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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.
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And-Ones: Ignite, 2024 Draft, Unsuccessful Pairings, Eddy Curry

September 7th, 2023 at 10:01am CST by Arthur Hill

The G League Ignite’s impressive collection of talent was on display Wednesday night in Nevada, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic. Six players who may be selected in next year’s draft were on the court for the Ignite, and a seventh, Thierry Darlan of France, missed the game against Perth, Australia, with an ankle injury.

The biggest attraction was guard Ron Holland, whom Hollinger considers the “betting favorite” to be the top pick in 2024. Hollinger adds that Holland isn’t a clear-cut No. 1 choice like Victor Wembanyama was this year, but he looked good in his first pro game, using a mix of explosiveness and ferocity to put up 23 points.

“Ron is very, very competitive” Ignite coach Jason Hart said. “So now I’m wanting to channel it to where the opposition doesn’t know if you’re mad or you’re happy. I just told him to relax, calm down … I think he heard me. But that’s going to be a process because he’s so competitive, and I don’t want to take that from him. That’s his thing; he’s just has to learn how to use it.”

Matas Buzelis and Izan Almansa, who are projected to be top-10 picks, also showed off their skills, Hollinger adds, along with Tyler Smith, London Johnson and Perth prospects Alex Sarr and Ben Henshall. The teams will meet again on Friday.

There’s more from around the basketball world:

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World Cup Notes: Haddadi, USA, France, Dominican Republic

September 3rd, 2023 at 1:44pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Following a two-decade run with Team Iran’s national club, 38-year-old center Hamed Haddadi is retiring from international competition, according to Eurohoops.

“I have had a long career with the national team since the 2000s,” Haddadi said following his final stint, against Team Lebanon, in which he notched 14 points and eight boards. “I try to play when I can even if I’m out of shape. I feel good but upset too because I’m leaving my team.”

Haddadi has been playing abroad since his last NBA experience, in 2012/13 with the Suns. All told, the 7’2″ big man spent five seasons in the league, averaging 2.2 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 151 regular season bouts.

Here are more notes from the World Cup:

  • Massive disadvantages in rebounding and three-point shooting efficiency, along with a general height disadvantage, doomed Team U.S.A. to its first 2023 FIBA World Cup defeat on Sunday, a 110-104 loss to Lithuania, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. Shooting guard Austin Reaves considers the loss a potentially galvanizing moment for the now-4-1 club, heading into the quarterfinals of the tournament, per Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews. “We were down by 17 at the halftime,” Reaves said. “It’s hard to climb back from a deficit like that. When you do that, it’s hard… But tip the hat off, they shot the ball from three really well. Offensively, they were really well. Congrats to them.”
  • Hall of Fame point guard Tony Parker recently spoke to RMC Radio’s The Stephen Time Show at length about his native France’s upset early ouster from World Cup competition (hat tip to Eurohoops for the transcription). “There, we really experienced a fiasco,” Parker said. “It’s not normal for such a team to lose in the first round. We have never seen Spain and the United States go out in the first round. And it’s a shame because our generation worked so hard to bring France back to a certain level, so that we could be respected, by FIBA, the referees, the other countries. It’s so hard to have respect… We have to improve the team [ahead of next year’s Paris Olympics], we need changes, but it’s not going to be easy.”
  • After a 112-79 defeat against Team Serbia, Karl-Anthony Towns‘ Dominican Republic national team was eliminated from the World Cup prior to the tournament’s quarterfinals. Towns told reporters after the loss that he deeply enjoyed his experience despite the ouster, according to Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops. “This is some of the most fun basketball I’ve ever played,” Towns said. “Coming here, the world expected us to fall flat in our faces, not being a contender and not winning games. Being one of those easy opponents to face, but we didn’t do that at all. We came out here and I hope we made our country proud with the way we competed. The way we fought. And I think the biggest word is we made our country believe.”
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Western Notes: Kings, Brooks, Jones, Lillard, Timberwolves

August 28th, 2023 at 5:32pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Kings decided to tweak the roster rather than make major changes this offseason after finally reaching the postseason in the spring. They acquired Chris Duarte in a trade and re-signed Harrison Barnes and Trey Lyles. They also signed EuroLeague star Sasha Vezenkov.

