2023 FIBA World Cup

[midniteowl]

Great game boys!!! And congrats for the Olympics berth we'll be cheering you on!

[octothorp]

Something about them qualifying for the Olympics... we know almost all of the NBA players who are healthy are going to want to play for the team. There almost certainly won't be room on the roster for guys like Ejim and Scrubb. And in addition to them, there are so many other guys who have given so much to getting Canada to this point, playing in the qualifiers that NBA players aren't available for. So I'd like to think that even if the NBA players who are there this year might care more about the Olympics next year, they recognize that there are guys on the team who have given a lot, and will never be this close to an international medal again.

Basically, I'd just love Ejim and Scrubb to get medals because I've got so much respect and appreciation for what they and all the other qualifying-tournament guys have put into this program.

[GirlySports]

Of the 12 teams who will make up the Olympic field, we now have 6 teams.
Host - France
Americas - USA, Canada
Asia - Japan
Africa - South Sudan
Oceania - Australia

two more from Europe this tournament then 4 from the playoffs next July

[SuperMatt18]

Huge win coming off a disappointing loss and getting down. Great effort.

[greyshep]

Originally Posted by activeStick

Incredibly clutch free throw shooting by Canada there. Spain just wouldn't go away easy. I've been damaged by watching the Raps too long screwing up the end of game free throws, I was so nervous lol. Really awesome win by the boys!

SGA was a machine from the free throw line. They did a great job getting the ball into his hands in those late possessions.

So excited to see Canada in the Olympics for basketball again, the wait has been far too long. We should be in every time based on our talent level, that just seems to keep getting better.

[GirlySports]

Yeah, still sad about Canada in 2000. They had Steve Nash, won the group but lost in the QF. 24 long years, finally a chance to get back.

[octothorp]

Serbia and US advance to the semis. Tough result for Lithuania, to win all of their first four games by +20, play an amazing game to beat the US, and then lose badly in the QFs. Serbia's got exceptional size and really tough defense though, I think they were a really tough matchup.

[activeStick]

Canada up 72-58 in the 3rd

[octothorp]

Canada's had amazing third quarters all tournament long, other than last two minutes of the third against Spain.

[activeStick]

This Canadian team is extremely likable. I want the US so bad.

[activeStick]

To the semis!

Canada vs. Serbia on Friday

[transplant99]

2:45 am Friday for the semi.

Quite a plucky group to be sure.

[PeteMoss]

It sure is nice having one of the best players in the world on your team. SGA with the ball in his hand is a cheat code.

[octothorp]

A couple fun cross-border games set for the classification games: Adriatic battle between Italy/Slovenia for 7/8, and Baltic battle between Lativa/Lithuania for 5/6. Such an amazing tournament for Latvia, without their best player too. They'll probably move up the most in FIBA standings of any team this tournament.

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by octothorp

A couple fun cross-border games set for the classification games: Adriatic battle between Italy/Slovenia for 7/8, and Baltic battle between Lativa/Lithuania for 5/6. Such an amazing tournament for Latvia, without their best player too. They'll probably move up the most in FIBA standings of any team this tournament.

Yeah, Latvia were so close to an Olympic spot too would be huge for a small country. Hope they get in the backdoor next year.

[greyshep]

Ugh 2:45am start time for the semi final. This time zone really blows for watching from Canada. PVR time and notifications turned off again.

[octothorp]

Gonna be a tough, physical game. Really impressive style from both sides so far.

[octothorp]

Really well played by Serbia at both ends and tough foul trouble for a lot of Canadian players. Probably around the same time Sunday morning to play for bronze.

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by activeStick

This Canadian team is extremely likable. I want the US so bad.

Your wish is granted!

Albeit in the bronze medal game.

[octothorp]

Yeah, it'll be interesting, A mostly nba-player game with the best overall player on Canada, the US far deeper, but playing with FIBA rules and (from the games I've watched... only watched a couple full US games) Canada playing more of a FIBA style. It'll be tough but winnable.

This game really highlighted what a difficult position Canada is in in regards to bigs. Olynyk and Powell are both 32 and will be 36 next world cup, and even they give up size against international bigs. Brandon Clarke and Trey Lyles are undersized for playing C in the international game, same with Oliver-Maxence Prosper. I'm a big fan of Edey in terms of how his game translates to FIBA as he continues to develop, but there's no guarantee he gets there (I do really like how Canada Basketball realizes how important his development is to the program and doing everything they can to include him). But there's a real lack of quality bigs in the pipeline, compared to guards where Canada is nearly best-in-the-world in terms of high-end talent and depth. Charles Bediako is the only other guy you could maybe project to be a true C who's got both the size and a dcecent skill level to the point that he's a borderline NBA prospect (not sure what his current status is, signed a non-guaranteed one-year-deal with San Antonio but I'm not sure they've got the roster spots to keep him, but would be great for his development if they did). Lots of bigs emerge during their college years, so hopefully another C emerges. (17-year-old Olivier Rioux is 7'8 but is a loooong way from having any high-level skills.)

I think there's a development issue that the second-tier of Canadian prospects have: they just barely fall through the NBA cracks, and so they go to the G-league, which becomes about developing a skillset that gets you noticed enough that you get a crack with an NBA team... especially true for bigs. But a not-quite-NBA prospect from Europe stays in Europe and is developed as his team's star player under FIBA rules.