(Originally published on Jan 22, 2016)
This week, the pool of 30 players has been announced, and as only 12 players will be chosen to join the 2016 Olympic Team, betting odds have been released. The Olympics are being held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, and the U.S. team is need of the best players they can get from the NBA. Take a look at the top candidates, along with their odds, and see if there is any you would put your money on.
| Player | NBA Team | Odds |
| Gordon Hayward | Utah Jazz | 20/1 |
| Rudy Gay | Sacramento Kings | 20/1 |
| Kenneth Faried | Denver Nuggets | 20/1 |
| Harrison Barnes | Golden State Warriors | 20/1 |
| Paul George | Indiana Pacers | 16/1 |
| Dwight Howard | Houston Rockets | 11/1 |
| Mike Conley | Memphis Grizzlies | 9/1 |
| Kevin Love | Cleveland Cavaliers | 6/1 |
| DeMar DeRozan | Toronto Raptors | 17/3 |
| Bradley Beal | Washington Wizards | 17/3 |
| DeAndre Jordan | L.A. Clippers | 9/2 |
| Andre Iguodala | Golden State Warriors | 4/1 |
| Jimmy Butler | Chicago Bulls | 7/3 |
| Andre Drummond | Detroit Pistons | 2/1 |
| John Wall | Washington Wizards | 13/7 |
| Klay Thompson | Golden State Warriors | 11/9 |
| DeMarcus Cousins | Sacramento Kings | 11/9 |
| Kyrie Irving | Cleveland Cavaliers | 11/10 |
| Blake Griffin | L.A. Clippers | 1/1 |
| Draymond Green | Golden State Warriors | 10/11 |
| Chris Paul | L.A. Clippers | 2/3 |
| Carmelo Anthony | New York Knicks | 2/3 |
| LeMarcus Aldridge | San Antonio Spurs | 7/13 |
| Russell Westbrook | Oklahoma City Thunder | 3/7 |
| Kawhi Leonard | San Antonio Spurs | 3/7 |
| James Harden | Houston Rockets | 3/7 |
| Anthony Davis | New Orleans Pelicans | 1/4 |
| Kevin Durant | Oklahoma City Thunder | 1/6 |
| Stephen Curry | Golden State Warriors | 1/6 |
| LeBron James | Cleveland Cavaliers | 1/9 |
We can already tell who the favorites are to getting picked. With the most popular basketball players having the best odds of getting on the team, but there are 12 spots open, and they need different positions. If they take LeBron James and Kevin Durant, they may not need any more power forwards. The trick is to see which players are the most capable of filling the open positions, as those will most likely get picked. The coach may decide to take two or three players of each position, just as back-up. Betting on which player will get to play on the U.S. Olympic team may be tougher than expected.
