Warning: The post under this one is far more interesting.
I'm not quite sure how this managed to slip through the radar, but in Chris Sheridan's Olympic preview, he mentioned that Darius Songaila won't be playing in this year's Olympics due to a back injury. No word on how severe the injury is, but I'm going to guess that it's not significant enough that it will keep him from being able to play in time for training camp in October, since there hasn't been a big hubbub about the injury.
As you'll recall, Songaila also suffered a back injury back in 2006 at the World Championships, so one now has to wonder if the FIBA ball's smaller size throws off his body mechanics and causes him to wrench his back (that's sarcasm, people). While he should be healthy enough to play, I'm still concerned that he might not be 100% by the start of the season. In 2006, Songaila never really looked all there even after he returned from his injury and in 2007, it took him more than half the season (check the splits) to get his legs under him, after an exhausting summer of basketball with the national team in the FIBA Europe Championship.
In the months to come, there will be lots of time to talk about what, if any, impact this injury will have in the coming season. In the meantime, here's a little fact to digest on: Only one Wizard has ever played in Olympic competition while under contract with Washington.
That's right, Party John Ramos (Puerto Rico, '04) is the only player to compete in the Olympics while under contract with the Wizards. It might seem a little embarrassing that Ramos is our only Olympic rep, but we can take pride in knowing that he outscored Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire in their only Olympic meeting.