Kings coach Mike Brown is excited to have his core group back and is eager to see how they respond to the newfound respect they’ve gained after snapping the franchise’s long playoff drought.

“I’m looking forward to seeing how we can handle the pressure,” the Kings coach said. “It’s flipped now. We’re no longer hunting people; people are hunting us. And there are expectations, so how do we handle that? I believe our guys are ready for it, and with the fans that we have here and the juice they brought last year – let’s go. Let’s get it. I’m excited for Sasha, I’m excited for Chris Duarte, I’m excited about our young guys. It’s good to have the new guys, but I’m more excited about having our guys to be able to run it back and give them the opportunity to grow as a nucleus than anything else.”

We have more from the Western Conference:

  • The Grizzlies allowed Dillon Brooks in free agency and traded Tyus Jones. So what have they lost? Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal explores that topic. The Grizzlies have become known for their flashy style and trash talking and Brooks was a major reason for that. Jones was a locker room leader and led the league in assist-to-turnover ratio in each of his four seasons with the club.
  • Trail Blazers fans want the Damian Lillard saga to be resolved soon. In a poll conducted by Jason Quick of The Athletic, 80.4% want the front office to take the best offer for their longtime All-Star and prioritize the team ahead of Lillard. However, the high-scoring guard was voted as the franchise’s greatest player (51.9%), ahead of Clyde Drexler and Bill Walton.
  • Anthony Edwards (United States), Karl-Anthony Towns (Dominican Republic), Rudy Gobert (France), Kyle Anderson (China), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Canada) and draft-and-stash prospect Matteo Spagnolo (Italy) are participating in the World Cup, while Luka Garza played for Bosnia and Herzegovina in a pre-qualifying Olympic tournament. That should give those Timberwolves players a head start to the NBA season, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Alexander-Walker agrees with the notion. “I want to use it to propel me for the season,” he said.
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World Cup Notes: Towns, F. Wagner, Canada, Ingram

August 27th, 2023 at 9:04am CST by Arthur Hill

Led by Karl-Anthony Towns, the Dominican Republic is the early surprise team of this year’s World Cup, writes Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops. The Timberwolves‘ big man posted 24 points, 11 rebounds and five assists Sunday as the Dominican team took down highly ranked Italy, and he told reporters the result shouldn’t be considered a surprise.

“Was this an upset?” Towns asked. “I thought we wanted to win. We had great things in the second half, that’s what brought us the victory. We did a great job as a team, everybody down the line was amazing.”

As the only 2-0 team in Group A and one game left against Angola, the Dominican Republic is in excellent position to move past pool play. Towns may be the most recognizable player, but he’s not the team’s only weapon. Andres Feliz also scored 24 points, including seven three-pointers, while Jean Montero contributed 12 points, nine assists, six rebounds and three steals.

Italy is now in the unexpected position of having to defeat the host Philippines on Tuesday just to advance.

There’s more from the World Cup:

  • Germany got past Australia without Magic forward Franz Wagner, who sat out the game with a “slight sprained ankle,” per Olgun Uluc of ESPN. Wagner is considered day-to-day, but the Germans opted to rest him against their toughest opponent in Group E.
  • Canada enjoyed a record-setting day in its 55-point victory over Lebanon. Its 128 points were the most ever for a Canadian team, and its 43 assists set a record for a World Cup game, tweets Blake Murphy of Sportsnet. Canada was able to rest Thunder wing Luguentz Dort, who is dealing with a minor injury, as nine players scored in double figures, adds Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports (Twitter link).
  • Team USA has a roster filled with talented scorers, so it’s hard for everyone to get the opportunities they’re accustomed to, notes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. The most glaring example so far is Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, who was limited to four shots and two points in 15 minutes in the opening game against New Zealand. “This is totally different than what I am used to,” Ingram said. “The team is winning right now, so I can’t be selfish thinking about myself.  But it’s a little frustrating right now for me, and I’m just trying to figure out ways I can be effective.”
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World Cup Notes: Canada, Fournier, USA, Mills, Towns

August 25th, 2023 at 1:07pm CST by Luke Adams

The Canadian national team hasn’t had a ton of success in international competition in recent years and is missing top players like Jamal Murray and Andrew Wiggins at this year’s World Cup. However, Team Canada looked formidable its first group-play game on Friday, outscoring a talented French club by 27 points in the second half en route to a 95-65 win.

