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World Cup Notes: F. Wagner, Schröder, Top Players, Banchi

September 11th, 2023 at 10:28am CST by Arthur Hill

Germany’s Franz Wagner was thrilled not only to win a gold medal at the World Cup, but to be able to accomplish the feat while playing alongside his brother, writes Cesare Milanti of EuroHoops. Franz and Moritz Wagner are also teammates on the Magic, but their undefeated run through the World Cup field is the highlight of their careers.

“It’s special,” Franz Wagner said after Sunday’s win over Serbia. “Special to have our parents here too. This is so surreal, it doesn’t make sense that we are both on this team and we can enjoy it.”

Wagner appears to be fully recovered from a sprained ankle he suffered in Germany’s opening game. Although he missed the rest of pool play, he was back for the knockout round, scoring 22 points and grabbing five rebounds in a semifinal win over Team USA, then posting 19 points and seven rebounds in the gold medal contest.

“There were so many moments this year in so many games that the other team made a run, this game, the game before against the States,” he added. “We never let it slip, we just kept playing and kept staying together. That made a huge difference in all these games.”

There’s more from the World Cup:

Tournament MVP Dennis Schröder hopes Germany’s success will lead to more exposure for basketball in his home country, per Aris Barkas of Eurohoops. The German team has become more successful in international competitions, but the games aren’t widely available to the public. “We first thought the tournament was going to be on the TV. Only the final was on the TV,” Schröder said. “Basketball is a great sport and I hope we can get our respect for what we are doing the last two years. I wish that every single game is on TV. Ten years ago when I started, we had Dirk Nowitzki but nobody knew who were the other guys on the team. Now we go to Japan and the Philippines and they know us. We hope to get this respect also in our country and get recognized.”
Schröder was a first-team selection by Brian Windhorst of ESPN on his list of the best players at the World Cup. Joining him on the first team are Team USA’s Anthony Edwards, Canada’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Slovenina’s Luka Doncic and Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic. Making up Windhorst’s second team are the USA’s Mikal Bridges, Australia’s Josh Giddey, South Sudan’s Carlik Jones, Serbia’s Nikola Milutinov and the Dominican Republic’s Karl-Anthony Towns.
Luca Banchi was honored as the tournament’s best coach after leading Latvia to a fifth-place finish in its first-ever World Cup.

Germany Wins Gold Medal, USA Fourth At World Cup

September 10th, 2023 at 10:29am CST by Arthur Hill

Germany wrapped up an undefeated World Cup by topping Serbia, 83-77, in Sunday’s gold medal game. Team USA, which had been favored to win the gold, left without a medal after falling to Canada in an overtime thriller in the bronze medal contest.

Dennis Schröder led the Germans with 28 points in the finals and Franz Wagner added 19. Germany was able to take down all challengers in the tournament despite playing much of it without Wagner, who suffered a sprained ankle in the opener against Japan.

Schröder was named World Cup MVP (Twitter link) and was joined on the All-Star 5 by Canada’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, USA’s Anthony Edwards, Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic and Slovenia’s Luka Doncic (Twitter link).

Canada’s victory was noteworthy as it marked the nation’s first-ever medal in World Cup competition and only its second win against the U.S. in a senior men’s tournament. The Canadians were led by 31 points and 12 assists from Gilgeous-Alexander and 39 points from Dillon Brooks, who continues to rebuild his reputation following a playoff embarrassment and an unpleasant separation with the Grizzlies in free agency.

“It was so enjoyable. Obviously the hate doesn’t stop, it keeps going,” Brooks told reporters, including Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “It’s hard to battle against the world and a team.”

Before earning their medals, the Canadians had to survive a miracle finish from Team USA that sent the game to overtime. Trailing by four points with 4.2 seconds remaining, Mikal Bridges hit his first free throw and purposely missed the second before chasing down the rebound in the right corner and hitting a spinning three-pointer with 0.6 left on the clock. Bridges, who scored 19 points and battled Gilgeous-Alexander on defense, may be one of the members of the World Cup roster with a strong chance of returning for the Olympics.

