Ranking the 10 biggest threats to Team USA at 2023 FIBA World Cup

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BERLIN, GERMANY – SEPTEMBER 13: Franz Wagner of Germany reacts during the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 quarterfinal match between Germany v Greece at EuroBasket Arena Berlin on September 13, 2022 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Christina Pahnke/Corbis via Getty Images) /

8. Germany

As mentioned, Germany is in a gauntlet of a group. Surviving it should steel the Germans for what’s to come in the rest of the competition, perhaps including Team USA.

This will be Germany’s seventh appearance in the World Cup, an event where they finished in third place in 2002. Since then, however, the results for the squad have not been great. They finished 17th in 2010, missed it altogether in 2014, and were knocked out in the First Round in 2018.

This year holds more promise for the Germans, though. They are coming off a trip to the quarterfinals at the Olympics and a podium finish at the FIBA EuroBasket 2022. The team also has a handful of NBAers on the roster.

Franz Wagner is the best individual player on the roster, a budding star with the Orlando Magic. He averaged 18.6 points per game on 36.1 percent efficiency from three during his second season in the league. Meanwhile, he averaged 16.1 points and 4.0 rebounds per game during last year’s EuroBasket bronze medal campaign.

The most important player, however, may be Dennis Schroder. The Toronto Raptors guard made his national team debut in 2014 and has been a mainstay ever since. In EuroBasket 2022, Schroder averaged 22.1 points and 7.1 assists per game, leading the squad to an upset over Greece in the quarterfinals.

Other NBA players on the squad are Franz’s brother, Moritz Wagner, and Daniel Theis; Maxi Kleber was selected for the team but pulled out after criticism from Schroder. Andreas Obst and Johannes Voigtmann are significant names likely less familiar to American basketball fans.

It’s a tough group, but Germany is a rising power in basketball. This is their chance to prove it.