FIBA World Rankings

[Federoy]

And yet, Most of American people, media, and some players still can't believe that way... I guess they only know Olympics as international sport while lots of tournaments including FIBA WC they were ignored....

Don't lay that on just the American public and media. Most in the basketball community worldwide knows that outside of the Olympics, the US isn't sending it's A+ team. Ultimately, the rankings don't mean anything in terms of measuring the strength of national programs.

[tonia]

Don't lay that on just the American public and media. Most in the basketball community worldwide knows that outside of the Olympics, the US isn't sending it's A+ team. Ultimately, the rankings don't mean anything in terms of measuring the strength of national programs.

European basketball has raised its level and European players stand out in the NBA. US should start sending their best players, if they want to be considered as the strongest team.

[mojo13]

European basketball has raised its level and European players stand out in the NBA. US should start sending their best players, if they want to be considered as the strongest team.

I don't know about that.

Here is a fair list of the Top 100 players in the NBA.

https://nbarankings.theringer.com/

Only three of the Top 30 are European (Giannis, Luka, Jokic). 6 of the Top 50. About 13 of the Top 100.


The vast majority are still American. They could pull a team together from just the 50-100 ranked players and destroy everyone in the world IF (and this is a big IF) they actually built a proper team with the right roles and played together for a small amount of time. You know...build an actual team instead of throwing together a mish-mash of poor fitting players that have never played FIBA or together, practice for a week, play a few exhibition games and then play the event. That give you the 2019 USA World Cup team.

Otherwise yeah...they really need a few of the Top 10 players on the team and that is the 2021 Olympic Gold medal team.

The USA knows what it needs to win. They can win everytime if they were motivated to. Instead they try for the easy path, which usually works for the Olympics (and sometimes the World) but they become vunerable when the Top 20 players don't show (often the Worlds, as the USA doesnt care about that one).

I think this Worlds will have a poor showing and unless they stumble into a well fitted team, with guys in the right roles, with some chemistry I expect they go down in the quarters or semis.




Here is a question....
How do you all think the USA would do in the WC if they just took the Boston Celtics or Golden State Warriors and called that Team USA? Of course remove Wiggins, Horford etc and perhaps (or perhaps not) replace them with equivalents.

[tonia]

I don't know about that.

Here is a fair list of the Top 100 players in the NBA.

https://nbarankings.theringer.com/

Only three of the Top 30 are European (Giannis, Luka, Jokic). 6 of the Top 50. About 13 of the Top 100.


The vast majority are still American. They could pull a team together from just the 50-100 ranked players and destroy everyone in the world IF (and this is a big IF) they actually built a proper team with the right roles and played together for a small amount of time. You know...build an actual team instead of throwing together a mish-mash of poor fitting players that have never played FIBA or together, practice for a week, play a few exhibition games and then play the event. That give you the 2019 USA World Cup team.

Otherwise yeah...they really need a few of the Top 10 players on the team and that is the 2021 Olympic Gold medal team.

The USA knows what it needs to win. They can win everytime if they were motivated to. Instead they try for the easy path, which usually works for the Olympics (and sometimes the World) but they become vunerable when the Top 20 players don't show (often the Worlds, as the USA doesnt care about that one).

I think this Worlds will have a poor showing and unless they stumble into a well fitted team, with guys in the right roles, with some chemistry I expect they go down in the quarters or semis.




Here is a question....
How do you all think the USA would do in the WC if they just took the Boston Celtics or Golden State Warriors and called that Team USA? Of course remove Wiggins, Horford etc and perhaps (or perhaps not) replace them with equivalents.

According to https://nbarankings.theringer.com/, Giannis is 1st, Jokic 3d and Luka 4th of the list of the top 100 players in the NBA, so it is not precise to say that they are just 3 of the top 30 players in the NBA. Besides that, the last four winners of the MVP are European (Giannis (2019,2020) and Jokic (2021, 2022)) - fist time in the history of NBA . Ofcourse, the majority of top 100 players are American but only 12 top players are needed to make up the national team. My point is that European basketball has become more competitive, therefore US team may be really strong but will need to fight hard in order to win a gold medal.

