Poll: Which Sixer Will Be the Next on Team USA?

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

Yesterday, USA Basketball announced the 34 invitees to the next national team minicamp, in preparation for next summer’s Olympic Games.

Just Announced: @USABasketball Announces 34 Player Roster For 2015 #USABMNT Minicamp in Las Vegas! pic.twitter.com/GBzNjrTwGt

— NBA (@NBA) August 6, 2015

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsAs expected, there was much gnashing of teeth from fans who felt their particular player was slighted by being left off the list. My personal favorite was Derrick Favors, who was passionately defended by Jazz twitter and prompted this great tweet by teammate Rudy Gobert, who will be playing for France:

Did @dfavors14 retire? https://t.co/Y1Z25GZBBB — rudy gobert (@rudygobert27) August 6, 2015

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

It wasn’t so long ago that Sixers fans were celebrating Michael Carter-Williams’ inclusion. Sure, if we were being realistic with ourselves, he wasn’t likely to make the final roster any time soon, if ever. However, just playing with some of the best players in the world at camp would surely improve his game, while enabling him to form relationships that could further the Sixers’ cause in free agency down the road. Now, with the Bucks reaping those benefits, it begs the question: who will be the next Sixer to make Team USA?

Nerlens Noel – With any number of high-usage scorers already on the roster, Noel could be the sort of defensive big that doesn’t need the ball at all to make a huge impact on the game. The fact that opposing big men on the international stage are generally not hulking brutes lumbering in the paint would mean Noel’s slighter frame would not be as much of a disadvantage (remember when Lamar Odom was basically the one team’s only center?). His quickness and ability to both defend the rim and guard on the perimeter would be a huge asset against international bigs who like to stretch the floor.

Jahlil Okafor – The fully-formed version of Okafor would seemingly command a double-team any time he got the ball on the block. Now, imagine surrounding him with 4 elite outside shooters. Who are you going to leave open between, say, Steph Curry, Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant? With Okafor there to punish you time and again if you chose to play him straight up with a single defender, it could make for a deadly offense for the stars and stripes.

Someone Else Currently on the Roster – Maybe Robert Covington goes from good to great three-point shooter and fills a Kyle Korver-like role on the team. Or perhaps Nik Stauskas hits his absolute ceiling and approaches Klay Thompson levels of deadliness from behind the arc. As you may be aware, the rest of the roster isn’t particularly good, but if you feel strongly about someone else, let us know in the comments.

Someone Not Currently on the Roster – With as many as 4 first-round picks in next summer’s draft, it’s entirely possible the next Sixer to represent the national team is not on the roster at all at the moment. Just know that if the best case scenario of Ben Simmons to Philadelphia happened, he’d be representing his home country of Australia. I think Sixers fans would take that tradeoff any day of the week.