA. You think Serbia wants to play without Nikola Jokic? Who do they have to replace him?
So if USA Basketball decides they will be a lapdog for the Superstars of the NBA, which is the expected route, and wait until the last minute to see if they would be willing to play, there still is a path for Plumlee to make the Olympic team.
How Mason Plumlee can make a star-studded Team USA team
Lebron-Durant-Harden-Curry … Plumlee?
Could that be the starting lineup for the USA Olympic team? Not likely, but possible.
The reason Plumlee made the 2019 World Cup team is that the United States does not have a lot of depth in terms of pure centers.
Taking a look at the provisional roster of 44 players, the only other centers are JaVale McGee, Dwight Howard, Myles Turner and former Pistons center Andre Drummond.
McGee and Howard are backups for their respective NBA teams. Turner does lead the NBA in blocked shots, although the 35-year-old Howard fouled him out and held him to nine points when Turner’s Pacers played the 76ers without Joel Embiid.
Drummond? Chemistry issues, major ones.
We are not talking Shaquille O’Neal or Bill Laimbeer that Plumlee is competing against.
What would set Plumlee apart from the rest of the centers, is that his skill set is perfect for a team with a lot of high-powered offensive players.
If you are basing a team on Plumlee’s offensive capabilities, it is going to be a pretty bad team. He is great at backdoor dunks and layups and can score out of the post a bit, but he is limited outside of five-feet from the basket.
To his credit, Plumlee plays to his strengths. In 21 games for Detroit, he has attempted just five three-point attempts, missing all five. He is making 60% of his two-point shots.
What Plumlee does do well is set screens for ballhandlers. He has helped with Jerami Grant’s scoring success this year by setting a pick to give him space to operate.
He is also a decent rebounder, he is averaging a career-high 8.8 boards a game. Getting dirty in the paint to fight for rebounds is not something a lot of stars like to do.
Would shooters like Steph Curry, James Harden, and Jayson Tatum want to have a center who will not ask for the ball, who would be happy to just set screens to get them open and battle for rebounds?: Absolutely.
The culture of Team USA would also help Plumlee make it. Remember, even the famous 1992 Dream Team, had a role player in Christian Laettner.
You can not play 12 players a lot, you need role players who will keep their mouths shut about playing time and do whatever the coach asks of them.
Basically, the role Plumlee played for Gregg Popovich at the World Cup.
Are we saying Mason Plumlee is one of the top 12 basketball players in the United States? No. But this not the All-Star team, it is the Olympic basketball team, it’s only mission to win as many games as possible.
Plumlee can contribute in a number of ways:
- Already knows the coach’s plays and is experienced in international competition.
- Helps complement shooters by setting great picks.
- Crashes the boards hard, not a trait of most of the players who likely will be on the team.
- At 6-foot-11 provides some size for when they face a tall center like Rudy Gobert.
- Understands his role and will not cause trouble if does not get much playing time in a game.
Like most things, who will be on the roster for Team USA is kind of at the whim of the pandemic.
If there are a ton of postponements of NBA games, and the schedule has to be pushed back, you might see a roster of players whose teams did not make the playoffs. In that case, Jerami Grant would have a good chance, in addition to Plumlee.
If things go well, and the NBA season does end before the Olympics, the lack of practice together will be thrown out the window. Expect to see all the big names (and the most popular with TV viewers) out there for Team USA.
In that case, as a role player, Plumlee would still have a chance of making it.
Team USA’s makeup is one of those interesting side issues that will be part of the rest of the NBA season.