[mojo13]

According to https://nbarankings.theringer.com/, Giannis is 1st, Jokic 3d and Luka 4th of the list of the top 100 players in the NBA, so it is not precise to say that they are just 3 of the top 30 players in the NBA. Besides that, the last four winners of the MVP are European (Giannis (2019,2020) and Jokic (2021, 2022)) - fist time in the history of NBA . Ofcourse, the majority of top 100 players are American but only 12 top players are needed to make up the national team. My point is that European basketball has become more competitive, therefore US team may be really strong but will need to fight hard in order to win a gold medal.

So Slovenia, Greece and Serbia can build a team with 1 Top 20 player each. The USA can still pull together 12 if they wanted to. Greece and Slovenia don't have another player in the Top what? 200? 400?

Just give the USA Players 20-32 on that list and more than a 1 week training camp and they should still smoke most everyone else. It is not a talent question - it is getting the players in the right roles and enough time to build semi-decent chemistry - which they only seem to wake up and do when the lose at the Olmypics.

They just wont the last Olympics - so I doubt they take this World Cup too seriously.

My point is that the talent is still there in abandunce - but the effort or interest really isn't.


As said above the Boston Celtics (less Dominican Al Horford) would roll easily through this World Cup.

[tonia]

So Slovenia, Greece and Serbia can build a team with 1 Top 20 player each. The USA can still pull together 12 if they wanted to. Greece and Slovenia don't have another player in the Top what? 200? 400?

Just give the USA Players 20-32 on that list and more than a 1 week training camp and they should still smoke most everyone else. It is not a talent question - it is getting the players in the right roles and enough time to build semi-decent chemistry - which they only seem to wake up and do when the lose at the Olmypics.

They just wont the last Olympics - so I doubt they take this World Cup too seriously.

My point is that the talent is still there in abandunce - but the effort or interest really isn't.


As said above the Boston Celtics (less Dominican Al Horford) would roll easily through this World Cup.

Slovenia, Greece and Serbia built a team with 1 Top 10 player each in Eurobasket 2022, but none of the three won a medal. It's a fact that many NBA stars don't perform as well in national team tournaments, where they play with FIBA rules. For example, the MVP of last Olympics, Durant, averaged 18 points while he averaged around 27 points with the Nets. It's also a fact that the US team is no longer unbeatable (they lost, for instance, against France in last Olympics). Of course there is a lot of talent in the US team but they will probably need to make some effort in order to win the gold medal in the World cup. About the example of Boston Celtics, I would say that if not all, almost all national teams don't have enough preparation time, so any NBA team would have a great advantage. Otherwise, who knows if Boston Celtics would perform as well in a FIBA tournament with a smaller court, no defensive 3 second violation, etc..

[Giannis34GOD]

I don't know about that.

Here is a fair list of the Top 100 players in the NBA.

https://nbarankings.theringer.com/

Only three of the Top 30 are European (Giannis, Luka, Jokic). 6 of the Top 50. About 13 of the Top 100.


The vast majority are still American. They could pull a team together from just the 50-100 ranked players and destroy everyone in the world IF (and this is a big IF) they actually built a proper team with the right roles and played together for a small amount of time. You know...build an actual team instead of throwing together a mish-mash of poor fitting players that have never played FIBA or together, practice for a week, play a few exhibition games and then play the event. That give you the 2019 USA World Cup team.

Otherwise yeah...they really need a few of the Top 10 players on the team and that is the 2021 Olympic Gold medal team.

The USA knows what it needs to win. They can win everytime if they were motivated to. Instead they try for the easy path, which usually works for the Olympics (and sometimes the World) but they become vunerable when the Top 20 players don't show (often the Worlds, as the USA doesnt care about that one).

I think this Worlds will have a poor showing and unless they stumble into a well fitted team, with guys in the right roles, with some chemistry I expect they go down in the quarters or semis.




Here is a question....
How do you all think the USA would do in the WC if they just took the Boston Celtics or Golden State Warriors and called that Team USA? Of course remove Wiggins, Horford etc and perhaps (or perhaps not) replace them with equivalents.

But if you compare to that 1990-2000s to this current era, team USA is not untouchable now.. France can beat US even the latter will bring their best players... If France wins in the Embiid Sweepstakes over USA then that's the big problem for team USA, Wembayanma can slide down to 4 (or even 3 in some situations) and if he's healthy and improving that the scouts expect to him (bigger KD), No one in current team USA version can match up on him 1 on 1... how can you block his jumpshots? He's too tall and his midrange or sometimes money!!! If KD is already unstoppable in FIBA competitions then if he (Wemby) develops the same way as KD? Then team USA will be in trouble anytime he's there for France....

