'Drained' Durant won't play for USA

Kevin Durant withdrew Thursday from the US national team, the biggest loss yet for a weakening American squad that will go to Spain without the leading scorer on its past two gold medal winners.

The NBA's MVP took part in the Americans' training camp in Las Vegas last week but then informed team officials he wasn't going to continue.

"Kevin reached out to coach K (Mike Krzyzewski) and myself this afternoon and expressed he is just physically and mentally drained from the NBA season and his attention to his many responsibilities," USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said in a statement.

"He tried to give it a go at our recent Las Vegas training camp but felt coming out of camp he was not prepared to fulfill the commitment he made to the team."

Durant was the MVP of the world championship in 2010, leading the Americans to that title for the first time since 1994.

The Oklahoma City star also started on their gold medal-winning team in the 2012 Olympics and led tTeam USA with 19.5 points per game.

His withdrawal comes less than a week after Indiana's Paul George was lost to a broken right leg and follows previous withdrawals by All-Stars Kevin Love, Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge, and NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard.

"This was an extremely difficult decision as I take great pride in representing our country," Durant said.

"I know that I owe it to my USA Basketball teammates to be totally invested in the experience. After going through training camp with USAB, I realized I could not fulfill my responsibilities to the team from both a time and energy standpoint.

"I need to take a step back and take some time away, both mentally and physically in order to prepare for the upcoming NBA season. I will be rooting for USAB and look forward to future opportunities with them."

The US roster is down to 15 players. The Americans resume practicing next Thursday in Chicago and have to finalize a 12-man roster before the World Cup of Basketball begins in Spain on Aug 30.

Durant carried a young US to the title four years ago in Turkey with a series of sensational performances, averaging 22.8 points and shattering a number of team offensive records. He set the American mark with 38 points in a semifinal victory over Lithuania.

At 6-foot-10, Durant is big enough to play as a power forward internationally, creating a matchup nightmare for opponents who can't defend him on the perimeter.

He has averaged 19.9 points in 31 games in a US jersey, shooting 48 percent from 3-point range - but Colangelo said the Americans understood his need for time off.

"Coach K and I fully support Kevin," he said. "His well-being is the most important thing to us and we support him taking the time to get ready for next season."

(China Daily 08/09/2014 page8)