By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
On June 23, Ergin Ataman called up 21 players in the extended roster for the Turkish national team ahead of the FIBA Pre-Qualifying Olympic Tournament, where Turkey is set to participate from August 12-20 by facing Ukraine, Bulgaria, and Iceland.
However, as reported by Gökhan German from Fanatik, both NBA superstars Houston Rockets‘ Alperen Sengun and San Antonio Spurs‘ Cedi Osman won’t participate in the tournament hosted at home in Istanbul despite all the efforts of Federation President Hidayet Türkoğlu, Vice President Ömer Onan and Ergin Ataman.
Moreover, both Scottie Wilbelin and Shane Larkin, who are respectively playing for Fenerbahce and Anadolu Efes in Turkey, are also set to miss the occasion to rock their national team’s jersey. The first one missed the camp in Bormio, just like Sengun and Osman, while the former Baskonia playmaker is suffering a knee injury.
At EuroBasket 2022, the 21-year-old Alperen Sengun went close to averaging a double-double with 16.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game on six occasions, while the 28-year-old forward Cedi Osman had 15.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per encounter.
❌ Alperen Şengün, Cedi Osman ve Scottie Wilbekin, Olimpiyat Ön Elemeleri’nde milli takımın bir parçası olmayacak. Shane Larkin’in de sakatlığı sebebiyle oynaması beklenmiyor.
(Gökhan German – Fanatik) pic.twitter.com/iUlgabVqa1
— Eurohoops Türkiye (@EurohoopsTR) July 27, 2023
PHOTO CREDIT: FIBA EuroBasket 2022