For people like Mark Cuban, it looks like the next four years are going to be just as long as the last four were. As you probably know, there is no one more vocal than Cuban when it comes to the idea of superstar athletes competing in the Olympics without their NBA teams receiving compensation. He and David Stern, among others, have made it a goal to restrict Olympic play to players who are 23 years old or younger. It doesn’t look like that plan will be coming to fruition any time in the near future.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Ian Thompson, a source told SI.com on Thursday that it is “unlikely” any type of age limit could be put into place in time for it to affect the 2016 Olympic in Rio, Brazil. Owners are aiming to eventually create a World Cup of basketball that would become the premier international basketball tournament every four years, but a plan of that magnitude could reportedly take years to complete.
As the opinions of NBA stars like Kobe Bryant and Tyson Chandler have shown, the players want to be able to choose whether or not they will compete in the Olympics. They take a great deal of pride in the tournament and some even feel as though it helps prepare them for the upcoming season. Fortunately for the players and fans of so-called “Dream Teams,” anything involving the IOC is bound to be a long and tedious process.
