Canada announces World Cup training camp roster

Canada Basketball, the governing body for basketball in Canada, announced its 19-man training camp roster on Monday ahead of the 2019 FIBA World Cup. The training camp will run just two days, with Team Canada then embarking on an exhibition tour before the World Cup starts on Aug. 31 in China. Canada will meet Nigeria in an exhibition game on Wednesday in Toronto.

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray is on the roster but will participate only in the training camp and not play in the World Cup. According to The Athletic, Murray injured his ankle in the past few days and decided to play it cautiously. Murray intended on playing in the tournament and was expected to be a leader of the team.

New York Knicks forward R.J. Barrett also attending training camp but will not take part on the team because of a left calf strain that began to bother him during the NBA Summer League. The original 29-man roster announced last month had 17 NBA players on it. The 19-man roster has only seven, including Murray and Barrett.

Notable NBA players who dropped out since the first announcement include the Memphis Grizzlies' Dillon Brooks, the Oklahoma City Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Dallas Mavericks' Dwight Powell and the Cleveland Cavaliers' Tristan Thompson. Brooks, who is recovering from a toe injury in January that caused him to miss the remainder of the season, made an appearance at camp Monday.

Among the NBA players on the World Cup roster are Miami Heat forward Kelly Olynyk, Sacramento Kings guard Cory Joseph, Orlando Magic center Khem Birch and Toronto Raptors forwards Chris Boucher and Oshae Brissett. The team is coached by Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse.

With a good showing at the World Cup, Canada could qualify for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Canada has not had a men's basketball team in the Olympics since 2000. 

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