Team USA Basketball

Team USA will not be lacking starpower at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

With Draymond Green and Stephen Curry having already expressed their interest in representing their country next summer, Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson has made his intentions known as well.

"I would love to play (for) Team USA," Thompson told The Athletic's Marcus Thompson III. "That is the plan. I would love to be on the Olympic team."

Thompson has previously worn the red, white and blue at the 2014 FIBA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, taking home gold at both tournaments. 

For Thompson, the opportunity to play alongside Curry at the Olympics is something he wants to do. The two have shared a backcourt in the Bay Area for eight years, making it to five consecutive NBA Finals and winning three championships. The two were members of the 2014 World Cup squad, though Curry missed the 2016 Olympics due to injury.

"That would be amazing," the five-time All-Star said of the possibility of playing with Curry at the Olympics, per Thompson. "Amazing. Because even when we played in the World Championships together, we were barely on the floor together."

Thompson, though, is currently working his way back from a torn ACL, which he suffered in June. He does not expect to be back on the court with Golden State prior to the 2020 All-Star break in February.

The Golden State trio are not the only ones to commit to Team USA in 2020 so far. Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard also wants in.

All of this should help coach Gregg Popovich breathe a sigh of relief after what the program went through this year. As noted by ESPN's Brian Windhorst, the United States had 31 of the 35 players initially on its roster pull out from World Cup consideration. Lillard, James Harden and Zion Williamson were among the stars to withdraw.

Team USA subsequently had its 78-game international win streak, which dated back to 2006, snapped during a pre-tournament exhibition against Australia. The U.S. then had its worst showing ever at a major tournament, finishing seventh at the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China.

"It was hard to watch us lose," Thompson acknowledged to The Athletic. "Those guys, they sacrificed their summers for that. I'm not going to dog them for losing, though. The world is good."

Now, though, Thompson should have a chance to help the United States return to glory.

Despite finishing seventh at the 2019 FIBA World Cup, the United States maintained its No. 1 position in the FIBA world men's rankings.

Team USA has held the top spot for nine consecutive years since winning the 2010 world championship. Spain, Australia, Argentina and France follow Team USA in the rankings.

The Americans fell 89-79 to France in the World Cup quarterfinals, ending a 58-game international winning streak in non-exhibition games involving NBA players. Then, Team USA lost 94-89 to Serbia, marking the first time the U.S. lost consecutive games with NBA players since 2002.

A bump in the road. 📽️ Clips from the loss to France 👇 [via @espn + @FIBAWC]

🇺🇸 #USAGotGame pic.twitter.com/grIg2mbilJ

— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) September 11, 2019

Since the FIBA rankings take the past eight years into account, however, the U.S. is still the top team by virtue of winning Olympic gold in 2012 and 2016, and the World Cup in 2014.

Several top players pulled themselves from consideration for the 2019 squad, including Houston Rockets guard James Harden, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard, Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal and Los Angeles Lakers big Anthony Davis.

That left Kemba Walker, Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez as the only players on the roster who had ever been named All-Stars. Head coach Gregg Popovich was also woefully short in bigs aside from Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner.

However, the U.S. has already received big-time commitments for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo as the Americans looks to win gold at the Summer Games for the fourth consecutive time.

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry and Lillard have both said they intend to play. Injuries and other factors could change that, but it represents a good start in what should be a competitive tournament.

Spain won the 2019 FIBA World Cup, Argentina reached the final, France and Serbia beat Team USA in the tournament, and Australia beat the Americans in an exhibition game.

Given the poor performance in China, there will be a ton of pressure on Team USA in Tokyo to prove the FIBA World Cup slip-up was merely a fluke.

Team USA's failure at the 2019 FIBA World Cup will likely lead to a more talented U.S. roster for the 2020 Olympics.

Count Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green among those who want to suit up.

"I do hope to play. And I think a lot of guys will want to play," he said on CNBC (h/t Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press). Green said he thinks a number of star players dropped out of this year's World Cup in part because China was so far away and those who did play don't have much time until training camp starts.

Star players dropping out of competition before the World Cup began was a common theme for the Americans. Marquee names such as James Harden, Anthony Davis, DeMar DeRozan, Bradley Beal, Damian Lillard and Kyle Lowry were among those who didn't play for the Red, White and Blue.

The result was a disjointed group of playmakers who couldn't deliver on elevated expectations.

The United States lost to France on Wednesday and Serbia on Thursday and now finds itself in Saturday's seventh-place game against Poland.

