After winning an NBA Championship with the Boston Celtics, Syracuse alumnus Oshae Brissett has been invited to the Canada National Team Training Camp. The Canadian National Basketball team has only qualified for the Olympics nine times, and recently failed to qualify for the 2020 Olympics. However, because of this setback, they implemented a Summer Core group. Members of the Summer Core committed to playing for the Canadian National Team through the 2024 Olympics. Brissett is a member of the Core, and the team will attempt to bring home a medal for the first time since 1936.
Syracuse Alumnus Invited to National Team Training Camp
The Training Camp will feature some of the biggest names in the NBA, including Jamaal Murray and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. It’s safe to assume Oshae, a native of Toronto, will make the final roster considering he’s a member of the Summer Core. Other players, such as Melvin Ejim, are in danger of losing their spot to someone like Andrew Wiggins. Wiggins wasn’t apart of the Summer Core, but will be attending the training camp. Cory Joseph was a member of the Summer Core, but will not be attending the 20-man camp.
Brissett is only the 2nd Syracuse Basketball alumni to represent Canada in Olympic Basketball. Leo Rautins was a member of the Senior Men’s National Team that participated in the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow. The Team did not medal that year. Rautins was named the National Team Head Coach in 2005, but was dismissed in 2011 after an embarrassing loss to Panama in the 2010 FIBA Americas Tournament.
Whole Lotta Orange
Brissett will be the only Syracuse Basketball alumni to partake in the 2024 Olympics. Even so, Orange is no stranger to the Olympics. Jim Boeheim was a coach for the men’s national team for years in multiple international contests. Carmelo Anthony won Bronze in 2004, and Gold in 2008, 2012, and 2016. Boeheim was an assistant coach of the Gold Medal teams, but not the 2004 team.
Oddly enough, an incoming freshman, 5 star prospect Donnie Freeman, has a good chance of making it to the Olympics. He’ll be competing for his home country The Bahamas at an Olympic Qualifying Event in Valencia, Spain in early July. NBA Players Deandre Ayton, Eric Gordon, and Buddy Hield are expected to play with the Bahamian National team as well. Being able to compete on an international stage with such high level teammates and competition should bode well for Freeman.
Chance to Make Orange History
If Brissett were to win the gold medal along with winning an NBA Finals in the same year, he would join a prestigious list. Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Lebron James, Kyrie Irving, Jrue Holiday, Khris Middleton, and Draymond Green are the only NBA players who won an NBA and Olympic championship in the same year. He would also be the first player not born in the United States, and the first Syracuse alum to achieve this feat. Canada aren’t favored to win gold, as the United States has a loaded roster. And not to mention countries like Germany, France, and Spain have medaled at previous Olympics and are always competitive at the international level. It’ll be tough for Oshae Brissett and the Canadian National Team, but they have the talent to beat any country in the 2024 Olympics.
