Andre Drummond says it would be a "no-brainer" if LeBron James asked him to join a potential 'Dream Team' for the 2024 Olympics.
Ahead of the Games in Paris next year, James has reportedly been recruiting fellow NBA stars to gauge their interest in suiting up for the United States with the aim of winning a fifth straight men's basketball gold medal for their country.
Drummond was part of the team that won gold at the 2014 FIBA World Cup but was left off the roster for the 2016 and 2020 Olympics and looks an outside shot to be involved in Paris.
However, if James were to call, it would be an easy answer, with Drummond telling Stats Perform: "Yeah, I would go back, I wouldn't think twice. I'll go back.
"Not even just him [James], if anybody from that organisation called me, I would jump because I feel like I owe it to them and I owe it to my country. If I'm requested to service my country, I'm going to do it.
"Especially just the relationship that I have with those people in that organisation. That's a no-brainer.
"Wearing those three letters across the chest is an honour. You're not representing yourself anymore, you are representing the entire nation and it's a surreal thing."
Drummond was left out of the squads for the 2019 and 2023 World Cups, both of which ended with youthful USA teams returning home without a medal.
The Chicago Bulls center believes it is difficult for younger players to adapt to playing overseas.
Drummond also feels the rise of international stars such as Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo in the NBA exhibits how other countries are improving their national teams, meaning the USA are no longer a dominant force.
"It's a lot different," Drummond explained. "I feel like if you've never played overseas before, and you have never played in front of a hostile crowd, it can become a lot.
"There's a lot that goes into Olympic basketball, and I think nowadays, the international teams have gotten a lot better. If we're all being honest here, I think the players that have come into the NBA have shown that international players are here now. This is their time to showcase themselves.
"So, I don't think any international teams are going to take it lightly on the USA, especially after what we've done to people, year in and year out."
Mitchell, Cavaliers storm back to beat Magic in Game 7 and reach East semi-finals
Trailing by 18 points in Game 7, the Cleveland Cavaliers' season appeared to be over.
Donovan Mitchell, however, then took over.
Mitchell scored 39 points to help rally the Cavaliers to a 106-94 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference semi-finals.
Fouth-seeded Cleveland, which won its first play-off series since 2018, will now face the top-seeded Boston Celtics in Tuesday's series opener.
The Cavaliers won their first play-off series without LeBron James since 1993, though it looked like the team was headed to a second straight first-round exit as Cleveland found itself trailing 49-31 with less than four minutes to go in the second quarter.
The Cavs cut it to 10 at half-time, and Mitchell helped Cleveland complete the comeback with a sensational third quarter.
After finishing with 50 points in Friday's 103-96 Game 6 loss, Mitchell had two more points than the entire Magic team in the third, scoring 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting as Cleveland outscored Orlando 33-15 to take a 76-68 lead into the fourth.
The Magic stayed within striking distance throughout the first half of the final period until Darius Garland finally found his shot.
Garland scored 10 of his 12 points in the final six minutes of the game, a stretch that began with a made 3-pointer to put the Cavaliers up by 11 points.
The Magic only connected on 3-of-15 3-point attempts after half-time and made just 4-of-24 shots (16.7 per cent) in the pivotal third quarter.
Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 38 points and a career high-tying 16 rebounds but Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs combined for just 16 points on 3-of-28 shooting.
At 21 years and 175 days old, Banchero became the second-youngest player in NBA history to have at least 35 points and 15 rebounds in a play-off game. The only player younger was Magic Johnson (20 years, 276 days) on May 16, 1980.
Caris LeVert added 15 off the bench for the Cavaliers, while Evan Mobley had 11 points and a play-off career-high 16 boards.
Cleveland again played without All-Star centre Jarrett Allen, who sat out the final three games of the series due to a rib contusion.
He averaged 17 points and 13.8 rebounds in the series' first four games, and his status for Game 1 in Boston is uncertain.
