2023 Basketball World Cup

[JasonEvans]

As expected Jack White is part of Australia's preliminary squad:


Some people thought that a few more names might be included in this, especially a young guy or two like Tyrese Proctor just to give more people practice and maybe exhibition game experience.

That is a strong squad and should be a contender. The Boomers were a semi-finalist at the last World Cup and earned a bronze in the last Olympics. This team can absolutely win it all. Their backcourt and wings are good with Mills, Daniels, Giddy, Green, Thybulle, and Ingles. The bigs are more of an issue. Landale likely starts at center. I'm not sure who the PF is, though they could move Ingles there and play a very perimeter oriented game.

I love Jack White, but I don't think he will have much of a role for this team. Just too much positional overlap with Giddy, Thybulle, and Ingles.

[Billy Dat]

Some Team USA FIBA World Cup intel coming from Shams yesterday:

The following have committed to play for Team USA

Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star Anthony Edwards
Indiana Pacers All-Star Tyrese Haliburton
Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Austin Reaves
Brooklyn Nets small forward Mikal Bridges
Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis
New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson

That's half the squad. I wonder if any of our guys is getting a look. I'd love to see BI out there. Other potentials, I would think, would be Paolo, Wendell, Luke for his shooting, maybe Gary Trent?

Team USA starts training camp Aug. 3 in Las Vegas, plays its first exhibition game Aug. 7 against Puerto Rico and then embarks on a two-week barnstorming trip to Spain and the United Emirates before beginning World Cup play Aug. 26 against New Zealand.

[CameronBornAndBred]

FWIW, the US women took the 3x3 title yesterday. The men took 2nd, as Jimmer Fredette (remember him?!) missed his last shot against Serbia and lost 21-19.

[JasonEvans]

The following have committed to play for Team USA

Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star Anthony Edwards
Indiana Pacers All-Star Tyrese Haliburton
Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Austin Reaves
Brooklyn Nets small forward Mikal Bridges
Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis
New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson

That's half the squad. I wonder if any of our guys is getting a look. I'd love to see BI out there. Other potentials, I would think, would be Paolo, Wendell, Luke for his shooting, maybe Gary Trent?

As a reminder, the US finished an embarrassing 7th in the 2019 World Cup, the worst finish in our history. We went undefeated 5-0 through the preliminary rounds (though there was a too-close-for-comfort 1-point OT win over Turkey) before the team lost by 10 points to France in the quarterfinals and then lost to Serbia in the first consolation game. Awful!

I guess I am ok with the beginnings of this roster. I know we are not going to get the top tier guys to play in anything but an Olympic year. KD, Tatum, Steph, Kyrie and others who have won Olympic gold medals in the past probably are not going to play. I like guys like Brunson, Edwards, Bridges, and Halliburton. But Portis and Reaves?!?! Really?

I know Trae Young wants to play. I really want to see JJJr on the squad. The need to see if Jaylen Brown will do it. Da'Aaron Fox, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle. We do need some bigs though -- Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley? Wendell Carter? Paolo probably makes a lot of sense.

I really want to see the competition. Will Wemby and Gobert suit up for France? Jokic and Bogdan Bogdanovic gonna play for Serbia? It feels like Spain has somewhat aged out of their best team with the Gasol brothers no longer playing and Rubio getting old and injured.

The wild card is Canada, they could put forth a ridiculous team if folks really play. SGA, Murray, Lou Dort, Dillon Brooks, Wiggins... RJ Barrett wouldn't even start if they sent their best. And the future so bright with dudes like Shaedon Sharpe and Bennedict Mathurin.

[Billy Dat]

As a reminder, the US finished an embarrassing 7th in the 2019 World Cup, the worst finish in our history. We went undefeated 5-0 through the preliminary rounds (though there was a too-close-for-comfort 1-point OT win over Turkey) before the team lost by 10 points to France in the quarterfinals and then lost to Serbia in the first consolation game. Awful!

