LTU – Cavs say no-go for Big Z at Olympics

CLEVELAND (Olympics) – Lithuania’s hopes of adding Cleveland Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas to their Olympic squad appear to have been dashed by the NBA club.

The 7ft 3in giant was desperate to play for his country this summer but he has a long history of injuries and this season, a compressed disk in his lower back caused him to miss some games.

Ilgauskas’ feet are also not covered by insurance.

Cleveland had privately told Lithuania before they would not allow him to play and after receiving a petition from Lithuania with thousands of signatures on it, the Cavs did not budge.

"Zydrunas is an important member of our team and has generally been a higher risk player due to his injury history," Cavs general manager Danny Ferry said.

"We declined consent for Zydrunas."

Ilgauskas averaged 14.1 points, a career-high 9.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 73 games this season.

FIBA