Green is familiar with what it takes to succeed while playing for his country. The Michigan native was a member of the 2016 team that won the gold medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics and adds versatility to any roster because he can defend forwards or battle with bigs in small-ball looks.

While the 6'7", 240-pound Green won't be asked to carry the scoring load, he can defend the opponent's best frontcourt player and do a little bit of everything. The 29-year-old averaged 1.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.9 steals a night in the 2016 Games.

The United States has been dominant when it comes to Olympic play. It has won the last three gold medals and six of the last seven, with only a bronze medal in 2004 being the exception. If players such as Green and some of the stars who were not on the World Cup roster participate in 2020, that streak can continue.

As Team USA prepares for its worst-ever finish in international competition, those in charge of the team have begun their postmortem.

USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo appeared to hint there will be some hard feelings about players who withdrew from the 2019 World Cup when assembling the 2020 Summer Olympics roster.

"I can only say, you can't help but notice and remember who you thought you were going to war with and who didn't show up," Colangelo told reporters. "I'm a firm believer that you deal with the cards you're dealt. All we could have done, and we did it, is get the commitments from a lot of players. So with that kind of a hand, you feel reasonably confident that you're going to be able to put a very good representative team on the court.

"No one would have anticipated the pullouts that we had."

The United States will play in the seventh-place game against Poland on Saturday after losing to Serbia on Thursday. This will be its worst result in team history, with the previous worst a sixth-place disappointment at the 2002 World Cup.

Kemba Walker was the only player who made an All-NBA team last season who was part of the 12-man roster. Khris Middleton was the lone other All-Star. It was a largely thrown-together group of guys who did not seem to fit well, essentially the leftovers from a group of more than 50 players.

Some, including De'Aaron Fox, dropped out at the last minute to focus on the upcoming season. Fox's explosion at the point guard spot likely would have helped Team USA; the loss of Kyle Kuzma, a natural 4 for international play, also hurt the roster.

"We're going to let the dust settle, let things depress a little bit," Colangelo said. "Obviously I'm always thinking ahead, which means what's going to take place, and it's going to happen fast and soon because we just have to get our act together for the Olympics."

But the overwhelming reason Team USA will be playing in a seventh-place game is the lack of talent. The United States rosters always tend to be a thrown-together group who get relatively limited practice time to get themselves in order. Where European teams tend to win with the cohesion built over years of playing for their national team, the U.S. overwhelms with sheer talent.

If Colangelo plans on holding a grudge against the talented players who opted out of the World Cup next year, the U.S. could be looking at Olympic disappointment in 2020. 

France eliminated the United States from the FIBA World Cup on Wednesday with an 89-79 quarterfinal victory at Dongguan Basketball Center in Dongguan, China.

The loss ended Team USA's 58-game international winning streak in non-exhibition games involving NBA players. It also ensured that there will be a new FIBA World Cup champion for the first time since Spain won the tournament in 2006.

The Americans were dominated on the glass, with France out-rebounding them by a 44-28 margin. Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert was front and center in that regard, as he finished with 21 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks. Orlando Magic guard Evan Fournier also had a big game for the French with 22 points.

Team USA's lone offensive star was Gobert's Jazz teammate, Donovan Mitchell, who registered a game-high 29 points. Boston Celtics guard Kemba Walker, meanwhile, was held to 10 points on 2-of-9 shooting.

With the win, France will move on to face Argentina in the semifinals Friday, with the winner of that game earning the right to play for the FIBA World Cup.

Things looked bleak for the Americans in the early going, as France led by as many as eight in the second quarter thanks to Gobert and Fournier, as well as supplemental production from former San Antonio Spurs guard Nando De Colo:

.@NandoDeColo converts from DEEP as @FRABasketball 🇫🇷 open up a lead! #USAFRA

📽 https://t.co/U6RPjx3FuZ
📲 https://t.co/6BBBf6oObD pic.twitter.com/fAu0jUQ2iq

— FIBA Basketball World Cup 🏆 (@FIBAWC) September 11, 2019

As Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports and Tony Jones of The Athletic pointed out, Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner had his hands full with Gobert:

It's been a major struggle for Myles Turner today. Can't handle Gobert and has 2 fouls (should be 3). Has made curious decisions dropping in PnR. And hasn't held up on the boards.

— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) September 11, 2019

Team USA down by six at halftime. Gobert has been the best player on the floor by a good margin. Mitchell has 15-3-3 for the Americans

— Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) September 11, 2019

In an interview leading up to Wednesday's game, Turner seemed to take a jab at Gobert by saying "some" consider him to be the Defensive Player of the Year.