“We got our ass kicked,” French wing Evan Fournier told reporters after the game, per Antonis Stroggylakis of Eurohoops. “… They were really physical with us. Taking us out of our set plays. And as a team I think they kind of forced us to do things that we don’t want to do.”

The Canadians leaned heavily on their NBA talent in the victory, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, RJ Barrett, Dillon Brooks, Luguentz Dort, Dwight Powell, Kelly Olynyk, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker all playing at least 20 minutes. Melvin Ejim was the only other player to log more than five minutes in the game.

Gilgeous-Alexander was the standout, racking up 27 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists in just 27 minutes of action. Powell (+35 in 23 minutes) and Brooks (+33 in 26 minutes) anchored Canada’s aggressive defense.

Canada will face Lebanon on Sunday, while France will look to bounce back against Latvia.

Here’s more on the World Cup:

  • In an Insider-only story, Jonathan Givony and Kevin Pelton of ESPN pick their 15 most interesting players at the World Cup, including reigning NCAA national player of the year Zach Edey (Canada), projected 2024 first-rounder Juan Nunez (Spain) and Fournier (France), who scored a team-high 21 points on Friday after spending most of last season glued to the Knicks‘ bench. A strong World Cup could help earn Fournier a new NBA opportunity via trade or buyout, Pelton notes.
  • Team USA entered Friday as the strong frontrunners to win the 2023 World Cup, but head coach Steve Kerr knows the team can’t afford to get overconfident, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes. “Last time through this tournament, we finished seventh, we lost (two) games,” Kerr said. “We recognize how hard this is. These are not the days of 1992. … We may be one of the favorites, but I don’t think anybody’s clear cut. I think there’s a lot of teams that have a shot at this thing.”
  • Following an eventful offseason that saw him traded from Brooklyn to Houston to Oklahoma City to Atlanta, veteran guard Patty Mills provided a reminder on Friday of what he can bring to a team. The Hawks guard scored a team-high 25 points in Australia’s resounding win over Finland. “No surprises there,” Jack White said of Mills’ performance, per Olgun Uluc of ESPN. “We know he can turn it on; that’s what he does… he’s a hell of a leader and it’s what we expect from him.”
  • Prior to the start of the World Cup, Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns spoke to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic about why he’s playing for the Dominican Republic and what it means to him to represent his mother’s native country. Towns and the Dominican Republic team got off to a strong start on Friday, defeating the host Philippines in a game that set a new World Cup attendance record (38,115), as Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press details. Towns scored 26 points in the 87-81 win.
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World Cup Notes: Bridges, Johnson, Team USA, Towns

August 19th, 2023 at 8:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mikal Bridges‘ and Cameron Johnson‘s careers have mirrored each other, from breaking into the NBA with Phoenix to being sent to the Nets in the same trade and now making their debuts together with Team USA, writes Vishakha Deshpande of USA Basketball. Nicknamed “The Twins” because of their close friendship, Bridges and Johnson are enjoying their experience as they try to win a gold medal at the FIBA World Cup.

“It’s just really amazing to be here with him (Johnson),” Bridges said. “It’s wild to even think that I didn’t know Cam very well five years ago and with every passing season we get closer. And now being here and playing for USA, it’s just such an honor.”

Many of the NBA’s top stars are skipping the World Cup with an eye toward playing in the Olympics next summer. That has created opportunities for not just Johnson and Bridges, but the rest of the U.S. roster, which is largely made up of players in their first major international competition.

“It’s been amazing,” Bridges said. “We’re all kind of like the same age. It’s a fun set of guys and we got along really fast. We weren’t worried about that at all when we got here. The goal is to get gold for USA.”

