Barrett, Wiggins, Brooks, Dort, and Birch Headline Canadian Men's Invite List for Victoria Qualifiers

R.J. Barrett, Andrew Wiggins, Dillon Brooks, and 11 other NBA players headline Canada's invite list for the FIBA Olympic qualifiers in Victoria

Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports

The Canadian men's national basketball team is going to be loaded with NBA talent when next month's FIBA Olympic qualifiers roll around in Victoria, BC.

The team released its star-studded list of 21 players including 14 current NBA players. R.J. Barrett, Andrew Wiggins, Dillon Brooks, Brandon Clarke, Khem Birch, Luguentz Dort, Tristan Thompson, Corey Joseph, Dwight Powell, Oshae Brissett, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Andrew Nembhard have all accepted invitations to be on the team as Canada attempts to sneak into the Tokyo Olympics at Victoria qualifiers.

Unfortunately for Team Canada, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray nor will Raptors forward Chris Boucher who had a breakout 2020-21 season in Toronto.

“Training in Tampa next month provides our team with a first-class environment that will allow us to safely prepare to achieve our goals at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament,” said Nick Nurse, Head Coach, Senior Men’s National Team. “I’m looking forward to having the players and staff join me here in a few weeks and getting back to work.”

Canada's tournament will tip off on June 29 against the Greeks. If they can win the tournament they'll make the Olympic games for the first time since 2000.

Further Reading

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Most Improved: Chris Boucher flourishes into valuable forward for Toronto

Best Story: Yuta Watanabe emerges as a rotation player for the Raptors