Rio Olympics: Denver Nuggets in Qualifying Tournaments
By Drew Albee
Danilo Gallinari for Italy
The Nuggets leading scorer last season, Danilo Gallinari, leads the Italian national basketball team into what is being hyped as the “the most anticipated event of Italian basketball,” when his Italy squad hosts a qualifying tournament at the Palaolimpico in Turin. Italy begins play Monday against Tunisia.
The qualifying tournament in Turin also features six squads, but unlike the Serbians in Belgrade the hosts are far from the favorites in Turin. 10th-ranked Greece and 12th-ranked Croatia check in as co-favorites, but other participants Iran, Mexico and Tunisia are also ranked higher than the underdog Italian hosts.
Il Gallo, as he is known by his countrymen, leads an Italian roster that features another pair of players familiar to NBA fans — Sacramento Kings guard Marco Belinelli and free agent foward/center Andrea Bargnani — but no one else of note.
Italy will likely struggle to qualify for Rio 2016, but if they do, it will be due in large part to major contributions from their most talented player — Gallinari. The Nuggets may prefer that their injury-prone forward take it easy this summer, but one must assume Gallo is going to try and ball out for his country playing with the home-court advantage.
Next: Joffrey Lauvergne for France