Can the US Olympic Basketball Team Compete as Pros?

Smallgooose795

The United States Olympic basketball team is made up of professional players from the NBA. However, these players are not allowed to compete in the Olympics as professionals. So how can the team legally compete?

It seems that the team may be in violation of the rules set by the International Olympic Committee, which state that athletes must be amateurs in order to compete. However, the U.S. team has argued that they should be exempt from this rule, as they are representing their country and not their professional teams.

Do you think the U.S. team should be allowed to compete? Why or why not?

Lauri237

The United States Olympic Basketball team consists of amateur basketball players that are at least 18 years of age and are citizens of the United States. In accordance with International Basketball Federation (FIBA) rules and regulations, professional players are not eligible to compete in Amateur competitions such as the Olympics. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule that allow certain professionals to compete in the Olympic games.

In 2005, FIBA changed its rules to allow current NBA players to compete in the Olympics, provided they attended a training camp prior to the games and if their teams approved of them joining. This means that the USA Olympic Basketball Team can still be composed of professional players, as long as those players join this training camp program first.

In addition, players that have retired from professional basketball can still be considered amateurs and therefore eligible for the US Olympic Team. FIBA requires that any retired NBA player must have been away from the game for three consecutive years prior to the Olympic games in order to be eligible. Retired players are also required to sign a contract with the USA Basketball governing body in order to be eligible.

Finally, since the Olympics are an amateur event, any current players from the NBA Development League, Europe, or any other professional or minor league in the world are still eligible to compete, provided they meet the age and citizenship requirements.

In short, the US Olympic Basketball team can legally compete with professional players as long as they meet the requirements set out by the FIBA and USA Basketball.

redfish1

It's possible for US Olympic Basketball team to legally compete even if team members are professionals. Here are some possible ways:

FIBA eligibility rules: The US Olympic Basketball team can compete if the players satisfy the eligibility rules prescribed by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA). According to their rules, a player is eligible to represent a specific nation if the player:

• holds a passport of that nation
• has lived continuously for three years in that nation prior to the first day of competition at the Olympic Games.

Although FIBA eligibility rules do not mention professional players specifically, these rules can be used to include professional players in the US Olympic Basketball team if they pass the eligibility criteria.

Professional Basketball League Exemptions: Professional Basketball Leagues, such as the NBA and WNBA, are allowed to grant individual exemptions to allow players to take part in the Olympic Games. This means that the players can effectively apply for permission to compete in the Olympics.

The individual exemptions may require certain criteria to be met, such as:

• That a player must not have competed in a domestic professional competition or affiliated competition during the three month period prior to the Olympic competition
• That a player must have been a continuous resident of the US during the 12-month period prior to the Olympic Games

By allowing these exemptions, professional players can be included in the US Olympic Basketball team on an individual basis.

Hopefully this information can help answer the question of how the US Olympic Basketball team can legally compete if they are pros.