[Giannis34GOD]

So Slovenia, Greece and Serbia can build a team with 1 Top 20 player each. The USA can still pull together 12 if they wanted to. Greece and Slovenia don't have another player in the Top what? 200? 400?

Just give the USA Players 20-32 on that list and more than a 1 week training camp and they should still smoke most everyone else. It is not a talent question - it is getting the players in the right roles and enough time to build semi-decent chemistry - which they only seem to wake up and do when the lose at the Olmypics.

They just wont the last Olympics - so I doubt they take this World Cup too seriously.

My point is that the talent is still there in abandunce - but the effort or interest really isn't.


As said above the Boston Celtics (less Dominican Al Horford) would roll easily through this World Cup.

Yeah, But the problem for team USA has always the commitment, loyalty for the country and preparation... Let's see next year who will play for team USA in Manila? I heard Tyler Herro wants to play and he's committed to that....

[mojo13]

Yeah, But the problem for team USA has always the commitment, loyalty for the country and preparation... Let's see next year who will play for team USA in Manila? I heard Tyler Herro wants to play and he's committed to that....

Oh wow...Tyler Herro...bring home the gold.


The problem for Team USA is not ALWAYS the commitment, loyalty for the country and preparation. But USUALLY it is.

They get complacent. It seems only after failing to win gold at an Olympics do they re-committ to loyalty for the country and preparation. Watch The Redeem Team documentary on Netflix. I am almost certain Team USA needs to be embarrassed at the Paris 2024 Olympics (probably by France) for USA Basketball and the players to re-commit to the prgram an build a real team again.

I think this World Cup they once again fall to win the gold (maybe not even a medal). But I'm not sure anyone will care too much and they won't adjust for the 2024 Olympics.

Maybe you are right....maybe this time they don't have the young Lebron, Anthony, Wade, Bosh to put with a killer Kobe to pull it all together. But I still think they do - there is enough young talent among Morant, Zion, Trae, Tatum, Booker, Brown, Edwards, Garland and some still Top 20 vets in Curry, Durant, Lillard, James to pull it all togather.

[Giannis34GOD]

Oh wow...Tyler Herro...bring home the gold.


The problem for Team USA is not ALWAYS the commitment, loyalty for the country and preparation. But USUALLY it is.

They get complacent. It seems only after failing to win gold at an Olympics do they re-committ to loyalty for the country and preparation. Watch The Redeem Team documentary on Netflix. I am almost certain Team USA needs to be embarrassed at the Paris 2024 Olympics (probably by France) for USA Basketball and the players to re-commit to the prgram an build a real team again.

I think this World Cup they once again fall to win the gold (maybe not even a medal). But I'm not sure anyone will care too much and they won't adjust for the 2024 Olympics.

Maybe you are right....maybe this time they don't have the young Lebron, Anthony, Wade, Bosh to put with a killer Kobe to pull it all together. But I still think they do - there is enough young talent among Morant, Zion, Trae, Tatum, Booker, Brown, Edwards, Garland and some still Top 20 vets in Curry, Durant, Lillard, James to pull it all togather.

Morant, Zion, Tatum, etc... are not the same or level that the likes of LBJ, Melo and Wade brings to team USA... I don't know why... I see something missing to the current generation of American ballers especially in killer instinct... If not for KD, The 2021 Olympic gold will be on France... Actually team USA was lucky that the tournament was postponed... If the Olympics was not postponed last 2020... Team USA will not win the gold because KD still recovering from injury that time

[mojo13]

Morant, Zion, Tatum, etc... are not the same or level that the likes of LBJ, Melo and Wade brings to team USA... I don't know why... I see something missing to the current generation of American ballers especially in killer instinct... If not for KD, The 2021 Olympic gold will be on France... Actually team USA was lucky that the tournament was postponed... If the Olympics was not postponed last 2020... Team USA will not win the gold because KD still recovering from injury that time

Lebron, Steph Curry, Jayson Tatum and Athnony Davis are all Top 10 players in the World. Who is to say one, two or all will not be in Paris in 2023?