There’s more on the World Cup:

  • With Team USA’s first World Cup game one week away, head coach Steve Kerr appears to have settled on a starting lineup, observes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. Kerr used the same starting five for the fourth straight game as the Americans defeated Greece in an exhibition Friday, penciling in Bridges alongside Anthony Edwards, Jalen Brunson, Brandon Ingram and Jaren Jackson Jr. “It’s so hard because you only have a couple weeks and then you jump right into the tournament,” Kerr said. “So I like the stability of that (starting) group.”
  • They haven’t gotten much notice, but John Jenkins, Langston Galloway and Eric Mika have been working with Team USA in advance of the World Cup, per Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. The three players – who played for the U.S. during the World Cup qualifiers – won’t accompany the team to Manila for the tournament, but they’ve been actively involved in the preparation as members of the U.S. Select Team. “To see them win it all, it’d be a huge moment for me, John, Eric,” Galloway said. “We helped get them here. Now let’s finish the job.” 
  • Karl-Anthony Towns was ejected from the Dominican Republic’s exhibition game with Spain after picking up two technical fouls, tweets Chrisos Tsaltas of Sportal. The Timberwolves‘ big man put up 20 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes before being tossed.
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And-Ones: Washington, Available FAs, Player Tiers, CBA

August 15th, 2023 at 10:38am CST by Luke Adams

Exploring possible destinations for some of the top remaining free agents, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report suggests that many people around the league think that P.J. Washington – the only standard restricted free agent still on the board – will eventually accept his qualifying offer from the Hornets. Pincus also confirms that the Lakers have conveyed interest in big man Christian Wood.

In considering a potential landing spot for Kelly Oubre, who averaged more than 20 points per game last season, Pincus notes that Memphis makes some sense. While it’s not clear if the Grizzlies have actually expressed interest in Oubre, Pincus points out that they haven’t really replaced Dillon Brooks at forward and have some young players – such as Ziaire Williams or Josh Christopher – who might appeal to the Hornets in a sign-and-trade scenario.

Here are a few more odds and ends from the league:

  • Seth Partnow of The Athletic has published the first two installments of his player tier rankings for the 2023/24 season. Breaking down the top 125 players of the league into five tiers, Partnow lists 45 players in tier five – including Warriors sharpshooter Klay Thompson and Raptors forward Scottie Barnes – and 41 more in tier four, such as Kings center Domantas Sabonis, Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, and Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns. Partnow’s top three tiers will consist of 39 players and will presumably be posted later this week.
  • Now that hoarding cap room into the regular season is no longer a viable strategy, Rob Mahoney of The Ringer wonders how the new Collective Bargaining Agreement will change the way that rebuilding teams approach future offseasons.
  • With no sign that the Damian Lillard or James Harden situations will be resolved anytime soon, John Hollinger of The Athletic questions whether the NBA’s player empowerment era has reached its ceiling. During the last several years, stars who ask for trades have sought increasingly specific destinations despite having less and less leverage, Hollinger observes, adding that the outcomes for Lillard and Harden could create new benchmarks for future star trade requests.
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World Cup Notes: Towns, Team USA, Barrett, Doncic

August 14th, 2023 at 10:41am CST by Arthur Hill

Karl-Anthony Towns‘ decision to represent the Dominican Republic in the FIBA World Cup is a way to honor his late mother, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. Jacqueline Cruz-Towns, a Dominican native, died from COVID during the early stages of the pandemic. She helped to inspire the commitment from Towns, who hasn’t played in an international tournament for more than a decade.

“There was a lot that went into the decision,” the Timberwolves‘ forward/center said. “The timing is right. I didn’t put as much stress on my body this last season because of the (calf) injury. I’m feeling great now, I’m 100% and feeling like myself again. It’s a perfect time to work on some things in my game. And with my mom’s passing, I felt an urgency to do it.”

The Dominican team won’t have Al Horford or Chris Duarte, but Towns’ presence will give them a chance of advancing. They’ll start out in pool play with Italy, Angola and the Philippines, which will host the Americas region when the tournament begins August 26.