Zenden: Off-the-field uncertainty at Man Utd unhelpful for Ten Hag
Boudewijn Zenden believes ongoings off the pitch at Old Trafford have not made Erik ten Hag's time at Manchester United any easier.
Ten Hag's first season at Old Trafford was promising, finishing in the top four and ending the club's trophy drought as the Red Devils lifted the EFL Cup.
However, Ten Hag's second season in Manchester has not reached the same standards, and though the club will face rivals Manchester City at Wembley in the FA Cup final later this month, United currently sit eighth in the Premier League, 14 points off the Champions League places.
Ten Hag's tenure at Old Trafford has included a number of off-the-field incidents, with a fallout between himself and Jadon Sancho leading to the winger going out on loan to Borussia Dortmund, while Jim Ratcliffe also became co-owner of the club earlier this year.
Zenden feels that events off the pitch have not made Ten Hag's job easy, as well as the lofty expectations that managing a club the size of United comes with.
"I have a feeling a bit that at United, there's more going on than just the results, and that doesn't make it easy for Ten Hag," Zenden told Stats Perform. "As I said, you have the press, the pundits that all have their view on United.
"That also comes probably with the frustration of the fact that United are one of the biggest clubs in the world that also had their time in Europe where they were very strong.
"For that matter, they were a little bit off the pace, and that upsets people of course. You have to be able to guide the club, the team, the players, the crowd, everybody through that particular period and seize out the storm."
With United stumbling in the Premier League, Ten Hag has come into increasing conflict with reporters of late.
Ten Hag's countryman Arne Slot is reportedly in the frame for the Liverpool job with current incumbent Jurgen Klopp leaving at the end of the season.
Zenden believes Slot's composure with the media will serve him well should he join Liverpool, an area where he feels Ten Hag has sometimes been lacking.
"I think what could be in Slot's favour is that I think he's relatively calm in his press conferences," Zenden continued. "I don't think he will get tempted quickly to start an argument with the press.
"I'm sure the press will be happy to try and lure him out to get a few controversial phrases out, but the way I look at it now, I think he's a little bit more composed.
"This is something that maybe Ten Hag didn't help himself with also a few times this year. There's been a lot of upset. The results have not been what probably everybody would have expected."
Jokic salutes 'special' Edwards after influential Game 1 display
Nikola Jokic paid tribute to "special player" Anthony Edwards following the Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard's influential display against the Denver Nuggets.
Edwards notched up a career playoff high of 43 points as the Wolves drew first blood in the Western Conference semi-finals series with a 106-99 victory over the reigning champions in Game 1.
The two-time NBA All-Star shot 17-for-29 - including seven-for-10 on jump shots - seven rebounds, three assists, two blocks and one steal to become only the second player aged 22 or under in postseason history after Kobe Bryant to record successive 40-point performances.
Edwards has now scored 119 points across his last three playoff outings; the highest tally by a Wolves player across a three-game span in their postseason history.
The 22-year-old's exploits caught the eye of last season's NBA Finals MVP in Jokic, who shot just 11-for-25 (and two-for-nine from three-pointers) and conceded a game-high seven turnovers as the Nuggets surrendered home-court advantage at Ball Arena.
"To be honest, he's a special player," he said of Edwards. "I have huge respect for him; he can do everything on the floor. You need to give him respect for how good and how talented he is."
Minnesota have looked inspired during the playoffs, with a sweep of the Phoenix Suns helping them advance beyond the opening round for the first time since their only previous semi-final appearance in 2004.
And Edwards insists he and his team-mates are not daunted by the prospect of appearing in unfamiliar territory.
"Going against the best player in the world is always fun, going against the best team in the world is always fun," he said. "Our guys came out and competed, so it's not about me personally, it's about my team.
"It's not about introducing ourselves to anybody; we know who we are. We're coming out and as long as we've got each other's backs, it doesn't really matter what anybody else thinks."
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