Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports that Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love and Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh are all more likely to make the final 2012 Team USA 12-man roster than Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge.
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Kevin Love joins Bosh and Griffin in this group. But you know what? It probably doesn't matter how you label them, because the likelihood is that all three are going.

Yet there are two players who stand out with the best shot to force an audible that results in a surprise cut or two. Aldridge and Tyson Chandler.

We repeat: The appeal of Aldridge, as with Love, is his mobility and ability to stretch the floor, which always matters in the international game. Chandler, meanwhile, is the only other true center in the 20-man pool and makes sense for several reasons, not only because of what he'd provide positionally and as a master of capitalizing on international rules when it comes to snatching the ball off the rim ... but because he'd be so vocal and positive as a 12th man. Which is very valuable, too, because chemistry is huge on a star-filled squad like this.
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Aldridge was named one of 20 finalists for Team USA earlier this week.

I wrote a few weeks back that I thought Bosh, Griffin and Chandler would make it with Love as the 13th man.

-- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter