While Kevin Durant's withdrawal was a big blow to Team USA, it's not like they would have a shortage. Numerous agents volunteered their wards as playing for the national team equals international exposure.

Those who take it for granted belong to three categories: Those who value the Olympics more than the  the FIBA World Cup (LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul) the ones who have done it before (Kevin Love, Kevin Durant) or already believe that their popularity do not need a boost (Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge).

Most of the calls that were fielded were from players who did not fall into any of those three categories, but not all of them. The report from ESPN:

"USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo received a call Thursday night, shortly after Kevin Durant pulled out, and was told that Gay was available if he and coach Mike Krzyzewski were interested.

'We both felt he would be a valuable addition because of his outstanding skills and the fact that he is so familiar with USA Basketball and our national team program.Rudy has been an integral member of USA Basketball since 2005 and was a tremendous contributor to our 2010 world championship team. He has a lot of equity in the USA Basketball national team.'

Rudy Gay shares his statement: 'I am extremely excited to once again be part of Team USA and its rich tradition. I can't wait to join my teammates in Chicago and work hard to make certain the USA takes home the gold in Spain.'"

Rudy Gay still believes that joining Team USA can help his career. He has developed a negative reputation with his shot selection when he averaged career lows in field goal percentage. He was also dubbed the "anti-analytics" guy.

He redeemed himself somewhat in Sacramento but a stint on Team USA can really validate the public's perception of your ability to play team ball. The best example for this is Carmelo Anthony. Whenever he is cited for being a ballhog, his fans cite his Team USA stint as an argument.

Gay was the last player to be cut from the 2012 London Olympics roster but he has a better chance this year. It would really help his brand, especially since he is on a contract year.