U.S. OLYMPIC FESTIVAL LOS ANGELES 1991 : BASKETBALL : Berths to Be Scarce for College Players on Olympic Squad

It appears that the U.S. men’s Olympic basketball roster will include only two collegiate players and possibly as few as one.

According to Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski, an assistant on the 1992 U.S. Olympic staff and a member of several prominent USA Basketball selection committees, the number of college players included on team could vary from one to three, although “people are leaning to two.”

However, USC Coach George Raveling, who is also involved in the Olympic selection process, suggested that the involvement of NBA players could limit that number to one.

“Obviously, there will be few, if any, college guys participating on that Olympic team,” he said. “(There will be) no more than two and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was only one. But I definitely don’t think there will be more than two.”

An announcement is scheduled Sept. 21 on NBC to name NBA players selected for the Olympic team. The first competition involving the team will be June 27-July 5 in Portland, Ore., at the Tournament of the Americas, which will determine the four zone representatives. The tournament comes shortly after the conclusion of next year’s NBA finals.

As for the selection process of NBA players, Krzyzewski said a formula has yet to be determined. “But I don’t think we’ll have a tryout,” he said.

With the emphasis now on NBA involvement in the Olympic process, Krzyzewski and Raveling said the amateur basketball player is going to have to settle for other international competitions.

Raveling said such events as the World University Games, the Junior World Championships, the Pan Am Games, the Goodwill Games and the Olympic Festival “will become more of a focal point.”

As it becomes more difficult for the collegiate player to crack the NBA-dominated Olympic lineups, Krzyzewski said previously less-regarded international competition is going to be seen more favorably by the collegians.

Because of injuries and academic difficulties involving some members of the USA men’s Junior World Championship team, Krzyzewski said five to 10 players from the Olympic Festival rosters will be invited to try out.

Early favorites to be added to the Junior roster include forward Glenn Robinson, an incoming freshman at Purdue; Juwan Howard, an incoming freshman at Michigan and Cherokee Parks, who will attend Duke this fall.

The Junior roster, which once included 21 players, has been reduced to 13. “We need 18-21 players,” Krzyzewski said.

Krzyzewski added that he’s not happy with the lack of commitment by some of the more prominent college players. He said that some players have declined invitations by citing burnout, injuries or academic problems.

“Those excuses are used, but it’s not always the case,” he said.

Though no official discussions have taken place regarding future Olympic coaches, Bill Wall, the executive director of USA Basketball, said there is a good chance the NBA will retain the spot even after Chuck Daly of the Detroit Pistons leads the United States in the 1992 Summer Olympics at Barcelona, Spain.

“If I were to take a guess, if the majority of the players are NBA players, the coach will probably an NBA coach,” Wall said. “But that’s just an idea. Nothing has been set up for a rotation system.

“With the amount of money invested in NBA players, I think there is a feeling they (pro coaches) are used to handling that kind of player. Four or five years down the line, who knows? We’re just trying to get past this one.”

Previously, the Olympic Festival has been one of the first steps toward coaching a U.S. team on the international level. Even if NBA coaches do end up dominating in the Games, Wall doesn’t see college coaches abandoning the process in frustration, noting other major opportunities will still be available, such as the World Championships and Pan American games.

Krzyzewski and Lute Olson of Arizona have both been mentioned as possible coaches for future Games.

“If I’m not the Olympic coach, I’m not the Olympic coach,” said Krzyzewski, who stressed that college coaches shouldn’t become involved in USA Basketball with the sole desire to become Olympic head coaches.

While what is supposed to be one of the most popular sports suffers through dismal attendance--about 250 for each women’s game and 1,500 for the men’s--organizers have done little to encourage fan interest.

Consider:

--Tickets are sold at Pauley Pavilion for that day’s competition only. Anyone who watches a game and decides to return for another session must go through Ticketmaster. UCLA has an outlet on campus, but it is only open during normal business hours during the week.

--Rosters were not readily available to fans in Saturday’s opening session, which was poor planning considering that the vast majority of players are unfamiliar to all but the most knowledgeable followers of the sport. The free rosters were sparse at the night session Saturday, then offered to everyone at entrances Sunday.

--Food sold at the one open concession stand could not be brought to the seating area, forcing fans to either eat between games or at halftime or miss action.

The reason?

The organizing committee did not want to have to pay for additional clean-up crews.

An All-Star Cast

NBA Eastern and Western Conference players who starred in the Festival:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Year Player Pos. 1983 Kevin Johnson G 1981 Chris Mullin G-F 1978-79 James Worthy F 1978 Buck Williams F 1983 Benoit Benjamin C

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Year Player Pos. 1982 Joe Dumars G 1981 Michael Jordan G 1982 Charles Barkley F 1986 Derrick Coleman F 1981 Patrick Ewing C