Benua

Storr is training with the Bahamas as the country seeks its first Olympic berth

VaselineJune 25, 2024

Courtesy of the Bahamas Basketball Federation

Kansas guard AJ Storr practices with the Bahamas national basketball team in Piraeus, Greece, on Monday, June 24, 2024.

A full season before coming to Kansas, AJ Storr was able to suit up against the Jayhawks last summer as part of the Bahamas men’s national basketball team.

Now he could get the chance to play for the country again, this time representing KU on the world stage.

Storr is part of a group of Bahamian players training in Europe in hopes of giving the country its first-ever Olympic appearance in men’s basketball.

The team, whose current contingent includes a wide range of players from Philadelphia 76ers guard Buddy Hield to highly ranked incoming Baylor freshman VJ Edgecombe, is in Piraeus, Greece, preparing to take on Montenegro on Wednesday and the host Greeks on Thursday as part of the Aegean Acropolis Tournament.

Then the real competition begins in Valencia, Spain, from July 2 to 7, as the Bahamas battle it out with five other countries for one spot in the Olympics, starting with matches against Finland on July 2 and Poland on July 3.

The Bahamas find themselves in uncharted territory after upsetting Argentina in qualifying last August, with 27 points from Eric Gordon and 17 from Hield, to clinch their place in Spain.

This obviously won’t be Storr’s first time participating in activities with the national team, after the Rockford, Illinois, native played for the Bahamas in that pair of exhibition games against KU last August during the Jayhawks’ summer tour of Puerto Rico. He averaged 15 points and five rebounds over those two games before playing for Wisconsin the following collegiate season.

Before heading to Greece, Storr, a rookie junior guard for KU, was part of a team training camp in Houston last week, where he practiced with Edgecombe, Hield, NBA players Deandre Ayton, Eric Gordon and Klay Thompson, and more.

“This is what we actually dreamed of: getting all our young guys here. We have VJ Edgecombe, Donnie Freeman and AJ Storr,” director of operations Lynden “LJ” Rose told Bahamian newspaper The Tribune about the camp. “Then you have your college guys Deyton Albury, Sammy Hunter and NBA guys Buddy Hield, Deandre Ayton, Eric (Gordon) and Klay Thompson, just to get that good mix. “Guys can lean on each other for guidance and it’s a fun group and guys are ready to compete.”

Freeman is a McDonald’s All-American who will play for Syracuse next season, Albury is a recent transfer from Queens to Utah State and Hunter played at Ole Miss and Akron.

The team is coached by Golden State Warriors assistant Chris DeMarco.

Qualifying teams for Olympic men’s basketball include Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Serbia, South Sudan and the United States, with four spots still to be determined through tournaments such as the Bahamas.