De'Aaron Fox withdraws from Team USA
And then there were 13.
Sacramento Kings point guard De'Aaron Fox has withdrawn from consideration for the FIBA World Cup, USA Basketball announced Saturday. He will instead use the time to focus on the upcoming NBA season, sources told Yahoo's Chris Haynes.
Fox's decision leaves USA Basketball with just 13 players before the program decides on a final 12-man roster for the FIBA World Cup in China. The news comes just a day after USA coach Gregg Popovich said that 14 players - including Fox - would travel to Australia on Saturday for three pre-tournament games.
Houston Rockets veteran P.J. Tucker withdrew due to injury Friday.
The 21-year-old Fox only played six minutes in the Americans' 90-81 exhibition victory over Spain on Friday but impressed throughout Team USA's camp with his blazing speed.
One of the more exciting young players in the NBA, Fox averaged 17.3 points and 7.3 assists on 37.1 percent 3-point shooting in his sophomore season in Sacramento in 2018-19.