Anthony Davis is eager, not to mention proud, to accept the physical risks that go with playing without pay for Team USA. With the FIBA World Cup approaching this weekend, Davis said playing for his country does more than make him a better player. Its also a way to spend his off-season doing what he loves while showing his appreciation for others whove made greater sacrifices, and taken far greater risks, in the name of patriotism. "I love playing for USA basketball. Some guys look at it as they dont get paid, so you dont have to play or whatever," Davis said on a conference call with reporters on Thursday. "I love playing the game of basketball and any time I get a chance to represent my country, especially for all the servicemen and women who do so much for us, I think its a great opportunity to show your appreciation. "So I love doing things like this and I look forward to future years playing for USA Basketball." His focus, however, is the much more immediate future. Namely, Saturday, when Team USA opens group play against Finland in Bilbao, Spain. The risks of playing in events like the FIBA World Cup became magnified earlier this month when Indiana Pacers star Paul George broke his right leg in a stomach-turning collision under the basket. Davis said he, like many on the court and around the world, were shaken by Georges injury, which he called gruesome. But the 21-year-old Davis said he and fellow US teammates are now committed "to keep moving forward and try to win this (championship) for him." Certainly, the last person who was going to dissuade Davis from playing was his Pelicans coach, Monty Williams, who is an assistant with the US Team under head coach Mike Krzyzewski. Williams believes the environment created by USA basketball has only accelerated Davis growth. "Hes understanding that he is a lead dog among a number of alpha dogs," Williams said of his 21-year-old power forward. "Mentally I think hes taken that up a few notches and I think Coach K has been a big part of that, pushing him to be a leader, pushing him to be the guy on the team. "When you think about the names on this team and you look at the impact on the game that he has, you seldom say theres a better player on the floor than Anthony, so thats got to help him from a confidence standpoint," Williams added. Indeed, Davis has been Team USAs leading scorer during its four World Cup tuneup games against Brazil, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Slovenia. He has averaged 13.8 points to go with 13.5 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game. Davis, 6-foot-10, 237 pounds, said his role as a leader on the floor and in the locker room "definitely got bigger" after George was injured and other prominent players decided against playing. And its a role hes embraced. "Getting an opportunity to be one of main guys on team means a lot," Davis said. Detroit Lions Jerseys . 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Augustin scored 27 points in a start for Kirk Hinrich and Taj Gibson matched a career high with 26 filling in for Carlos Boozer as the Bulls improved to 7-2 since trading the popular Deng with a 98-87 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night.SAN FRANCISCO -- The San Francisco 49ers and offensive lineman Daniel Kilgore have agreed to a three-year contract extension through the 2017 season. The 49ers announced the deal Thursday. San Francisco selected Kilgore in the fifth round of the 2011 draft out of Appalachian State. He has played in 33 regular-season games, plus all six playoff games the last two seasons. He has split time at guard and centre. With veteraan centre Jonathan Goodwin set to become an unrestricted free agent, Kilgore could take over the starting centre role next season.ddddddddddddGoodwin has started every game for the 49ers the last three seasons under coach Jim Harbaugh. 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