Gobert is the reigning two-time Defensive Player of the Year, and he showed why by holding Turner to just two points and one rebound in what was by far his worst game of the tournament.

Team USA got a much-needed bucket from Mitchell at the buzzer to enter halftime facing a six-point deficit, and that seemed to energize the Americans:

Donovan Mitchell beats the buzzer to end the 1st half.

Team USA and France are locked in a close match at #FIBAWC on ESPN2 🍿 pic.twitter.com/rD87rHKCn5

— ESPN (@espn) September 11, 2019

France did extend its lead to as much as 10 in the fourth quarter, but Mitchell began to take over at that point and led the U.S. on a major run.

Head coach Gregg Popovich went small in the third quarter and let the offense run through Mitchell, and that turned out to be a smart move. Team USA finally erased the deficit and tied it up with less than three minutes remaining in the frame:

.@spidadmitchell 🕷 punches the tomahawk as @usabasketball 🇺🇸 tie it up! #USAFRA

📽 https://t.co/U6RPjx3FuZ pic.twitter.com/SXOoBJhWDU

— FIBA Basketball World Cup 🏆 (@FIBAWC) September 11, 2019

Celtics guard Marcus Smart then gave Team USA the lead when he made all three free throws after getting fouled on a three-point attempt. France tied it back up, but a Mitchell trifecta gave the Americans a 66-63 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Both Marc Stein of the New York Times and ESPN's Brian Windhorst lauded Mitchell for his third-quarter performance:

Donovan Mitchell is feeling it inside and outside. Attacking the cup and just rattled home a 3 to get to 29 points. Gregg Popovich has gone super small to counter the Gobert Factor ... and it's working

— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) September 11, 2019

Donovan Mitchell is having one of the great games in Team USA history. He has 29 points thru 3 quarters. US in fight with France, up 66-63. Game on ESPN2.

— Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) September 11, 2019

That would prove to be the high point of the game for Mitchell, though, as he didn't record a single point in the fourth quarter. Even so, Team USA extended its lead to 74-67, but things went south from that point forward, with France finishing the game on a 22-5 run.

Mitchell going cold and the Americans struggling from the free-throw line contributed to the France comeback. Team USA shot 66.7 percent from the charity stripe to France's 84.0 percent.

Smart missed four free throws, and while Walker only missed two, they came at a key time when the U.S. was down by six with 42 seconds left. Smith and Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News noted that Walker didn't get the job done Wednesday:

Jaylen Brown was great today.

Marcus Smart was great minus the missed FTs.

Kemba Walker has his worst game of the tournament by far.

— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) September 11, 2019

Kemba Walker just went 1-for-3 from the FT line down 6 with 42 seconds left.

Nightmarish game on a huge stage.

— Kristian Winfield (@Krisplashed) September 11, 2019

Team USA's fourth-quarter meltdown ended its tournament for all intents and purposes, but the U.S. technically has games remaining. USA will face Serbia in a classification game Thursday and will then play for either fifth place or seventh place Saturday, depending on the result of that game.

Anything short of a gold medal is a major disappointment for the Americans, though, regardless of how many big-name players dropped out before the tournament.

Team USA will finish off the podium at the FIBA World Cup for the first time since 2002, while France is perhaps now the favorite to win the event for the first time in its history.

Larry Brown's disastrous run as head coach of Team USA during the 2004 Olympics still haunts the Basketball Hall of Famer.

While speaking to Marc Stein of the New York Times, Brown touched on the group he led that remains the only one not to win an Olympic gold medal since 1992.

"I still haven't gotten over that," Brown said, "and I'm sure [Gregg Popovich] hasn't, either."

Popovich, who is coaching the United States at the FIBA World Cup, was an assistant on Brown's Olympics staff 15 years ago.

Stein noted Popovich echoed Brown's sentiments, including telling the U.S. team at a meeting in August "that no loss with the San Antonio Spurs has ever stung him more than what happened in Greece."

The 2004 team's disappointing run helped spark the Redeem Team four years later, which was led by head coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul were the top players for Team USA in 2008. That group went 8-0 with a plus-223 scoring margin en route to the gold medal.

Since basketball became an Olympic sport in 1936, the United States has won 15 gold medals in 18 appearances with an overall record of 138-5.

The 5-3 record by the 2004 squad is the worst by any U.S. Olympic men's team. It's also the only time the Americans have lost more than one game in a single Olympics.

The quarterfinals of the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup have been set, with the United States facing France in Dongguan, China, in the next round.

Australia will also face the Czech Republic on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Argentina will take on Serbia before Spain will clash with Poland.