And once again there is plenty of talent to just have players outside the Top 10 - assuming they'd play together for more than a week or two to prep.

Ja Morant
Devon Booker
Paul George
Zion Williamson
Bam Adebayo

Damian Lillard
Jaylen Brown
Tyrese Haliburton
Donvan Mitchell
Jimmy Butler
Brandon Ingram
Evan Mobley
Darius Garland
Jrue Holiday
Draymond Green
Bradley Beal


It is an embarrassment of talent. The question is if Team USA will bother to get guys into the right roles, get them bought into to those roles and prepare them properly. This is where I will continue to have doubts until they lose the Olympics again.

[Giannis34GOD]

Lebron, Steph Curry, Jayson Tatum and Athnony Davis are all Top 10 players in the World. Who is to say one, two or all will not be in Paris in 2023?

And once again there is plenty of talent to just have players outside the Top 10 - assuming they'd play together for more than a week or two to prep.

Ja Morant
Devon Booker
Paul George
Zion Williamson
Bam Adebayo

Damian Lillard
Jaylen Brown
Tyrese Haliburton
Donvan Mitchell
Jimmy Butler
Brandon Ingram
Evan Mobley
Darius Garland
Jrue Holiday
Draymond Green
Bradley Beal


It is an embarrassment of talent. The question is if Team USA will bother to get guys into the right roles, get them bought into to those roles and prepare them properly. This is where I will continue to have doubts until they lose the Olympics again.

Still, this is huge downgrade, To let's say the 2014 WC roster of USA team... That was composed of guys like Curry, Harden, Kyrie, AD, Rose, DeRozan, Klay, etc.... This current generation of American players are not that impactful than the last decade, Maybe still favorites but don't expect them to blowout the opponents... The last year's Olympics was the example of that.. They were saved by greatness of KD... w/o KD, they will not win the gold, Or if the Olympics last year was not moved to 2021, Since KD in 2020 is on sidelined due to injury.. Tatum is not that guy who can bring team USA to greatness, As he was certified a choker (remember last finals when he was a disappointment vs GSW), While Morant is not ready to be a next guy who can take KD's role, Not yet... While Young, Zion, and others are not yet proving to their respective careers as a legit superstars, They are all inconsistent... In 2023/2024 summer of team USA, they needed guys like KD or Steph to bail them out... Or else, they will go again on the same fate just like 2019... And one thing, they are all need to adjust to FIBA calls.. Remember guys like Booker, Lilliard were struggling in FIBA rules because they need to integrate themselves first to FIBA rules because most of them are not familiar with it..

[mojo13]

Updated FIBA World Rankings

1.	USA	1.	USA	786.6	+1
2.	Spain	1.	ESP	778.2	-1
3.	Germany	2.	GER	759.7	+8
4.	Australia	1.	AUS	755.8	-1
5.	Serbia	3.	SRB	755.6	+1
6.	Canada	2.	CAN	745.5	+9
7.	Argentina	3.	ARG	743.8	-3
8.	Latvia	4.	LAT	743.7	+22
9.	France	5.	FRA	736.3	-4
10.	Lithuania	6.	LTU	715.5	-2
11.	Slovenia	7.	SLO	700.8	-4
12.	Brazil	4.	BRA	660.5	+1
13.	Italy	8.	ITA	653.9	-3
14.	Greece	9.	GRE	641.3	-5
15.	Poland	10.	POL	619.8	-1
16.	Puerto Rico	5.	PUR	611.1	+5
17.	Montenegro	11.	MNE	606.2	+2
18.	Dominican Republic	6.	DOM	561.9	+6
19.	Czech Republic	12.	CZE	561.1	-7
20.	Finland	13.	FIN	542.5	+5

https://www.fiba.basketball/rankingmen

[mojo13]

Massive jump for Latvia (as well as Canada and Germany).

Latvia (and Canada to a degree) just don't have allot of historical data points in past major tournments, so a high result here (with a 2.5x weighting) is just going to pull on their points average so drastically. Seems shocking for Latvia to move 22 spots but when you think about how the formula works it makes sense. They will be more volitile to movement up and down until they have more historical data points at bigger events (Olympics, WC, Eurobasket).