Towns is also hoping to use the World Cup as a springboard to a better season with Minnesota. He missed 51 straight games with the calf issue, and his late-season return wasn’t enough to help the team get past the first round of the playoffs.

“The (Wolves were) very supportive when I came to them to talk about playing,” Towns said. “There’s a lot of commitment to get better this season, and for all of us this will be a head start.”

There’s more on the World Cup:

  • Team USA got its first taste of adversity in Sunday’s game against the top-ranked Spanish team in Malaga, notes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. The Americans faced a rabid crowd as Spain erased a 10-point halftime deficit to take the lead in the third quarter. “Atmosphere is contagious,” Mikal Bridges said. “And that’s funny. I was talking to my teammates about playing in the national championship, playing in the finals is just a different type of atmosphere. And this is like one thing that you dream of, and we aren’t even in the stadium in the Philippines (for the World Cup). But even coming here and being in Spain, this is ridiculous, man. I’m happy I’m a part of this, happy I’m going through this.”
  • While Jalen Brunson made all nine of his shots from the field as the U.S. pulled out a victory, Knicks teammate RJ Barrett scored 31 points in Canada’s overtime win over Germany in the finals of the DBB SuperCup tournament, per Christian Arnold of The New York Post. “(Shai Gilgeous-Alexander), (Kelly Olynyk) and the guys are out there making it easy for me to do my thing, but it’s been a lot of fun,” Barrett said.
  • Luka Doncic told reporters, including Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops, that he feels he has something to prove after Slovenia’s early exit in last year’s EuroBasket. “I disappointed my team. I let my whole country down. It was my fault,” Doncic said. “I’ll be back. I will always play for Slovenia if I am not injured.”
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Timberwolves Notes: Staff Changes, Edwards, Towns

August 2nd, 2023 at 2:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have promoted college scouting coordinator Josh Gershon to director of basketball intelligence and assistant general manager of the Iowa Wolves, their G League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. Minnesota also announced the promotions of Jeff Newton (assistant coach/quality control coach) and James White (player development assistant).

White’s name is probably the most recognizable of those three — he was the 31st overall pick in the 2006 draft and appeared in a total of 63 NBA games with the Spurs, Rockets, and Knicks between 2006-13. He has since transitioned to coaching, having been an assistant in Iowa last season. Both he and Newton – who was Iowa’s head coach for the past two years – will join Chris Finch‘s staff in Minnesota.

“All three have earned their new roles and added responsibilities. Working with each has been wonderful,” president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said of Gershon, Newton, and White. “As an organization we have benefited greatly from their unique backgrounds. Excited to see the continued growth of Josh, Jeff and James. All three have tremendously bright futures.”

Here’s more on the T-Wolves:

  • Rising star Anthony Edwards is changing his jersey number from No. 1 to No. 5 for the coming season, per Shams Charania and Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. While a number change shouldn’t have any real on-court impact on Edwards, The Athletic’s duo – in detailing the importance of No. 5 to the Timberwolves guard – note that he’s a “vibes player,” so if he feels better wearing his new number, it should only benefit the team. “He’s already a player that has confidence, but I think you’ll see a little step up in his swagger with the No. 5 on his chest,” said Edwards’ friend and business manager Justin Holland.
  • In the latest episode of his Jon Krawczynski Show podcast, the beat writer from The Athletic discusses Karl-Anthony Towns‘ decision to represent the Dominican Republic in the upcoming World Cup, observing that the Timberwolves big man is feeling 100% again after missing most of last season due to a calf injury. “He said it several times, both publicly and privately as well, that he could just feel that that calf was not where it needed to be,” Krawczynski said (per HoopsHype). “And when I caught up with him in Las Vegas, he said that he was feeling fully healthy again, for the first time since before he was injured.”
  • As our roster counts page shows, the Timberwolves are currently carrying 14 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals, with a two-way qualifying offer still on the table for swingman Matt Ryan. If Ryan were to accept that QO, Minnesota would have no open two-way slots left, but would still have room to add up to four additional players to its offseason roster.
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