MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It's been a whirlwind few days for Zach Edey - on Wednesday he was picked No. 9 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies, on Friday he was introduced at FedEx Forum and on Sunday he removed himself from competing for a spot on Team Canada at the 2024 Paris Olympics to instead focus on the Grizzlies.
“I have made the difficult decision of pulling myself out of the process to compete for a spot at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with Canada," Edey said in a statement released by Canada Basketball. "Since last summer, I have been training and competing nonstop to achieve my goals of winning a national championship at Purdue and making it to the NBA. I have a duty now to properly prepare for all that is coming my way with being drafted by the Memphis Grizzlies. The work I put in this summer on my body and my game is critical for me to be the best version of myself. Thank you to Canada Basketball and all the fans for your support and understanding. Representing Canada in the Olympics remains a lifelong dream of mine, but for now, I look forward to being the team’s biggest fan from this side of the Atlantic.”
Edey had previously taken part in training camps for Canada and played for them at the FIBA World Cup last summer.
“Canada Basketball was recently notified by Zach of his intention to remove himself from consideration to represent Canada at this summer’s Olympic Games," general manager of Canada Basketball Rowan Barrett said. "While we were optimistic about having Zach join us in training camp, we understand and support him in this difficult decision. On behalf of Canada Basketball, I would like to congratulate him on being drafted into the NBA. We look forward to welcoming him to a future training camp and wish him the best of luck preparing for next season.”
With Edey pulling out of the Olympics all of his attention will now turn to preparing for his first season in the NBA with the Memphis Grizzlies. That means we should see Edey suit up for the Grizz in the NBA Summer League alongside other players like GG Jackson and newest Summer League signee, former Memphis Tiger DJ Jeffries.
Memphis has not yet officially released its roster for the Summer League. The games are set to begin on Monday, July 8 in Salt Lake City.
