"Coach K a hater" - Former Warriors guard accuses Mike Krzyzewski of snubbing him on Team USA for picking UCLA over Duke
Former Golden State Warriors star Baron Davis believes former Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski snubbed him for the national team. According to Davis, this was because he chose to go to UCLA over Duke in college.
Aside from coaching Team USA for a long time, Coach K was also the longtime head coach for Duke University. He helped the school become a successful destination for upcoming talents. However, Davis wasn't part of the Duke program since he committed to playing for UCLA, which is his hometown school.
In an appearance on the Draymond Green Show, Davis claims Coach K would 'hate' on him because he wouldn't pick him for Olympic tryouts.
"I always felt that Coach K would hate on me and I was right about that," Davis said. "During the Olympic tryouts, I was coming off 23, 8 and didn't get a tryout. I can't get a tryout? Name 30 people better than me. Okay, name 12, name four guards better than me. But coach K a hater, I ain't trippin'."
Green then asked Davis if he thought his missing out on a Team USA tryout had something to do with Davis picking UCLA over Duke. He replied:
"Absolutely. He wrote about it in his book. Every motherf**** in there that was in front of me or that got invited was sorry guards."
Davis then referenced journeyman point guard Luke Ridnour as one of the 'sorry' guards who got a Team USA tryout over him.
Davis was once a promising star in the league as he was named an All-Star twice in his career. One of those seasons was in 2003-04, where he averaged 22.9 points and 7.5 assists for the New Orleans Hornets. That was the only time in his career where he averaged the '23 and 8' he mentioned in the interview.
But while 2004 was an Olympic year, Krzyzewski wasn't yet with Team USA at that time. Coach K only took charge in 2005 and coached in his first Olympics in 2008.
During the 2007-08 season, Davis' last for the Warriors, he averaged close to '23 and 8' with 21.8 points and 7.6 assists. He also added 4.7 rebounds and 2.3 steals, while playing all 82 games.
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Did Warriors star Baron Davis play for Team USA?
Unlike most stars, Baron Davis wasn't able to play for the national team during the Olympics or world championships. However, Davis did play for Team USA at least once in his career.
That came in the 2001 Goodwill Games in Brisbane, Australia. The then-21-year-old Davis helped the Americans win the gold medal.
Davis may not have represented Team USA in any major basketball competition, but he went on to have a notable 13-year NBA career, with two All-Star appearances.
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