Los Angeles Lakers’ superstar LeBron James won’t be part of Team USA at the upcoming 2019 FIBA World Cup in China. James confirmed this to The Athletic while adding that he never intended to play on the competition despite the fact that one of his favorite coaches, San Antonio Spurs’ Gregg Popovich, will be at the helm of United States’ basketball team.
“I love everything about Pop, obviously, but this is not a good summer for me,” – said James.
The 34-year-old, however, didn’t rule out the possibility of competing at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan. He would be chasing his third Olympic Gold.
“Yeah, that’s a possibility,” – he added. “It depends on how I feel. I love the Olympics.”
Instead of playing on the FIBA World Cup, LeBron James will spend the summer training and filming Space Jam 2. The movie will be directed by Terence Nance and is set for release on July 16, 2021.
This means that James won’t play another competitive basketball game until October. He was recently shut down for the season as his Los Angeles Lakers lost every chance of making it to the playoffs.
James played a total of 55 games this season (career-low) and averaged 27.4 points, 8.5 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game.
