NEW YORK — RJ Barrett has made a three-summer commitment to the Canadian National Team.
The Knicks’ budding star was named to his nation’s “core roster” on Tuesday, with the purpose of locking in the 14 players through the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Barrett is expected to participate in the World Cup qualifiers beginning July, with Canada among the favorites to qualify for the tournament next summer in Asia (Philippines, Japan, Indonesia).
Canada will host Dominican Republic on July 1. It is the first FIBA game in Canada since the start of the pandemic, and, if Barrett plays, it’ll be his first meaningful contest since spraining his knee on April 8 with the Knicks.
Barrett’s father, Rowan, is the GM of the National Team. The Canadians are a medal threat on paper, but failed to qualify for the Olympics last year. The goal of securing multi-year commitments from players is to foster chemistry. The U.S. Team, for instance, has used vastly different rosters year-to-year.
“The true value of chemistry, camaraderie and continuity cannot be overlooked when building any team,” Canadian coach Nick Nurse said in a statement. “By assembling committed core groups of players and staff to represent Canada over the next several years, we firmly believe will position this program for sustained success, both now and in the future.”
Among the other “core” members of Canada’s roster are Jamal Murray, Kelly Olynyk, Dillon Brooks, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Dwight Powell and Cory Joseph. The notable omission is Andrew Wiggins, who, according to Nurse, couldn’t commit to three summers.