However, Canada controlled play in the overtime to capture a 127-118 victory that sent the U.S. home without a medal for the second straight World Cup. The Americans dropped three of their last four games as defense and rebounding became persistent issues.

“We just didn’t defend well enough against Germany (in the semifinals) or against Canada, and that’s the bottom line,” coach Steve Kerr said. “Every year when you try to build a team, you try to build the best two-way team you can and be able to get stops and score, and everybody’s trying to do that.”

Windhorst points out that the Americans have now lost seven combined games over their last three major tournaments, creating a wide open race for the gold at the Paris Olympics next summer. The U.S. may have to reconsider the type of players it wants to invite, although Kerr said USA Basketball officials felt good about the World Cup roster they put together.

“We’ve really studied everything about FIBA and the history of United States basketball when we’ve won, what has been the reason and when we’ve lost what has been the reason,” Kerr said. “So we study all that stuff, and what it comes down to for us in this tournament, we put ourselves in a great position. We got to the semifinals and were right there.”

Team USA Notes: Reaves, Haliburton, Anthony, Curry

September 9th, 2023 at 5:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

Team USA will leave the World Cup without a gold medal, but it may have developed a few players who will be useful in future international competitions, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. This version of the American squad was built around young talent than established stars, and many of them could return for future World Cup or Olympic tournaments.

Vardon points to Lakers guard Austin Reaves as one of those players. The 25-year-old is third in scoring for the U.S. at 12.4 PPG and second in steals at 1.3 per game. He has also regularly been on the court late in close games.

“I think I’ve been able to learn a lot from a lot of really good players, a lot of really good coaches, and basically just see that I belong,” Reaves said.

International play has often been the springboard for players to assert themselves as future stars, such as Kevin Durant in the 2010 World Championship, Vardon notes. Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards appears ready to move into that role, and Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton may be as well.

“I think being the point guard with other great scorers, other great players and understand that they want to be on the court at the same time as me, they want me to be in there to get them involved,” Haliburton said.

There’s more on Team USA:

Friday’s loss to Germany was among the topics addressed by global ambassadors Pau Gasol, Luis Scola and Carmelo Anthony during an appearance on a talk show, relays Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops. Anthony, one of the most accomplished international players in American history, considers the result an “upset,” but not a huge surprise. “You have to take your hat off to Germany, and for Serbia as well,” Anthony said. “That’s good for the sport, everybody has to think differently when approaching these competitions. The game has grown globally. Everybody has an opportunity to go there and win a gold medal.”
Lack of size was an issue for the U.S. not only against Germany but throughout the World Cup, observes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. He notes that in three games against larger European teams, the Americans gave up 53 offensive rebounds and 64 second-chance points.
Stephen Curry is Team USA’s “must-have guy” for the Paris Olympics, according to Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Instead of turning to LeBron James and Durant again, Rankin would like to see the 2024 roster built around Curry with Jayson Tatum, Jimmy Butler, Devin Booker, De’Aaron Fox, Anthony Davis, Julius Randle, Bam Adebayo and Jarrett Allen all in prominent roles.

World Cup Notes: USA, Edwards, Germany, Canada

September 8th, 2023 at 5:31pm CST by Rory Maher

Head coach Steve Kerr once again stressed the high level of international competition following Team USA’s upset loss to Germany, per Aris Barkas of Eurohoops.

“This is not 1992 anymore,” Kerr said. “Players are better all over the world. Teams are better. It’s not easy to win World Cup or Olympic games.”

Kerr also gave the Germans credit.

“Congrats to Germany, they were fantastic,” he added. “Every time we made a run, they got a great shot, an offensive rebound, a big play. I am proud of my guys, they fought and gave us a chance in the end, but we couldn’t exactly get it.”

Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards said the team lacked toughness in the semifinal loss, but he refused to use lack of size as an excuse, relays George Efkarpidis of Eurohoops.

“We got out-rebounded all night. … They were more physical than us,” Edwards said.

