4 Las Vegas Aces chosen for USA Basketball training camp

By Andy Yamashita Las Vegas Review-Journal

3 years ago

Las Vegas Aces forward Angel McCoughtry sets up a play during the first half of Game 5 of a WNB ... — Las Vegas Aces forward Angel McCoughtry sets up a play during the first half of Game 5 of a WNBA basketball semi-final round playoff series against the Connecticut Sun, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020, in Bradenton, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

Las Vegas Aces guard Chelsea Gray (12) dribbles past Phoenix Mercury guard Bria Hartley (14) during the first half of Game 5 of a WNBA basketball playoff series at the Michelob Ultra Arena on Friday, Oct. 8, 2021, in Las Vegas. (Heidi Fang/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @HeidiFang

Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum (10) jumps to shoot as Phoenix Mercury guard Skylar Diggins-Smith (4) falls behind her during the first half of game 2 of a WNBA semifinal game at Michelob Ultra Arena on Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021, in Las Vegas. (Ellen Schmidt/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @ellenschmidttt

Las Vegas Aces forward Dearica Hamby (5) drives past Washington Mystics center Tina Charles (31) and Washington Mystics guard Ariel Atkins (7) in the second quarter during a WNBA basketball game at Michelob Ultra Arena on Sunday, Aug. 15, 2021, in Las Vegas. (Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @benjaminhphoto

The Las Vegas Aces will be well represented in Washington, D.C., next month.

On Thursday, USA Basketball announced its roster for the upcoming FIBA World Cup Qualifying Tournament. It includes four players who most recently played for Las Vegas: Chelsea Gray, Angel McCoughtry, Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby. The camp will start Feb. 5.

“I’m excited for next month’s camp,” National Team head coach Cheryl Reeve said in a press release. “We will have an incredible mix of veterans and USA National Team newcomers, which will be a great starting point for our preparations for the FIBA World Cup.”

With four players on the roster, the Aces have the most selections of any WNBA team. The New York Liberty have three players, while the Connecticut Sun, the Washington Mystics and the Seattle Storm all send two representatives.

Reeve selected 17 players for the training camp, however, only 12 will be named to the roster for the tournament. Four of the players who will not play are already known though. Breanna Stewart, Elena Delle Donne, Betnijah Laney and Sabrina Ionescu will all attend the camp, but have already said they will not play in the tournament.

Gray, McCoughtry and Plum already have extensive histories with USA Basketball. Gray and Plum both won gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 – with the former’s coming with the women’s basketball team, and the latter in the 3×3 category. McCoughtry has two gold medals with the women’s basketball team from the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Hamby is the only player among the 17 call-ups with no previous USA Basketball experience.

The training camp comes just a few days after Feb. 1, the day WNBA teams can officially announce the signing of free agents. McCoughtry, an 11-year veteran, is an unrestricted free agent. Gray, Hamby and Plum are all under contract with Las Vegas for the 2022 season.

Sixteen teams will play in the four FIBA Qualifying Tournaments, with the top three in each going on to the 2022 FIBA World Cup in Australia.

The USA will play two games, against Belgium and Puerto Rico, but will not play Russia, the fourth team in the group who will instead play its games in the Dominican Republic. The USA’s first game is scheduled for Feb. 11 against Belgium.

Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.