Blazers G Damian Lillard Officially Invited To USA Basketball's 2013 Las Vegas Minicamp

USA Basketball officially announced Wednesday the names of 27 players invited to a Las Vegas minicamp that will take place in July. Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard was one of the invites, as expected.

Here's more from a Blazers release.

The mini-camp includes 27 NBA players and will take place July 22-25 in Las Vegas, Nev. USA Basketball National Team Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski will direct the mini-camp, with Jim Boeheim, Tom Thibodeau and Monty Williams serving as assistant coaches.

"This invitation is a validation of Damian's hard work, dedication and commitment to excellence, and presents a unique opportunity for Damian to compete alongside the elite young players in the NBA," said Trail Blazers General Manager Neil Olshey.

Only the fourth unanimous Rookie of the Year in NBA history, Lillard set an NBA record for 3-pointers made in a rookie season (185). The sixth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft out of Weber State, Lillard joined Stephen Curry, LeBron James and Russell Westbrook as the only NBA players with at least 1,500 points and 500 assists last season.

"I'm honored to have been invited to participate in the USA Basketball mini-camp," said Lillard. "It's always been a dream of mine to represent our country, and I'm greatly appreciative of the opportunity."

The invited players will conduct daily training sessions July 22-24 and close out the mini-camp with the 2013 USA Basketball Showcase, a blue-white intra-squad game on Thursday, July 25, at 6 p.m. PDT at the Thomas & Mack Arena on the campus of UNLV. All USA practices will take place from noon-2:30 p.m. PDT at UNLV's Mendenhall Center and are closed to the general public.

Here's the full list of invites.

Accepting invitations to participate in the 2013 USA Basketball Men's National Team mini-camp were: Ryan Anderson (New Orleans Pelicans); Harrison Barnes (Golden State Warriors); Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards); Mike Conley (Memphis Grizzlies); DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings); Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans); DeMar DeRozan (Toronto Raptors); Andre Drummond (Detroit Pistons); Kenneth Faried (Denver Nuggets); Derrick Favors (Utah Jazz); Paul George (Indiana Pacers); Taj Gibson (Chicago Bulls); Gordon Hayward (Utah Jazz); Jrue Holiday (Philadelphia 76ers); Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers); DeAndre Jordan (Los Angeles Clippers); Ty Lawson (Denver Nuggets); Kawhi Leonard (San Antonio Spurs); Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers); Greg Monroe (Detroit Pistons); Chandler Parsons (Houston Rockets); Larry Sanders (Milwaukee Bucks); Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors); Dion Waiters (Cleveland Cavaliers); Kemba Walker (Charlotte Bobcats); John Wall (Washington Wizards); and Tyler Zeller (Cleveland Cavaliers).

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