Seattle Storm guard Kia Nurse (0) dribbles the ball against Phoenix Mercury guard Shey Peddy during the first half of a WNBA basketball game Saturday, Aug. 5, 2023, in Phoenix. Nurse will miss out on the upcoming FIBA Women's Olympic qualifying tournament due to an injury. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Ross D. Franklin
SOPRON, Hungary – Kia Nurse will miss out on the upcoming FIBA Women’s Olympic qualifying tournament due to an injury.
Canada Basketball says Nurse suffered a minor injury in practice that will keep her out of the tournament but she will be available for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, should Canada advance.
The sporting organization didn’t give specifics on the injury Nurse suffered.
Canada will face Hungary on Feb. 8, Spain on Feb. 9 and Japan on Feb. 11 in Sopron, Hungary. The top three teams will advance to the Paris Games.
The team also named the 12 players named to the pre-qualifying tournament roster on Tuesday.
Canada advanced to the qualifying tournament after going undefeated in the FIBA Women’s Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in November.
The Los Angeles Sparks acquired Nurse from Seattle Storm at the end of January in the WNBA, along with the Storm’s fourth-overall pick in April’s WNBA draft.
In exchange, the Sparks sent their 2026 first-round pick to Seattle.
Nurse, from Hamilton, signed as a free agent with Seattle last season and averaged 5.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists. She played all 40 games and made 20 starts.
The 27-year-old is a two-time WNBA champion and was named a league all-star in 2019.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 6, 2024.