I guess I am ok with the beginnings of this roster. I know we are not going to get the top tier guys to play in anything but an Olympic year. KD, Tatum, Steph, Kyrie and others who have won Olympic gold medals in the past probably are not going to play. I like guys like Brunson, Edwards, Bridges, and Halliburton. But Portis and Reaves?!?! Really?

I know Trae Young wants to play. I really want to see JJJr on the squad. The need to see if Jaylen Brown will do it. Da'Aaron Fox, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle. We do need some bigs though -- Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley? Wendell Carter? Paolo probably makes a lot of sense.

I really want to see the competition. Will Wemby and Gobert suit up for France? Jokic and Bogdan Bogdanovic gonna play for Serbia? It feels like Spain has somewhat aged out of their best team with the Gasol brothers no longer playing and Rubio getting old and injured.

The wild card is Canada, they could put forth a ridiculous team if folks really play. SGA, Murray, Lou Dort, Dillon Brooks, Wiggins... RJ Barrett wouldn't even start if they sent their best. And the future so bright with dudes like Shaedon Sharpe and Bennedict Mathurin.

As you allude, once a guy has graduated to consideration for the Olympic squad, or have played on past FIBA Worlds teams, they seem to graduate from the World Cup team pool. As such, I think Jaylen Brown is probably off the table, plus he's eligible for that contract extension, I am guessing he's out.

Fox has a bit of a bumpy past with USA Basketball having withdrawn from consideration after being in camp in 2019. Those politics get tricky, but maybe Grant can play the "new head of Team USA, new clean slate" card?
https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/ki...-out-world-cup

As for Julius Randle, he pulled a similar move to Fox in 2019
https://sny.tv/articles/julius-randl...-training-camp

BI would be a great fit. He has no FIBA experience, and I am not sure why. Sometimes if guys aren't chosen as they come up through the ranks, they get a chip on their shoulder about it.

If Trae wants to play, and Grant is the head, you'd think that would be a simple matter, so maybe there is some reluctance. Certainly a Brunson/Trae backcourt would be extremely limited defensively.

I like the JJJr call, and also Mobley. Allen's subpar playoffs might have tarnished his candidacy a bit?

Maybe once the finals are over, Spo can talk Bam into playing? It would be odd for Kerr to be the HC with none of his players in the fold...Poole, maybe?

Here are the NBA-level Select Team guys from 2022 that are not already committed...of this group I would think Washington and Garland have the best chances.
Saddiq Bey (Detroit Pistons/Villanova)
Miles Bridges (Charlotte Hornets/Michigan State)
Darius Garland(Cleveland Cavaliers/Vanderbilt
Tyler Herro (Miami Heat/Kentucky)
Keldon Johnson (San Antonio Spurs/Kentucky)
Dakota Mathias (Philadelphia 76ers/Purdue)
Immanuel Quickley (New York Knicks/Kentucky)
Naz Reid (Minnesota Timberwolves/LSU)
Cam Reynolds (Houston Rockets/Tulane)
Isaiah Stewart (Detroit Pistons/Washington)
Obi Toppin (New York Knicks/Dayton)
P.J. Washington (Charlotte Hornets/Kentucky)
Patrick Williams (Chicago Bulls/Florida State).

Of the all rookie guys, aside from Paolo, you have...
Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz
Keegan Murray, Sacramento Kings
Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder▪️ Jalen Duren, Detroit Pistons
Tari Eason, Houston Rockets
Jaden Ivey, Detroit Pistons
Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets
AJ Griffin, Hawks
Christian Braun, Nuggets
Jaylin Williams, Thunder
Jaden Hardy, Mavericks
Malaki Branham, Spur
Mark Williams, Hornets
MarJon Beauchamp, Bucks

[awhom111]

As a reminder, the US finished an embarrassing 7th in the 2019 World Cup, the worst finish in our history. We went undefeated 5-0 through the preliminary rounds (though there was a too-close-for-comfort 1-point OT win over Turkey) before the team lost by 10 points to France in the quarterfinals and then lost to Serbia in the first consolation game. Awful!

