Report: Joe Johnson Plans to Play for Team USA in 2022 AmeriCup Qualifiers
Former NBA All-Star Joe Johnson will reportedly represent Team USA in the upcoming FIBA AmeriCup 2022 qualifiers in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Johnson intends to play for the United States alongside Isaiah Thomas.
The AmeriCup tournament field consists of countries from North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean. It was previously held every two years and was used as an automatic qualifier for the Summer Olympics and FIBA World Championships.
Since 2017, the AmeriCup has been played once every four years, with the winners of the qualifying stages advancing to the main tournament.
The 2021 FIBA AmeriCup main tournament was delayed by one year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It will now be held from Sept. 2-11, 2022.
Team USA has already qualified for the 2022 FIBA AmeriCup tournament with a 4-0 record in Group D. The squad will wrap up the qualifying round with games against the Bahamas on Feb. 19 and Mexico on Feb. 20.
America has won seven gold medals in the AmeriCup, including an 81-76 victory over Argentina in the 2017 final.
Johnson has not officially retired from the NBA, though he hasn't appeared in a game since Game 7 of the 2018 Western Conference Finals with the Houston Rockets. The 39-year-old signed with the Detroit Pistons in September 2019, but he was waived the following month before the start of the regular season.
Outside of the NBA, Johnson played in the BIG3 during the 2019 season. He was named league MVP and helped the Triplets win the championship with a 50-39 win over Killer 3's.
