FIBA World Cup starts Friday: How to watch, what to know

The U.S. men’s basketball team finished in a disappointing seventh place at the 2019 FIBA World Cup. It was a time of change for the U.S. with Gregg Popovich taking over for Mike Krzyzewski as head coach. The U.S. men rebounded in 2021 with a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

Headed into the 2023 FIBA World Cup starting Friday, the U.S. is going through even more change.

Steve Kerr is the new coach through the World Cup and the 2024 Paris Olympics. Basketball Hall of Famer Grant Hill is in his first go-around as managing director of the men’s national team, replacing Jerry Colangelo, who revitalized the program following a listless bronze-medal effort at the 2004 Athens Olympics. The U.S. roster includes zero players with experience at the international senior level.

However, Kerr has an experienced coaching staff and a roster full of NBA players, and the U.S. is the strong favorite (no guarantee though) to win the FIBA World Cup, which is taking place in three Asian countries.

Here’s what you need to know about the 2023 FIBA World Cup:

When is the FIBA World Cup?

Aug. 25-Sept. 10

Where is the FIBA World Cup?

Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.

Will the FIBA World Cup be televised?

All 92 games will be on ESPN platforms, including ESPN2 and ESPN+. You can also stream at www.courtside1891.basketball for a fee but blackout restrictions apply.

Who are the 32 teams participating?

Twelve teams from Europe, eight from Asia and Oceania, seven from the Americas and five from Africa are divided into eight groups.

Group A: Angola, Dominican Republic, Philippines, Italy

Group B: South Sudan, China, Serbia, Puerto Rico

Group C: USA, Jordan, Greece, New Zealand

Group D: Egypt, Mexico, Montenegro, Lithuania

Group E: Germany, Finland, Australia, Japan

Group F: Slovenia, Cape Verde, Georgia, Venezuela

Group G: Iran, Spain, Ivory Coast, Brazil

Group H: Canada, Latvia, Lebanon, France

What is the format?

In the first round of group play, each team plays the other teams in its group once for a total of three games. The top two teams in each group advance to the second round of group play. The bottom two teams from each group play in the classification round for places 17-32.

The 16 teams that qualify for the second round are split into four, four-team groups. Results from the first round carry over to the second round, and teams play against the two teams they did not face in the first round. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage, starting with the quarterfinals, then the semifinals and final. The losing teams at each stage will play for classification places 9-16 and then 5-8 and 3-4.

What’s at stake?

Beyond becoming World Cup champions and collecting gold, silver and bronze medals, seven 2024 Paris Olympic berths are at stake based on the best finishes from FIBA Africa (one team), FIBA Americas (two teams), FIBA Asia (one team), FIBA Europe (two teams) and FIBA Oceania (one team).

France, the Olympic host country, gets an automatic bid for 2024, and the four remaining Olympic spots will be determined in Olympic qualifying tournaments next year.

Who is on the U.S. roster?

Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic; Mikal Bridges, Brooklyn Nets; Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks; Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves; Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers; Josh Hart, New York Knicks; Brandon Ingram, New Orleans Pelicans; Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis Grizzlies; Cam Johnson, Brooklyn Nets; Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz; Bobby Portis, Milwaukee Bucks; Austin Reaves, Los Angeles Lakers.

Who is coaching the U.S.?

Golden State’s Steve Kerr is the head coach, and he will be joined by assistants Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat, Ty Lue of the Los Angeles Clippers and Mark Few of the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

What is the U.S. schedule, TV info in group play?

Aug. 26: U.S. vs. New Zealand in Philippines, 8:40 a.m. ET, ESPN2

Aug. 28: U.S. vs. Greece in Philippines, 8:40 a.m. ET, ESPN2

Aug. 30: U.S. vs. Jordan in Philippines, 4:40 a.m. ET, ESPN2

Big international names playing in the FIBA World Cup

Canada has talent, and this is the country's best chance for its first FIBA World Cup medal with a roster featuring Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder); RJ Barrett (New York Knicks); Lu Dort (Oklahoma City Thunder); Dillon Brooks (Houston Rockets); Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Minnesota Timberwolves).

Other notable international players: Slovenia’s Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks); Finland’s Lauri Markkanen (Utah Jazz); Dominican Republic’s Karl-Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves); France’s Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves); Germany’s Franz Wagner (Orlando Magic); Australia’s Josh Giddey (Oklahoma City Thunder); Lithuania’s Jonas Valanciunas (New Orleans Pelicans); Spain’s Willy Hernangomez (FC Barcelona); Philippines’ Jordan Clarkson (Utah Jazz); Montenegro’s Nik Vucevic (Chicago Bulls); Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic (Atlanta Hawks); Australia's Patty Mills (Atlanta Hawks); France’s Evan Fournier (New York Knicks); Germany’s Dennis Schroder (Toronto Raptors); Japan’s Yuta Watanabe (Phoenix Suns).

Big international names not playing in the FIBA World Cup

Serbia’s Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets); Greece’s Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks); France’s Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs); Latvia’s Kristaps Porzingis (Boston Celtics); Spain’s Ricky Rubio (Cleveland Cavaliers); Canada’s Jamal Murray (Denver Nuggets); Japan’s Rui Hachimura (Los Angeles Lakers).

Who are the top contenders to win the FIBA World Cup?

The Americans are listed as considerable favorites to win the event, with BetMGM giving them -133 odds to claim the title:

USA -133France +800Canada +1000Australia +1000Serbia +1400Spain +1400Slovenia +1600

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