I guess I am ok with the beginnings of this roster. I know we are not going to get the top tier guys to play in anything but an Olympic year. KD, Tatum, Steph, Kyrie and others who have won Olympic gold medals in the past probably are not going to play. I like guys like Brunson, Edwards, Bridges, and Halliburton. But Portis and Reaves?!?! Really?

I know Trae Young wants to play. I really want to see JJJr on the squad. The need to see if Jaylen Brown will do it. Da'Aaron Fox, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle. We do need some bigs though -- Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley? Wendell Carter? Paolo probably makes a lot of sense.

I really want to see the competition. Will Wemby and Gobert suit up for France? Jokic and Bogdan Bogdanovic gonna play for Serbia? It feels like Spain has somewhat aged out of their best team with the Gasol brothers no longer playing and Rubio getting old and injured.

The wild card is Canada, they could put forth a ridiculous team if folks really play. SGA, Murray, Lou Dort, Dillon Brooks, Wiggins... RJ Barrett wouldn't even start if they sent their best. And the future so bright with dudes like Shaedon Sharpe and Bennedict Mathurin.

USA Basketball had to make sure that they sealed up Reaves before he played for Germany. Italy is already nervous about Paolo's verbal commitment to them.

As a reminder, here is Canada's 14 core players who are supposed to get preference for roster spots:
https://www.basketball.ca/news/athle...-core-revealed

Gobert has hinted that he might not play for France, but so far Wemby is a go, though the fact that his club coach is the national team coach means that he would hardly admit anything else. Everyone seems on board for Serbia right now, but their fans expect nothing less so nobody would probably announce otherwise yet. There are still Serbia fans who will probably never forgive Jokic for missing one tournament even if he wins them a World Cup and Olympic gold. We all thought Spain was falling off, but they are still the reigning European champions.

[brevity]

I know Trae Young wants to play. I really want to see JJJr on the squad. The need to see if Jaylen Brown will do it. Da'Aaron Fox, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle. We do need some bigs though -- Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley? Wendell Carter? Paolo probably makes a lot of sense.

Wish granted. Woj Bomb!

ESPN: Sources: Brandon Ingram, Jaren Jackson Jr. commit to Team USA for World Cup

Two Western Conference All-Star forwards -- the New Orleans Pelicans' Brandon Ingram and the Memphis Grizzlies' Jaren Jackson Jr. -- are committed to playing for Team USA in the FIBA Basketball World Cup championships this summer in the Philippines, sources told ESPN on Monday.

[JasonEvans]

Wish granted. Woj Bomb!

ESPN: Sources: Brandon Ingram, Jaren Jackson Jr. commit to Team USA for World Cup

I'll go ahead right now and predict they are both starters and key players for the team. JJJ's defense is otherworldly and international teams won't know what to do with it. I'd peg Ingram as the early favorite to be the leading scorer on the team.

As a reminder, here is Canada's 14 core players who are supposed to get preference for roster spots:
https://www.basketball.ca/news/athle...-core-revealed

If Canada brings Nickeil Alexander-Walker, RJ Barrett, Khem Birch, Oshae Brissett, Dillon Brooks, Luguentz Dort, Zach Edey, Melvin Ejim, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cory Joseph, Jamal Murray, Kelly Olynyk, Kevin Pangos, and Dwight Powell to the World Cup, I would make them the second favorite after Team USA. Well, technically I think they can only have a 12-man roster. Drop Pangos and Ejim.

Lastly, it is easy to forget but Bam Adebayo played for Team USA in the 2020/21 Olympics and he won a gold medal. He was even a starter on that team (along with KD, Dame, Jrue, and Booker). I doubt anyone who played for the Olympic team is going to suit up for the World Cup.

[Billy Dat]

I have also long been a believer in the potential of Team Canada but they are still trying to build the kind of culture and infrastructure that the US did from 2005 - present.

