Kelly Olynyk unable to play for Canada at FIBA World Cup with bone bruise

Canada's Kelly Olynyk will miss the FIBA World Cup with a bone bruise. (Chris Young/CP)

Miami Heat forward Kelly Olynyk will be unable to participate for Team Canada at the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup, his agent Greg Lawrence told Sportsnet’s Michael Grange.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was first to report Olynyk would be unable to play.

Olynyk, Grange reports, was in Miami getting evaluated for a bone bruise he suffered on his knee after slipping and crashing hard to the floor during Canada’s first exhibition contest with Nigeria in Toronto last week.

He was projected to only miss a week and join Team Canada afterwards but that no longer appears to be the case.

Olynyk is one of Canada’s senior men’s basketball team’s longest-serving members and would’ve been counted on by head coach Nick Nurse as one of the team’s key offensive contributors.

He joins R.J. Barrett (calf), Jamal Murray (ankle) and Chris Boucher (personal reasons) as the latest NBA player to pull out of/be unfit to participate for Canada at the World Cup.

The FIBA World Cup will begin on Aug. 31, with Canada set to kick off its tournament against Australia on Sept. 1.

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