Americans Basketball Olympians…for Another Country

(BEIJING, July 14) -- International players in the NBA and WNBA swear allegiance to their teams- until the Olympics come around, when they proudly represent their home countries. This year there is a twist on this trend, with two American-born pro-ballers abandoning their U.S. identity at the Olympic stage, opting to play under another nation's flag.

Chris Kaman, the 7-foot Los Angeles Clipper center, will be adding size to the German team this summer. A descendant of German grandparents, he recently received a German passport just in time to participate in this week's FIBA tournament in Athens. Germany will be competing for one of 3 remaining Olympic berths.

South Dakota-native Becky Hammon, a popular WNBA player with an All-American persona, sparked controversy by joining the Russian national team this year. Unlike Kamman, she has no Russian ancestry, but she recently signed a contract with club team CSKA Moscow, which included a salary well above her WNBA earnings, Russian citizenship and a chance to compete for a spot on the national team. When it seemed the 31-year-old had little chance to make the U.S. Women's Olympic team, despite being WNBA's 2008 MVP runner-up, Hammon decided to join the Russian team.

During the WNBA's winter offseason, many players sign lucrative contracts to play abroad. It is so common in Russia that their league has a two-American-per-team limit.

There are plenty cases of newly-minted Americans competing for the U.S. in the Olympics. Since 1992, about 50 athletes who had competed internationally for their home countries became both U.S. citizens and members of the Olympic team. In the last two decades only one foreign athlete contributed to a U.S. basketball medal: Nigerian-born Hakeen Olajuwon of the 1996 basketball Dream Team.