Here is a look at the bracket:

#FIBAWC Quarter-Finals set!
Pick 4:
🇦🇷🆚🇷🇸
🇺🇸🆚🇫🇷
🇪🇸🆚🇵🇱
🇦🇺🆚🇨🇿#WorldGotGame pic.twitter.com/yhW1B7Ihe0

— FIBA Basketball World Cup 🏆 (@FIBAWC) September 9, 2019

Per Caesars, Team USA remain the favorites for the title at 4-5. Here are the full odds:

USA: -125

Serbia: +350

Spain: +450

Australia:+1000

France: +1000

Argentina: +4000

Czech Republic: +10000

Poland: +20000

The United States maintained its perfect record with a double-digit win over Brazil in their final second-round game. Kemba Walker and Myles Turner led the way with 16 points each, per sports writer Joe Vardon:

That's it. Team USA runs the table to get to the elimination round at the FIBA World Cup. Americans 89, Brazil 73. Kemba Walker, Myles Turner score 16 each. The French await on Wednesday

— Joe Vardon (@joevardon) September 9, 2019

That win earned the team a ticket to the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, but they have bigger things to worry about now. Up next is a date with France, who narrowly lost to Australia in their last outing and have an otherwise perfect record.

Evan Fournier scored 31 points against the Boomers, while Nando De Colo added 26. France had a late chance to win it but turned the ball over on their final possession while down a single point.

Spain have been dominant in the tournament and were rewarded with a date with Poland, arguably the weakest of the eight remaining teams. The Poles qualified with a point differential of just plus-10, despite winning four of five matches.

Balance is the key for Spain, which has plenty of experience with the likes of Marc Gasol and Rudy Fernandez. Sergio Llull and Ricky Rubio are expert ball-handlers who create tons of offense, and Willy Hernangomez and Victor Claver add impressive depth.

If they beat Poland, the Spaniards will likely meet Australia in the semifinals. The Czech Republic surprisingly qualified from Group K ahead of Greece and Brazil, beating the former's point differential by a single point.

The Czechs lost their last outing to Greece in close fashion, per sports writer Tim Reynolds:

Greece 84, Czech Republic 77, final.

Greece eliminated.

Czech hopes hinge on the US-Brazil game. Czechs need Americans to win.

Greece needed to win by 12, and was outscored by three after Giannis fouled out on a really ... we'll say questionable ... call with 5:32 left.

— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) September 9, 2019

Perhaps the most intriguing matchup is the one between Argentina and Serbia. The Argentines are unbeaten so far but haven't faced the best competition, while Serbia lost to Spain but easily handled Italy.

Argentina score easily, but Serbia's frontcourt has tons of talent, making it hard to get to the basket. The two teams should serve up a great game Tuesday.

Predictions: USA, Spain, Australia and Argentina advance to the semifinals.

Its FIBA World Cup tournament hasn't always been the prettiest, but Team USA will advance to the quarterfinals.

Kemba Walker and Myles Turner each scored 16 points, leading the United States to a 89-73 win over Brazil in their final Group K game in China.

The result eliminated Brazil from the tournament and allowed the Czech Republic to advance to the final eight. Greece, Czech Republic and Brazil each finished with matching 3-2 records, but the Czechs advanced on the back of their plus-22 point differential.

The United States will play France in Wednesday's quarterfinals. The French were undefeated until a last-minute loss to Australia on Monday and the Aussies defeated the United States in exhibition play, so the U.S. will go into the 7 a.m. ET game (7 p.m. local) in real danger of being upset. 

Team USA's victory also clinched a spot in the 2020 Summer Olympics, qualifying alongside Argentina as the two representatives from the Americas.

The Americans went into halftime ahead by only four points over Brazil, which got a game-high 21 points from Vitor Benite. Leandro Barbosa and Anderson Varejao each added 14 points, but the Brazilians faded in the second half as fatigue set in on both ends of the floor.

The United States scored on 10 straight possessions at the end of the third quarter into the fourth, which extended its lead from seven points to 21. Jaylen Brown added 11 points and Harrison Barnes had 10 to round out double-digit scorers for the U.S.

Despite looking less than stellar in comparison to its predecessors, this Team USA outfit appears to be the favorite heading into the quarters. Only Serbia, which is coming off a 12-point loss to Spain, has outscored its opponents by more points. The U.S. would face either Argentina or Serbia in the semis. The Spain-Australia half of the bracket appears to be a little more forgiving, as Poland and the Czech Republic are probably out of their depth in the quarters.

Shooting remains a concern for Gregg Popovich's team, which made only eight of their 25 shots from distance.

