The FIBA World Cup gets no respect. No esteem. No love. What is the history of this tournament? What is its lasting legacy? Does anyone in the United States really care about basketball's international stage? Well, after listening to the Ringer Basketball Podcast I'd have to say... uh, no not really. The latest pod from Justin Verrier and Dan Devine, both of whom I like very much, featured these assertions: “I don’t think I watched a single game from the 2014 Olympics.” (The Olympics took place in 2012 and 2016, not 2014.) “The US didn’t Medal in the 2006 World Cup.” (They actually won Silver that year, they didn’t medal in the 2002 debacle.) It frustrates me that these inaccuracies are just acceptable, that no one seems to care about the details. If a sports writer was off two years citing playoff results of any NBA season it would be sacrilege. And yes, I love Bill Simmons and the Ringer. I am a huge fan, (although they do still inexplicably employ Chris Vernon, who once called John Paxson, John PaxTon, and Dirk Nowitski, Dirk NowiNksi, which may seem like minimal mistakes, but are both legitimately horrendous mistakes for anyone to make, who has paid attention to the NBA, ever. And this guy is paid to pay attention. Please Bill Simmons, save the fantastic Kevin O’Connor from the Mismatch!). ANYWAY... sorry. I digress. First-World Problems.
 |
| The reigning NBA MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo |
The FIBA World Cup gets no appreciation. No reverence. No regard. Every four years, it has every single right to be at least as big, worldwide, as the NCAA Tournament is every single year in the United States. It has everything. Huge stars, great teams, international intrigue, national pride, fast games, extraordinary backdrops and storylines, and the knockout rounds are mesmerizing. People should fill out their brackets and try to win their office pools like they do for every March Madness. People should be captivated, watching with electrified intensity. The stakes are so high! People should be enjoying beautiful basketball in the September doldrums. But no one does, and honestly it seems like no one in the United States really even knows that it is even happening. Every four years I’m absolutely befuddled that this tourney is so overlooked, in 2002 it was held in Indianapolis (a basketball mecca in the US) and basically no one came. I'm not sure why, but for some reason, US basketball fans don't seem to care about it. This event is a sleeping giant.
 |
| The Aussie Boomers had their best showing yet in this World Cup |
Between 1950 and 2010, the World Cup was known as the FIBA World Championship, before the powers that be very wisely re-branded to become the FIBA World Cup in 2014. Then they moved the event to an odd year to avoid it being played in the same summer as the infinitely more popular FIFA World Cup. This may have seemed smart, but has been awful for USA Basketball. Not many NBA stars wanted to participate this year, because most of them have their eyes on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and another grueling NBA season coming up this fall and next. A commitment to USA basketball this summer meant two years in a row of disrupted off-seasons, and that is a lot to ask of anyone. Regardless of the American hardships though, the table had been set for a world class tournament, and other nations around the world do care, at least more than we do. Basketball is more popular than ever around the world; more popular than Cricket, Rugby, Hockey, Tennis, American and Aussie-Rules Football, and Baseball, and there are dozens of spectacular foreign born players wowing people stateside in the NBA every season. For most of those players the concept of representing their respective nations in the World Cup is wraught with extraordinary meaning. Many of them love the camaraderie and the passion, and this platform is the perfect way to bring their artform to prominence. No other country can boast the basketball talent that the United States has, (most Americans will immediately mention the 20 or so NBA stars that declined to play on this year’s squad) but this year alone there were at least 10 teams that could beat the US head to head. It is a new world indeed.
 |
| The NBA Junkies saw the US vs Spain in August. |
I did come to the 2019 FIBA World Cup with some reservations. I’ve certainly enjoyed the event in years past, but it was usually the concept that I loved, while the actual practice might have been lacking. The FIBA game is different from the NBA game, but in many ways that makes it more interesting. 10 minute quarters speed things along, and only 5 fouls are allowed before fouling out. Any ball on the rim is live to be cleared off without being called for goal-tending, and backcourt violations are different while in-bounding. These slight rule differences are certainly obstacles for American players but clearly the more difficult issue, as I mentioned, is convincing NBA players to give up valuable off-season time. The Olympics has historically been held in much higher regard for Americans than any other international competitions, so the World Cup has always been viewed as an afterthought. And no one is under any obligation to represent their country, obviously, so by comparison these must seem like the darkest of days.
 |
| Pop unveiled his "comfy coaching" style |
All of the world’s nations have their issues, but the US certainly has just as many, if not more issues, than the worst of them. Does it really mean anything to have those three letters on your jersey? Ideologically, it should but no one can force these things. Can you imagine if Marc Gasol or Matthew Delevadova felt about their nations’ government the way that some of these NBA stars probably feel about how their families have historically been treated in the United States? I bet they wouldn’t be representing their country on an international stage. Just talk to Ennis Kantor about how the Turkish government has treated his family in retaliation for him speaking out against the current ruling party in Turkey. I guess the main point about sports is that it’s supposed to be separate from politics and devoid of the diplomatic drama. (The US skipping the Moscow Olympics in 1980 and the Soviets skipping the Los Angeles games in 1984 didn’t do anything but hurt those athletes.) Sometimes we have to suck it up and endure hardship for the greater good, and sports can be at the forefront of inspiring progressive change.
 |
| US handled Spain that night, but Spain got the last word |
All in all, what I saw of this years FIBA World Cup was fantastic. Brazil, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Turkey, Poland, and Russia are very solid clubs and clearly on the up and up. Czechia, Serbia, Australia, France, and Argentina were the class of the tournament, and of course Spain proved to be the best in the World. The US team struggled to adapt to a bigger style game than is currently the predominant style in the NBA, had some injuries, and finished a disappointing, and worst ever, seventh place. Coach Popovich made no excuses though after the tournament, adding that other countries had stars missing from their respective teams as well. Most expect the US to send an extremely talented group to Tokyo in 2020 and reassert the US position as the world’s best, but at this tournament the playing field was as level as ever, and it was glorious. The Spanish national team is now reigning supreme as the World Cup Gold Medalists, and most Americans that I know can’t believe it. Well, those that are even aware.
 |
| New Celtic, Kemba Walker lead the US squad |
I’ve heard a number of Americans in the past couple weeks say that maybe the FIBA World Cup should just end, that the Olympics should be the only international basketball tournament of record. This idea seems completely ridiculous to me. With basketball continuing to grow to the point of obsession all over the world, how could only one championship every four years be sufficient? What should be discussed is any and every way possible to make this event a whole lot better. The NBA has taken a major backseat to FIBA over the years, and why not? It’s not the NBA’s tournament, but their stars get invaluable exposure to thirsty markets all over the world. The NBA has benefited enormously from international tournaments since the Dream Team in 1992, and it’s time the League gave a little back. With few exceptions, all of the best players in these tournaments are NBA players, so why isn’t The World Cup a joint venture between FIBA and the NBA? Step up Adam Silver and NBA Governors; build this tournament up to the level it should be. What could be better than a proper International tournament showing off the best of the world's greatest game? There's nothing else going on in August and September anyway! Maybe move it back to an even year and just schedule it to be a month or so after the FIFA World Cup. There are so many solutions possible and so much potential for this tournament to be incredible. Ah yes... the FIBA World Cup gets no deference. No distinction. No fervor. But, I’m telling you, considering what it could be, this event is absolutely a sleeping giant.
 |
| Ricky Rubio, as MVP, intensified his International Basketball legacy. Now he heads to Phoenix to start the NBA season, for the opposite type of basketball experience |
