On Saturday, training camp will begin for the 2015 USA Men’s U19 World Championship Team. The camp will be from June 13-26 in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the United States Olympic Training Center. 21 players will participate at training camp. Finalists will be announced on June 15, and the roster will eventually be cut down to 12 players.
The 2015 FIBA U19 World Championship runs from June 27-July 5 in Heraklion, Crete, Greece.
Why is this news that Louisville fans should care about? Because Chinanu Onuaku is one of the 21 players that will be trying out for the team. I think it would be great if he makes the team. Obviously, if he doesn’t and he is still in Louisville, he will be working on getting better on the court. That is a given. But if he can work on his game while also getting to go through an experience like this and getting to travel and play with other young talented players, it will only make him better and probably more mature.
Here is a roster breakdown from USAB.com:
The returning gold medalists include: Isaiah Briscoe (Roselle Catholic H.S./Union, N.J.); Jalen Brunson(Stevenson H.S./Lincolnshire, Ill.); Terrance Ferguson (Homeschooled/Flower Mound, Texas); Harry Giles(Wesleyan Christian Academy/Winston-Salem, N.C.); Josh Jackson (Prolific Prep, Calif./Southfield, Mich.);Caleb Swanigan (Homestead H.S./Fort Wayne, Ind.); Jayson Tatum (Chaminade College Prep/St. Louis, Mo.); Allonzo Trier (Findlay Prep, Nev./Seattle, Wash.); and Seventh Woods (Hammond School/Columbia, S.C.).
Also attending camp will be: Justin Bibbs (Virginia Tech/Dayton, Ohio); Brekkott Chapman (Utah/Roy, Utah); Vince Edwards (Purdue/Middletown, Ohio); Jawun Evans (Kimball H.S./Dallas, Texas); Riley LaChance (Vanderbilt/Brookfield, Wis.); T.J. Leaf (Foothills Christian H.S./Lakeside, Calif.); Silas Melson(Gonzaga/Portland, Ore.); Chinanu Onauku (Louisville/Lanham, Md.); Eric Paschall (Villanova/Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.); L.J. Peak (Georgetown/Gaffney, S.C.); Malik Pope (San Diego State/Sacramento, Calif.); andThomas Welsh (UCLA/Redondo Beach, Calif.).
The 2015 USA Men’s U19 World Championship Team will be led by Sean Miller (Arizona), along with USA assistant coaches Ed Cooley (Providence) and Archie Miller (Dayton).
So like I said, if he doesn’t make it, it’s not like his basketball is over for the summer. Clearly that can’t happen under Rick Pitino. He will still be on campus and playing. I just think this situation and opportunity would benefit someone like Onuaku. Hopefully he can make the team, help the USA win a gold medal, and bring a little swagger back to the states with him to gear up for the 2015-16 season for the Louisville Cardinals.
