Of the total of 12 registered players, only seven are currently in the ranks of the US national team, while the other five basketball players will join the team only on Friday.
The USA team is still without Chelsea Gray, Kelsey Plum, Aija Wilson, Briona Jones and Eilis Thomas, all of whom participated in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Finals.
“We give them time [atpūtai]because they’re making a huge sacrifice to jump on a plane and go here right after the finale,” says Reeves.
According to the head coach of the USA national team, the team will play the match against Belgium on Thursday with an incomplete team. Likewise, the application for Friday’s game against the national team of Puerto Rico might not be complete.
In subgroup A, the USA national team will play with basketball players from China, South Korea and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Meanwhile, basketball players from France, Serbia, Japan, Mali, Canada and Australia will compete in subgroup B.
The four best teams of each subgroup will enter the quarterfinals, which will begin on September 29, and the champions will be determined on October 1.
“The application will be full, but it is unlikely that all the players will be in line [uz pirmajām spēlēm],” Reeves said Wednesday.
USA basketball players triumphed in the previous World Cup in 2018 in Spain, but in total they have won ten out of 18 tournaments.
