BREAKING IT DOWN BY QUARTER
USA TRIO NO STRANGER TO INTERNATIONAL SUCCESS The 2023 roster is no stranger to international success. Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Haliburton and Jaren Jackson Jr. have all won gold medals at FIBA championship events. Brunson won gold at the 2014 U18 FIBA Americas Championship and 2015 FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup, while Haliburton and Jackson Jr. won gold at the 2019 FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup and 2017 FIBA U17 Men’s World Cup, respectively. Heading into the third-place game, the three players are now 31-2 at FIBA championship events . TIES THAT BIND Villanova Reunion: Jalen Brunson (2015-18), Josh Hart (2013-17) and Mikal Bridges (2015-18) will reunite on the USA World Cup roster this summer. The three attended Villanova where, over their collective tenure, they led the university to two NCAA Championships (2018, 2016). While all three were at Villanova, the trio went 67-9, captured the 2016 NCAA Title and a 2017 Big East Championship. Villanova was ranked first in the AP Poll 11 times, the most of any program in Division 1 over those two seasons. New York, New York: Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart are the first New York Knick players to compete with USA Basketball at the FIBA World Cup. The Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs are the only other NBA teams that have yet to have an affiliated player compete at the World Cup. Brothers From Brooklyn: After having been teammates in Phoenix since 2019, Bridges and Cam Johnson were traded to Brooklyn in 2023. LOCAL LINKS Assistant Coach Erik Spoelstra is a first-generation Filipino-American (his mother is from the San Pablo City) and on Aug. 23, Spoelstra led an elite basketball clinic featuring 40 boys and girls from high schools and colleges across Metro Manila. Spoelstra has returned to the Philippines multiple times to host camps, and even said that when he was younger, he dreamed of playing in the Philippine Basketball League. USA’s Jalen Brunson has a unique tie to the Philippines. Brunson’s father, Rick, an assistant coach with the New York Knicks, played one game in the Philippines as part of the 1998 Governor’s Cup, a Philippines Basketball Association tournament which allowed for the “import” of a foreign player. The elder Brunson scored 21 points in a loss, and his team was eliminated. Staff Assistant Chip Engelland , currently an assistant coach with the Oklahoma City Thunder, averaged 27.5 points per game through 76 games in three PBA conferences. He was the naturalized player for the Philippine national team that won the 1985 William Jones Cup.
WELCOME TO USA BASKETBALL Three players on the USA Men’s National Team made their USA Basketball debuts during the first two games of the USA Basketball Showcase. Cam Johnson and Austin Reaves debuted versus Puerto Rico, while Josh Hart made his debut against Slovenia. The other nine players have represented the U.S. at a FIBA championship competition as a junior, a Nike Hoop Summit, a USA Select Team and/ or participated in a Junior National Team Minicamp. All 12 players made their senior FIBA competition debuts on Saturday versus New Zealand. All 12 USA players made their senior FIBA debuts (non- exhibition game) on Aug. 26 versus New Zealand. FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH In terms of cumulative age, the 2023 squad’s cumulative (294) and average (24.50) age of the roster is right in line with most competitions past, excluding the 2019 team.