Here’s more from the 2023 World Cup, which concludes Sunday:

German head coach Gordon Herbert got a three-year commitment from his roster, which is filled with experienced veterans. The group’s continuity showed in the victory, writes Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. “I think that helped us immensely,” Magic forward Franz Wagner said. “From the first day we got together this summer, we believed that we’re a special group and we can win against any team.”
Could the three-year blueprint be something the Americans emulate going forward? As Fischer notes, former USA Basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski got three-year commitments from players when he took over in 2005. “I’m not sure how you would do that,” Kerr said. “If you wanna ask the same 10 guys to play every summer, I think that’s very unrealistic. Part of the deal with USAB is you pass the baton to the next coaching staff, the next group of players. It’s different than most countries. But we’re unique in that we have a deep talent pool and a lot of very worthy players. And I think those players and coaches all deserve to have the honor of wearing that USA jersey.”
Despite dropping its semifinal to Serbia, which will face Germany for a chance at gold, the Canadian national team is still determined to defeat the U.S. and claim the bronze medal, according to Barkas of Eurohoops. “It’s very important for the country, the players, the program,” head coach Jordi Fernandez said. “We are very emotional right now, but getting a medal will be very important for us and we know we can still get better. We want to leave this tournament hungry and thirsty for more.”

Northwest Notes: Small-Market Stars, Henderson, SGA, Edwards

September 7th, 2023 at 10:45pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Current Sixers guard Patrick Beverley sent a ripple through the NBA when he suggested Timberwolves star guard Anthony Edwards should leave Minnesota when he gets the chance. Stars of small-market teams are often subject to trade rumors and to that point, the Trail Blazers look poised to send franchise icon Damian Lillard to a “bigger market” after years of speculation.

The Trail Blazers have an heir apparent to the point guard spot in 2023 No. 3 overall pick Scoot Henderson, but Henderson recognizes that he has plenty of work to do to help offset a potential loss of Lillard, he said in an interview with The Oregonian’s Bill Oram. Part of that starts with being an active member of the Portland community, which Lillard was, according to Oram.

“I can definitely learn from that and seeing how he goes out his way to do certain things for the fans here,” Henderson said. “That’s something I’ve seen and heard about. That’s who I am as a person as well.”

Henderson said Lillard has been in communication with the former G League Ignite guard, and he’s been giving him pointers on living in Portland, per Oram. Whatever way the Lillard situation ends, Oram writes, Henderson is prepared to help get the Blazers back to the playoffs.

“I’m here to work,” Henderson said. “I’m here to come here and win some games. Never been focused on anyone else’s situation, ever.”

Oram believes Henderson has a real chance to connect with Portland fans in a similar way to Lillard, but knows sentiments like Beverley’s will persist through Henderson’s career if he’s a breakout star. However, Oram believes Henderson is well-situated to become the franchise’s next staple, and the guard appears to have similar plans.

“It’s probably the best situation I could possibly be in, ever,” Henderson said. “I’m here to stay.”

We have more Northwest Division notes:

While Portland has a star on the way out, the Thunder‘s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is poised to stick around for a while. According to The Athletic’s Sam Amick, rival executives who hoped Gilgeous-Alexander would want out of Oklahoma City less than a year ago appear to have given up on those hopes. Amick writes that organizational excitement is at an all-time high, and that Gilgeous-Alexander has a chance to take the young Thunder to the playoffs — he’ll get a chance to play with last year’s No. 2 overall pick Chet Holmgren this season.
Responding to Beverley’s comment about Edwards, The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski pushed back on the notion that Edwards should leave the Timberwolves. Krawczynski echoes the point that small-market fans are used to hearing people say their players should or will depart for bigger markets, but to hear it from Beverley, who played for the team in 2021/22, is different. Krawczynski writes that Minnesota is a bigger market than given credit for and can push to keep Edwards around, though the team will need to continue to build around the star guard.
In case you missed it, free agent Javonte Cooke is reportedly signing an Exhibit 10 deal with the Timberwolves.

