Bulls Hinrich Leaves U.S. Training Camp

Chicago Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich made the decision to pull himself out of U.S. training camp and in turn from the U.S. basketball roster. Hinrich, who played all nine games for the Americans last year in the world championships, cited personal reasons for his withdraw. Speculation is rising that Hinrich may have pulled out due to competition within the team. Jason Kidd and Chauncey Billups both joined the team this year, leaving Hinrich in competition with Utah’s Deron Williams for the third point guard spot. Hinrich played a miniscule 13 minutes in the intrasquad scrimmage last month to close the minicamp. Hinrich is not the only one who has made the decision to withdraw through – Greg Oden, Portland’s number one pick in the NBA draft has tonsillitis and the Houston Rockets’ Shane Battier, like Hinrich, also cited personal reasons for his withdraw. The FIBA Americas tournament begins August 22nd and the U.S. needs to finish in the top two in order to seal a spot in the 2008 Olympics.

Kirk Hinrich improved his shooting and scoring stats in the 2006-2007 season with the Bulls, his fourth season playing in the NBA. Hinrich achieved his career high in field goals, three-point field goals, free throw shooting percentage, and a career high of 16.6 average points per game. On the flip side, Hinrich grabbed the fewest rebounds per game of his career and also had the lowest assists average of his career. Hinrich turned down the original offer to play for the U.S. national basketball team in February of 2006 due to the pressure he faced being in the middle of the Bulls season. After the 2005-2006 season ended, Hinrich decided to change his mind and accepted a spot on the team.

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