Finals appearances as head coaches. Few has never missed the NCAA Tournament (24) and has finished National Runner-Up twice. Few was an assistant coach for the 2019 USA Men’s Select Team and returned in 2021 as an assistant coach for the USA Men’s Select Team. The Gonzaga University head coach also served as the head coach of the 2015 U.S. Pan American Men’s Basketball Team (bronze), was an assistant coach for the 2012 USA U18 National Team (gold) and a court coach for the 2009 USA Men’s U19 World Cup/World University Games Team training camp. Tyronn Lue will be making his USA Basketball coaching debut. Erik Spoelstra took on his first USA Basketball coaching responsibility as head coach of the 2021 USA Select Team. Of note, Spoelstra is a Filipino-American (his mother was born in the Phillipines), and was the first Asian- American to be named as the head coach in the history of the four major North American sports leagues. GRANT HILL NAMED MANAGING DIRECTOR In 2021, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame member and USA Basketball gold medalist Grant Hill was named managing director of the USA Men’s National Team, replacing Jerry Colangelo who had held the position since 2005. In the role, Hill will oversee the selection of players and coaching, among many other responsibilities. Hill played for five USA Basketball teams, won two gold medals and one bronze medal, and compiled an overall record of 26-1 (.963 winning percentage). He was a member of the gold medalist 1996 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team and the 5-0 1996 USA National Team. Hill as a collegian was a part of the 1992 USA Developmental Team that trained against the 1992 U.S. Olympic Team, the bronze medalist 1991 USA Pan American Games Team and the gold medalist 1990 USA U18 Championship Team. THE (VERY LONG) ROAD TO GET HERE Fifty-two players, seven coaches and multiple operations and support staff combined to go 9-3 through six qualifying windows that spanned over a 455-day period. FIBA introduced the qualifying system leading into the 2019 FIBA Men’s World Cup. For 2023, the six windows were held between November 2021 through February 2023. In each window, countries played two games against other pool teams. There was no singular location, as countries both hosted and visited, and, for the U.S., there was no set roster. Twelve USA players competed in multiple World Cup Qualifying windows from 2021-23: Jordan Bell, Brian Bowen III, Will Davis II, Michael Frazier II, Langston Galloway, DaQuan Jeffries, John Jenkins, George King, Eric Mika, Elijah Pemberton, David Stockton and Craig Sword.
Breakdown in the USA Basketball Showcase: 1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q FINAL USA 138 112 133 131 514 OPP 112 102 112 75 401 DIFF +26 +10 +21 +56 +113
Breakdown at the World Cup: 1Q 2Q 3Q
4Q 23 14 30 25 23 13 24 18
FINAL
USA NZL USA GRE USA JOR USA USA LTU USA
19 18 23 19 31 12 19 12 31 24 14 31 33
26 18 27 18 31 21 18 20 25 23 22 10 29 26
31 22 29 19 25 16 24 17 28 17 37 20 24 35
99 72
109
81
110
62 85 73
Year 2023 2019 2014 2010 2006
Avg Age
Cumulative Age
MNE 18
24.50 27.33 24.08 24.58 24.05
294 313 289 295 294
39 39 17 19 27 19
104 110 100
ITA
63
By way of comparison, the average age for the last four U.S. Men’s Olympic Teams has been slightly higher.
USA GER
111 113
Year 2021 2016 2012 2008
Avg Age
Cumulative Age
DIFF
+40
+52
+73
+90
+263
27.33 26.58 25.66 26.16
328 319 308 314
KERR TAKES FIRST CHAIR USA Basketball officially announced Steve Kerr as the head coach of the USA Basketball Men’s National Team on December 20, 2021. Kerr will lead the USA National Team through 2024, including all USA Men’s National Team training camps, the 2023 FIBA World Cup and the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Kerr, who served as an assistant in 2019 (World Cup) and 2021 (Olympics), was a member of the 1986 USA Basketball Men’s National Team that captured the FIBA World Cup title in Madrid. Kerr averaged 9.2 points and made 18-of-36 3-point tries. A finalist for the 1988 U.S. Olympic Basketball Team, Kerr also was a member of the 1988 USA Select Team that finished 6-0 during a European tour. Kerr picked up his first win as USA Basketball head coach versus Puerto Rico on Aug. 7 in Las Vegas. STRONG STAFF ACCOMPANIES KERR Kerr’s coaching staff has a plethora of international, professional and collegiate coaching experience. Mark Few, Tyronn Lue and Erik Spoelstra will serve as assistant coaches. Kerr, Spoelstra and Lue, who all have won an NBA Championship, combine for seven NBA titles and 15 NBA
The USA has the youngest team at the competition, followed by Finland, Angola, Egypt and Japan. Venezuela, Cape Verde and Mexico (in that order) have the oldest rosters (average of over 30 years). Sunday’s opponent, Canada, has an average age of 27.4 years and is the 10th youngest team in the tournament. The USA team has celebrated several birthdays this summer. Anthony Edwards celebrated his 22nd birthday in Las Vegas during training camp, Mikal Bridges celebrated his 27th birthday on Aug. 30, Jalen Brunson celebrated his 27th birthday on Aug. 31 and Brandon Ingram celebrated his 26th birthday on Sept. 2.
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