Team USA Notes: Germany, Edwards, Roster

September 7th, 2023 at 9:17pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Team USA blew out the Italian national team in the quarterfinals of the 2023 FIBA World Cup, and intends to keep playing to its strengths ahead of a matchup with the undefeated Germans on Friday morning, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst writes.

While a loss to Lithuania earlier in the event stung, Team USA’s coaching staff featuring Steve Kerr, Erik Spoelstra, Tyronn Lue and Mark Few reinvigorated the team’s identity prior to the 37-point victory over Italy, Windhorst writes, and they’ll plan to execute the same way against Germany in the semifinals.

Germany is 6-0 in World Cup play and has a size advantage, which Team USA struggled with in its loss to Lithuania, according to Windhorst. Dennis Schröder has been one of the best players in all of World Cup play, though he had an off day against Latvia on Wednesday. However, the Germans have depth, including NBAers Franz Wagner and Moritz Wagner, along with Daniel Theis.

“They’ve probably been the best team in the tournament overall,” Kerr said. “They’re connected, really well coached and have a lot of continuity and have a very strong team, physical team. So we’re going to have to play well to beat them.”

Team USA first took on Germany in a friendly game on Aug. 20, where Anthony Edwards fueled an 18-0 run by the Americans that helped the team complete a 16-point comeback victory.

The play of Edwards, how Germany chooses to guard him, and how the United States dictates the pace of play are key factors in determining which team will move on to play for the World Cup championship on Sunday, according to Windhorst.

“The challenge is to figure out when to attack and when not to,” Kerr said of Edwards, per Windhorst. “And we’re gonna need both. The last time we played Germany, he completely took over the game. [Against Italy] when we throw the ball ahead, whether it’s him or anybody else, we’re really lethal. So you just got to find that balance.”

We have more Team USA notes:

Edwards is doing everything Team USA asks of him, Joe Vardon of The Athletic writes, including dropping 35 points against Lithuania and then taking just six shots against Italy. “It’s the same thing with the Timberwolves,” Edwards said. “I’ve gotta look to score, look to pass. It’s not that hard.” Vardon writes that Edwards is on track to earn the elusive title of an NBA superstar, but he’ll need to close out the World Cup on a high note.
While Edwards has been a star, Team USA is benefiting from a team-oriented style of play featuring several impressive performances thus far, writes The Ringer’s Danny Chau. Chau highlights several of the team’s most impressive players, including Mikal Bridges, who scored 24 points on Tuesday against Italy. While none of what Chau calls “A-list NBA stars” are participating in the event, Chau believes many players on the team can or will elevate to that status.
Don’t forget to participate in our poll from this morning and chime in with who you think will win each World Cup semifinal matchup.

World Cup Notes: Edwards, Italy, Australia, Bertans

September 5th, 2023 at 5:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Timberwolves shooting guard Anthony Edwards has been the team’s top scorer for most of the World Cup but he was silent in the quarterfinals, as he produced just three points and three assists in the rout of Italy. He wasn’t upset about it afterward, The Athletic’s Joe Vardon reports.

“Ant could get 30 whatever he wants, like easily,” said Mikal Bridges, who led the team with 24 points. “We talked to him and tried to help him out just to find guys, and that’s what he did. And he’s probably the happiest dude in the locker room right now.”

We have more from the World Cup:

Italy’s coach wasn’t happy his club had to play Team USA in the quarterfinals after winning its group, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. USA finished second in its group due to the upset loss to Lithuania. “My players didn’t deserve it to play against America because we were first in our group,” Gianmarco Pozzecco said. “You need to be a little bit lucky. I think we did everything we could do in our group. … We deserve maybe a little bit better, we deserve to overcome quarterfinals.”
Following Australia’s disappointing performance in the World Cup, CEO Matt Scriven gave head coach Brian Goorjian a vote of confidence via a press release, ESPN’s Olgun Uluc tweets. “Brian is one of the country’s most respected and qualified coaches, he is contracted until Paris and our support of him is unwavering… he will be at the helm of the Boomers,” Scriven wrote. However, there will be some other changes made prior to the Olympics. “There is no doubt we’ll have to make some tough decisions around selections but when the time is right, we’ll commence discussions with players around their availability and willingness to represent the green and gold,” Scriven wrote.
Davis Bertans, currently on the Thunder‘s roster, has been in the NBA since 2016. Nothing he’s done in his career compares to Latvia’s success in the World Cup. Latvia advanced to the quarterfinals and will face Germany on Wednesday. “Every game playing for the national team is already up there,” he told Antonis Stroggylakis of Eurohoops.net. “And this tournament, making history for our country… I’m pretty sure that every single person [in Latvia] was at the TV screens or watching big screens somewhere in the cities watching us. We felt that energy from almost two million people.”