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Former Knick and Trail Blazer turned Boston Celtic, Enes Kanter, joins The Full 48 with Howard Beck to discuss the Portland Trail Blazers post-season run, Damian Lillard, his true feelings about the New York Knicks, joining the Boston Celtics, Kemba Walker, the importance of political activism, and being a good locker room guy!

The 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup continues Sunday with eight more group games in China, including the tournament debut of the favored United States.

Though Team USA experienced a mass exodus of superstars during the roster construction process, the country's depth of talent will be on display, led by the Boston Celtics' quartet of Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown as well as the Utah Jazz's Donovan Mitchell.

Let's check out all the important information for Sunday's matchups. All contests can be live-streamed on ESPN+.

   

Sunday World Cup Schedule and Odds

3:30 a.m.: Canada vs. Australia (-6.5)

4 a.m.: New Zealand vs. Brazil (-9.5)

4:30 a.m.: Turkey (-12.5) vs. Japan

4:30 a.m.: Dominican Republic (-11.5) vs. Jordan

7:30 a.m.: Senegal vs. Lithuania (off)

8 a.m.: Greece (-13.5) vs. Montenegro

8:30 a.m.: Czech Republic vs. United States (-28.5)

8:30 a.m.: France (-7.5) vs. Germany

All times Eastern. Odds courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook.

   

Predictions

Australia 86, Canada 76

Brazil 82, New Zealand 70

Turkey 79, Japan 69

Dominican Republic 85, Jordan 78

Lithuania 90, Senegal 71

Greece 81, Montenegro 65

United States 98, Czech Republic 77

France 80, Germany 78

   

Top Storyline: How will Team USA look after shaky build up?

The United States' 98-94 defeat at the hands of Australia in a World Cup warm-up contest last Saturday marked the first time in almost 13 years the U.S. lost a game at the senior level while using NBA players. It ended a 78-game winning streak.

Though the Americans were favored—as will likely be the case in every World Cup game they play—the result wasn't a major shock.

The team could feature a starting lineup along the lines of Stephen Curry, James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James and Anthony Davis but is instead featuring one quite a bit below that potential level of dominance.

Along with the loss to the Boomers, Team USA scored a 16-point win in a previous encounter with the Aussies and edged Spain by nine in its first exhibition contest.

The Americans are still the leading championship contender, but don't expect them to breeze past opponents like they usually did during the Mike Krzyzewski era.

That's not an indictment of new head coach Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs. He's entered an international environment wherein NBA players are focused more on "load management," the idea of increasing rest to maximize effectiveness, and less on national team appearances.

Popovich told ESPN's Brian Windhorst he's pleased with the chemistry the squad has developed.

"They've become close in a short period of time," he said. "The camaraderie has blossomed, and I think that will bode well for us."

The Czech Republic is making its first World Cup appearance since Czechoslovakia dissolved in 1993. It's never qualified for the Olympics and has finished no better than seventh in five EuroBasket tournament appearances.

So the Czechs, who feature the Chicago Bulls' Tomas Satoransky as their only NBA player, shouldn't provide much resistance to the U.S. If they do, the Americans' status as favorites could come into question.

De'Aaron Fox isn't talking publicly about his decision to leave Team USA hours before the team flew to Australia for exhibition matchups.

"That's for me to know," Fox told TMZ Sports when asked why he left the team.

Fox added that he is "completely healthy," nixing any speculation he was dealing with a nagging injury.

The Sacramento Kings guard pulled out of Team USA training camp earlier this month despite impressing in practices and seeming like a good bet to make the final 12-man roster.

Marc Stein of the New York Times reported Fox's decision "stunned" Team USA officials. He had spoken highly of the experience in the days leading up to his decision. 

"I think it is a big opportunity just being able to be here," Fox said, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. "I think I have gotten better as a player, as a leader, understanding of the game entirely. And if I am able to be on this team and travel with this team, it's a big success."

It's possible Fox chose to pull out without a guarantee he would make the final 12-man roster. Team USA had 14 players on its training camp roster before Fox pulled out, meaning two players would have to be cut. The roster was finalized after Fox left and Kyle Kuzma suffered an injury in an exhibition game that forced him to withdraw.

Team USA is already running on the smaller side, so the cuts likely would have come from the wing or guard rotation. Fox was competing for a spot with Marcus Smart, Derrick White and Joe Harris. Smart and White are stronger defenders than Fox, and Harris is an elite spot-up shooter.

The combination of Fox's coy quote after leaving the team and his praise of the process beforehand makes it seem likely that he didn't want to find himself on the cut line.