Shelvin Mack Named To USA Select Team

Butler guard Shelvin Mack has been chosen by USA Basketball as one of 20 collegiate players to comprise the USA Men’s Select Team that will train against the 2010 USA Basketball Men’s National Team during its July 19-24 training camp in Las Vegas, Nevada.  It marks the second straight summer of USA Basketball experience for the Butler junior.

Mack, the second-leading scorer (14.1 ppg) on Butler’s 33-5 squad that advanced to the NCAA National Championship game last season, is one of eight selected players owning USA Basketball Experience and one of six who have won a gold medal in international competition.  He, along with former teammate Gordon Hayward, helped lead the 2009 USA U19 World Championship Team to a 9-0 record and a gold medal in New Zealand last summer.

“We’re really excited for Shelvin to be selected, once again, by USA Basketball to compete as a member of this select group,” said Butler head coach Brad Stevens.  “He is very deserving - as he has been a great player, student and leader at Butler.”    

Also named to the 2010 USA Basketball Select squad were: Lavoy Allen (Temple University/Morrisville, Pa.); William Buford (Ohio State University/Toledo, Ohio); LaceDarius Dunn (Baylor University/Monroe, La.); Jimmer Fredette (Brigham Young University/Glens Falls, N.Y.); Scotty Hopson (University of Tennessee/Hopkinsville, Ky.); Scoop Jardine (Syracuse University/Philadelphia, Pa.);     JaJuan Johnson (Purdue University/Indianapolis, Ind.); Jon Leuer (University of Wisconsin/Orono, Minn.); Marcus Morris (University of Kansas/Philadelphia, Pa.); Jacob Pullen (Kansas State University/Maywood, Ill.); John Shurna (Northwestern University/Glen Ellyn, Ill.); Kyle Singler (Duke University/Medford, Ore.); Chris Singleton (Florida State University/Canton, Ga.); Nolan Smith (Duke University/Upper Marlboro, Md.); Howard Thompkins (University of Georgia/Lithonia, Ga.); Mike Tisdale (University of Illinois/Riverton, Ill.); Kemba Walker (University of Connecticut/Bronx, N.Y.); Chris Wright (University of Dayton/Trotwood, Ohio); and Tyler Zeller (University of North Carolina/Washington, Ind.).

USA Basketball also announced that serving as co-head coaches of the USA Select Team are former USA Basketball coaches and accomplished collegiate mentors Lorenzo Romar from the University of Washington and Jay Wright from Villanova University.

“The USA Basketball Junior National Team Committee is thrilled to be able to give some of the top older college players this opportunity to be involved with USA Basketball this summer.  I want to thank Jerry (Colangelo) and Mike Krzyzewski for involving the college players,” said Jim Boeheim, chair of the USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Team Committee and an assistant coach with the USA National Team.  “These 20 players now have an opportunity to be involved with USA Basketball in a summer when they normally wouldn’t and they’ll get a chance to play against some great NBA players. It will help them improve and it will help our national team be better prepared for this summer’s World Championship.
 
“We’re also very fortunate to have two prominent college coaches direct the Select Team.  Coach  Romar and coach Wright are successful college coaches and both have extensive international basketball experience having previously served as coaches with several USA Basketball teams,” added Boeheim.

Members of the USA Select Team will converge on Las Vegas and conduct a private training session July 19 (11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. PDT), then train with the USA National Team July 20-23 (12:00-3:00 p.m. PDT).  All practices will take place at UNLV’s Cox Pavilion.

“We believe bringing in a USA Basketball Select Team will help the USA National Team be better prepared for the upcoming FIBA World Championship,” said Jerry Colangelo, USA Basketball chairman. “We had USA select teams comprised of young, up-and-coming NBA players train against the national team in 2007 and 2008. That proved not only beneficial for our national team, but also for the select team players who got a great training opportunity and became involved in USA Basketball’s pipeline.  This will be a tremendous opportunity for these collegians to be involved in USA Basketball and to get a look at the next level.”

In addition to Mack, Select Team members with prior USA Basketball include Shurna and Thompkins who were Mack’s teammates on last summer’s USA Basketball’s 2009 U19 World Championship Team.  Additionally, Singler and Smith were teammates on the USA’s U18 Championship that captured gold at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship, and they were again teammates on the 2007 USA Junior National Select Team that defeated an international select team in the Nike Hoop Summit.  Hopson was a member of the victorious 2008 USA Junior National Select Team in the Nike Hoop Summit, while Walker was a member of the 2008 USA FIBA Americas U18 Championship Team that collected a silver medal. Johnson has USA Basketball experience through the 2009 USA Basketball Trials.

Both Romar and Wright have extensive international experience as USA Basketball coaches. Romar was head coach of the USA’s 2006 FIBA Americas U18 Championship Team that won gold, and an assistant coach with the 2003 USA Pan American Games and 1997 USA 22 & Under World Championship teams.  Wright was head mentor for the USA’s 2007 Pan American Games Team and led the 2005 USA World University Games Team to a gold medal showing, and was an assistant with the 2000 USA World Championship for Young Men Qualifier.

Featuring players from 19 different colleges, Duke is the only institution to feature two players. The 20 Select Team players include eight who will be seniors in 2010-11 and 11 who will be juniors.

Eight collegiate conferences are represented, with the Big Ten listing five players, the ACC checks in with four, the Big 12 has three, while the Atlantic 10, Big East and SEC each have a pair, respectively, and the Horizon and Mountain West have one player on the roster.

USA Basketball Men’s National Team, in preparation for the Aug. 28-Sept. 12 FIBA World Championship, will open its 2010 training with a July 19-24 team training camp in Las Vegas. The USA training camp will feature daily practice sessions from 12-3 p.m. (PDT) July 20-23 at UNLV’s Cox Pavilion. The USA practices are closed to the general public. The camp will culminate with the 2010 USA Basketball Showcase, a Blue-White intra-squad game that will be held on Saturday, July 24, 7 p.m. (PDT) at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of UNLV.  The USA training camp will also feature daily practice sessions from 12-3 p.m. (PDT) July 20-23 at UNLV’s Cox Pavilion. Tickets are now on sale for the 2010 USA Basketball Showcase.  Tickets are priced $75, $50, $35 for plaza seats and $18 and $12 for balcony and can be purchased by calling 866-388-FANS or on line at www.UNLVtickets.com.

In addition to Boeheim, the 2009-12 USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Committee includes NCAA appointees Romar, Bruce Weber (head coach, University of Illinois) and Roy Williams (head coach, University of North Carolina); and Athlete Representative Jay Williams, a member of the 2002 USA World Championship Team.