Team USA Notes: Lithuania Matchup, Edwards, Kessler, Bridges

September 2nd, 2023 at 9:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

Team USA got its toughest World Cup test so far in Friday’s win over Montenegro, and another challenge awaits on Sunday against Lithuania, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. The Americans will be the de facto top seed if they can reach the quarterfinal round with a perfect record, but Lithuania is also in contention for that honor after going 3-0 in pool play and crushing Greece on Friday.

The U.S. hasn’t fared well against larger teams, which will be an issue when it faces Jonas Valanciunas and the Lithuanians. Nikola Vucevic had 18 points and 16 rebounds for Montenegro on Friday while getting Jaren Jackson Jr. in early foul trouble. Lithuania is the top rebounding team in the tournament and has six players who are at least 6’9″.

Vardon suggests that head coach Steve Kerr might consider a lineup change, starting either Paolo Banchero or Bobby Portis alongside Jackson to get more size on the court. But that would take away the advantage in transition offense that allows the Americans to get so many fast break points.

“We understand teams are gonna try to be physical and slow the game down, and (Montenegro) did a good job of that,” Kerr said. “But our whole thing is we feel like over 40 minutes, we can wear the other team down if we stay solid.”

There’s more on Team USA:

Anthony Edwards led the rally against Montenegro with 17 points in the second half, notes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. The Timberwolves guard has emerged as the team’s primary scoring option, but he’s not making a big deal out of the role. “It’s a team sport,” Edwards said. “If I wanted to punch my chest and do that, I’d go play golf or tennis or swimming like Michael Phelps. I’d go do something that’s an individual sport. But it takes five guys to win a basketball game.”
Walker Kessler thought he might be getting bad news when Jazz general manager Justin Zanik said he had a phone call for him, per Ryan Kostecka of NBA.com. Instead, it was head coach Will Hardy on the other end of the line informing Kessler that he had been selected to the World Cup team. “I was kind of freaking out, thinking I might get traded, but then he said it was coach,” Kessler said. “He then told me congrats on making the USA team. … I was definitely kind of speechless, but here I am.”
Mikal Bridges told Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops that the depth of talent on the U.S. roster creates difficult matchups for other teams. “It makes it so tough to beat,” Bridges said. “Even if the starters struggle, we have guys from the bench who are gonna play better than the starters.”

World Cup Notes: Quarterfinals, USA, Canada, Fontecchio

September 1st, 2023 at 1:12pm CST by Luke Adams

Four teams at the 2023 World Cup punched their tickets to the quarterfinals with victories on Friday, as the U.S., Lithuania, Germany, and Slovenia all pushed their records to 4-0 and secured their spots in the eight-team knockout round, eliminating Montenegro, Greece, Australia, and Georgia.

As Armando Caporaso of Sportando tweets, that leaves four win-or-go-home games set for Sunday to determine the other four World Cup quarterfinalists. Those matchups will be Italy vs. Puerto Rico, Brazil vs. Latvia, Serbia vs. the Dominican Republic, and – perhaps most intriguingly – Canada vs. Spain.

Any European team that doesn’t advance to at least the quarterfinals will fail to clinch a spot at the 2024 Olympics in this event and would have to win a qualifying tournament next year in order to try to claim one of the last four Olympic berths.

Puerto Rico, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, and Canada would keep themselves in the running for an Olympic spot with a win on Sunday. If just one of those four teams makes the quarterfinals, that club would join Team USA as the two Americas clubs that will qualify for the Olympics through the World Cup.

