Pre-Olympic tournament 2012

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Charlie Villanueva got cut from the Dominican Republic team.

Pistons’ Charlie Villanueva cut from Dominican team; Al, Jon Horford on roster



By VINCENT GOODWILL

/ The Detroit News



Pistons forward Charlie Villanueva probably would like to start his 2012 year all over again.



After dealing with injuries for the entire lockout-shortened season for the Pistons — he didn't play any significant minutes — he won't play for the Dominican Republic national team because he's out of shape, head coach John Calipari said.



"Charlie was not in good form when we saw him," Calipari told Deportes en la Z. "He was overweight, and unfortunately, we could not slow down the entire team and it was a decision taken collectively. Last year, Charlie behaved really well with us and his only problem was his weight."



Villanueva never was in camp with the team this summer, contrary to the FIBA.com report that said he had a private workout with the team in New York.



It's believed the team wasn't pleased with his conditioning last summer, which led to the decision, after being a big part of the national team in recent years. An ankle injury slowed his progress and any hopes of getting much playing time for the Pistons this season.



Villanueva posted a picture on Twitter (lockerz.com/s/216607888) of him stepping on a weight scale, showing he's at 243.5 pounds, at least 10 pounds less than his playing weight of 255 pounds. "Lol case closed" he wrote in a Tweet.



He's under contract for the next two seasons with the Pistons, and it seems unlikely they'd use the Amnesty Clause to cut Villanueva's $16.6 million cap figure he'd earn over that time.



"An NBA player like him deserves respect and for respect, we have taken this decision," Calipari said. "I enjoyed coaching him a lot. He is a great player."



Villanueva, 27, played only 13 games for the Pistons last season because of injury.



The Dominican Republic national team has two exhibition games scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in Kentucky. The Olympic qualifying tournament is set for early July in Venezuela.



Calipari coached the Dominican to a bronze medal in the FIBA Americas Championship in Argentina.



Among those on the 15-player Dominican roster are the Horford brothers — Al, who plays for the Hawks, and Jon, who plays at Michigan. They are from Grand Ledge, Mich. Former Michigan center Josh Asselin also is on the team.