Here's a good article from a few months back that tries to forecast who will and won't play. If they get close to this roster, they should make some noise.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/...023-world-cup/

[MChambers]

Apparently he was going to play for Italy, but was convinced to play for the US. https://theathletic.com/4593978/2023...0&redirected=1

[JasonEvans]

Apparently he was going to play for Italy, but was convinced to play for the US. https://theathletic.com/4593978/2023...0&redirected=1

Would this commit him to Team USA for life? Anyone know how FIBA handles players who want to switch nationalities?

[bluedevilwildcats]

Would this commit him to Team USA for life? Anyone know how FIBA handles players who want to switch nationalities?

Per this article, you don't get to switch, so yes: https://www.espn.com/olympics/basket...d-states-fibas

[Billy Dat]

The other commitments not yet mentioned in this thread are:
-Walker Kessler
-Cam Johnson

One more open spot, but a nice squad, plenty of talent to win the gold, but completely green by Senior Team USA FIBA standards. But, that how's the Worlds Team has been since 2010, it will be interesting to see who emerges as the team alphas and whether or not they can get the job done. This could be the year for the Boomers to finally get the gold.

[JasonEvans]

This could be the year for the Boomers to finally get the gold.

I can see the Aussies as one of the better teams with Dyson Daniels, Josh Giddey, Joe Ingles, Jock Landale, Matisse Thybulle, and a few other NBA talents (including Jack White). But I think the bigger threats to the US will be Canada, Serbia, France, and Spain. The days where the US could roll out a team of mid-level NBA starters and win it all are loooong gone.

[awhom111]

Would this commit him to Team USA for life? Anyone know how FIBA handles players who want to switch nationalities?

There have been a few unusual cases where FIBA allows a player to switch from one senior team to another. They are pretty lenient about allowing people who played for a youth national team of a country to play for another later.

The commitments sound great, but a lot of players were supposedly committed at this time of the year in 2019 and we had a bunch of withdrawals in mid to late July followed by the ridiculous number of people departing once camp started.

[bluedevilwildcats]

Wemba focusing on the NBA this summer, bad for France, good for us: https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...-rookie-season

[JasonEvans]

Wemba focusing on the NBA this summer, bad for France, good for us: https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/...-rookie-season

It would have been a fun chance to see him playing for the first time against legit NBA competition, though this is not all that surprising for a guy as young as he is. With the Olympics coming next summer, I bet you see a number of international stars choosing to skip the FIBA World Cup out of fear of exhaustion. Given the choice between adding an extra 6 weeks of practice and competition due to FIBA World Cup or due to Olympics, almost all of them will opt for the Olympics.

France is still a quite good squad with Gobert, Nicholas Batum, and Evan Fournier. Plus, Nando de Colo is among the best guards in Euroleague history. They do nee to get younger though as de Colo and Batum are getting up there.

[superdave]

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/...plytsuy6bsv8sx


Position Player Team
F Paolo Banchero Magic
F Mikal Bridges Nets
G Jalen Brunson Knicks
G Anthony Edwards Timberwolves
G Tyrese Haliburton Pacers
F Brandon Ingram Pelicans
F Jaren Jackson Jr. Grizzlies
F Cam Johnson Nets
C Walker Kessler Jazz
F Bobby Portis Bucks
G Austin Reaves Lakers

[Billy Dat]

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/...plytsuy6bsv8sx

I think we have enough firepower. The question is who will emerge as the alphas in this talented group of young stars?

I think Brunson is a natural leader, but the players with STAR alpha potential are, to me, Paolo, Edwards and BI with Bridges and Halliburton right there, too. Will they be able to establish a pecking order that maximizes the talent, and will they play good enough defense?

[superdave]

I think we have enough firepower. The question is who will emerge as the alphas in this talented group of young stars?

I think Brunson is a natural leader, but the players with STAR alpha potential are, to me, Paolo, Edwards and BI with Bridges and Halliburton right there, too. Will they be able to establish a pecking order that maximizes the talent, and will they play good enough defense?

We need Bam, Tatum, Brown, Booker and a few guys entering their primes. Dont leave it to the b squad!