Former Arizona State basketball star Luguentz Dort has been a huge part of leading Team Canada to qualify for the Summer Olympics. Canada hasn’t qualified since 2000. Dort played 21 key minutes against Slovenia. He added eight points to help secure a spot in the Fiba Basketball World Cup Semifinals.
Dort helps Canada qualify for the Olympics
Team Canada has a pretty impressive roster with several NBA players. Players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, RJ Barrett, Dillon Brooks, and Arizona State’s own, Lu Dort.
Dort has been able to stand out on the roster with his elite defense. There are very few perimeter defenders better than Dort.
In Canada’s matchup with Slovenia, Dort found himself guarding one of the best offensive players in the world, Luka Doncic at times. One of the most important parts of being an elite defender is having the mentality to never back down. Dort did exactly that.
Now Canada is in great shape to walk away from the tournament victorious, and Dort knows that.
“Our first goal was to qualify for the Olympics and our second goal is really to win this tournament and we really have a good chance”, said Dort. He’s right, they do have a good chance.
Canada’s path to gold
The remaining teams in the field are Serbia, Germany, and the United States. Canada will face off against Serbia in their first-ever final four birth. The two teams have never played each other. Serbia is led by another one of the best players in the world, Nikola Jokic.
On the other side of the bracket, Germany faces the United States. Germany is led by Dennis Schroder and Franz Wagner. The U.S. has a slew of NBA players on its roster, including Anthony Edwards, Jalen Brunson, Austin Reeves, Paolo Banchero, Tyrese Haliburton, and more.
If Canada wants a shot at gold, for the first time ever, they’ll need big things from former Sun Devil star, Lu Dort.
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