Jul 16, 2021 - Sports

Kevin Love withdraws from U.S. men's Olympic basketball team

 Kevin Love

Kevin Love. Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images

NBA star Kevin Love has withdrawn from the U.S. men's Olympic basketball team, saying he's not at his "absolute peak performance" following a calf injury, ESPN reported Friday.

Why it matters: It's the latest blow to USA Basketball, which announced Thursday that Bradley Beal will miss the Tokyo Games after being placed under coronavirus health and safety protocols.

  • Jerami Grant has also been put under the COVID protocols "out of an abundance of caution," but has not tested positive for the virus.
  • USA Basketball announced its exhibition game with Australia scheduled for Friday has been canceled.

What he's saying: "I am incredibly disappointed to not be heading to Tokyo with Team USA, but you need to be at absolute peak performance to compete at the Olympic level and I am just not there yet," Love, a forward for the Cleveland Cavaliers, shared in a statement to ESPN.

  • His right calf injury kept him out of 46 games during this NBA season, ESPN.

Flashback: Love was on the gold-medal winning team at the 2012 London Games.

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