Tristan Thompson officially joins Team Canada for Olympic qualifying

Tristan Thompson will officially suit up for the Canadian Men’s Basketball Team this summer in Olympic qualifying. Thompson was announced as part of the roster in a press release:

Thompson joins a roster that also includes Raptors guard Cory Joseph, former Cavs and Wolves forward Anthony Bennett and recent Bucks guard Tyler Ennis. The Canadians have yet to qualify for the Olympics, but will play in a qualifying tournament in Manilla starting on July 5. In the first matchup, the Canadians face Turkey and on July 6, they face Senegal.

This could be a big showcase for Thompson. He’s coming off winning a title with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the likes of Andrew Wiggins and Jamal Murray aren’t playing for the national team. Thompson figures to start and he could also be forced into some duty as a scoring option. With Canada needing to win the tournament in order to qualify - and the likes of France and Turkey being a higher ranked teams - Thompson should get a chance to shine. And if Canada can qualify, there’s a good chance it’ll largely be because of Thompson.