As we wait to see how the second round of the World Cup plays out, here are a few more notes on the tournament:

Team USA earned its spot in the quarterfinals by defeating Montenegro in what was its toughest test yet. Montenegro led at halftime and kept the game close until the final minutes, but a closing lineup that included reserve guards Tyrese Haliburton and Austin Reaves helped the U.S. put the game away, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. Haliburton and Reaves took the place of starters Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart while Anthony Edwards scored all 17 of his points in the second half to help lock up the victory.
Team Canada head coach Jordi Fernandez had harsh words for his players after Friday’s upset loss to Brazil, tweets Oren Weisfeld. “Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) has to score the ball and play-make and he didn’t,” Fernandez said. “And I can go down the line. Kelly (Olynyk) has to play-make, rebound and score efficiently – he didn’t. RJ (Barrett) has to run the floor and score efficiently and defend and he didn’t.”
As Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca notes (via Twitter), a loss on Sunday for Canada would ensure that Brazil finishes ahead of them in their group standings, regardless of whether the Brazilians win or lose on Sunday. So the Canadians will need a victory if they want to hang onto a chance to clinch an Olympic berth this year.
Italian forward Simone Fontecchio played a limited role for the Jazz in his first NBA season in 2022/23, but he showed in Friday’s upset victory over Serbia what he’s capable of. As Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops details, Fontecchio led the charge in Italy’s comeback win over the Serbians, pouring in 30 points on 11-of-15 shooting.

World Cup Notes: Edwards, RHJ, Hart, Ingram, Thanasis, Canada

August 30th, 2023 at 2:20pm CST by Luke Adams

Even though Team USA’s 48-point win over Jordan on Wednesday wasn’t exactly a tightly contested affair, former Timberwolves teammates Anthony Edwards and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson enjoyed going back and forth at each other in the third and final first-round game at the World Cup, writes ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.

Edwards had a game-high 22 points, edging out Hollis-Jefferson, who scored 20. The two were on Minnesota’s roster together for a brief period during the 2020 preseason, when RHJ served as a veteran mentor ahead of Edwards’ rookie year. Hollis-Jefferson didn’t end up making the Wolves’ regular season roster.

“We haven’t seen each other since then, so it was fun,” Edwards said. “And yeah, we was talking with smack out there for sure.”

U.S. head coach Steve Kerr made one lineup change ahead of the game vs. Jordan, replacing Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram in the starting five with Knicks forward Josh Hart. As Windhorst observes, Ingram had struggled as spot-up shooter with the first unit and was able to have the ball in his hands more as a reserve. It sounds like the change could stick.

“We just felt like it was important to take a look at Josh with the starting group and Brandon with the next group to see if the combinations fit,” Kerr said after the victory. “I liked what I saw. The game wasn’t competitive, but there was good flow with both groups.”

“They thought it was a better fit for me playing with Tyrese [Haliburton] and playing with some guys that are a little less ball dominant than Jalen [Brunson] and Ant,” Ingram told Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. “They just talked about it being a better fit, and I agreed with them.”

Here are a few more World Cup notes:

Hollis-Jefferson is one of nine non-U.S. players identified by Alberto De Roa of HoopsHype as breakout performers through three World Cup games. Bulls guard Carlik Jones (South Sudan), Wizards forward Xavier Cooks (Australia), and Heat forward Nikola Jovic (Serbia) are among the NBAers who have impressed, as De Roa details.
Bucks forward Thanasis Antetokounmpo, who injured his left adductor in Monday’s loss to the U.S., returned to action for Greece on Wednesday. However, Antetokounmpo played a limited role in the win over New Zealand that clinched the Greeks a spot in the second round, recording more fouls (4) than points (2) in his 14 minutes.
The Canadian national team – which had the best point differential (+111) of any club in the first round – is finally realizing its potential on the international stage, says Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Canada has had no shortage of players in the NBA over the last decade, but those players haven’t always participated in international competitions and have struggled to quickly establish chemistry in the events they’ve played.