Can the Canadian Men’s Basketball Team Finally Qualify for the Olympics?

Will the Canadian men’s basketball program finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, 23 years after its last participation in the Olympic tournament, in Athens?

The maple leaf could get its ticket to the Paris Games in the coming weeks, with a successful performance at the FIBA ​​World Cup, played in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.

Participation in the world gives them the opportunity to enter through the front door in Paris. But what indicates that the Canadian team will rise to the occasion, after more than 20 years of fueling cynicism?

The refrain has been heard before, but this time seems more true than ever: the team that Canada will field in Asia seems very well equipped to achieve this goal. Here are four storylines to watch for Maple Leaf representatives in the coming weeks.

A coveted second pass

Of the 12 countries participating in the Olympic basketball tournament, seven obtain their place at the end of the World Cup, including two from America. With the United States being the favorites heading into the competition, the second bye will be sought after by Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and Canada. Argentina, 4th nation in the FIBA ​​ranking, is conspicuous by its absence after its surprise elimination by the Dominicans in qualifying.

Open in full screen mode

Canada after a victory against Venezuela

Photo : Reuters / LEONARDO FERNANDEZ VILORIA

The Brazilians and the Canadians are the two countries logically aspiring to a place at the Paris Games. They are respectively 13th and 15th in FIBA, a hierarchy that loses some of its precision when a star like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, an Ontarian who has never represented Canada before, decides to get involved. SGA was named to the NBA’s First All-Star Team last season and is one of the league’s top rising stars.

Anyway, in addition to following Canada’s activities, you will have to have Brazil out of the corner of your eye. The team has only one NBA player – Raul Neto – but a strong roster of players with World Cup experience. The Dominican Republic could also be a hidden card in this quest for an Olympic qualification. Karl-Anthony Towns, of the Minnesota Timberwolves, leads the announced formation for the world. The Dominicans defeated the Canadians 94-88 in their final preseason game on Friday.

Canadian team, FIBA ​​World Cup 2023 (in alphabetical order)

A – Kyle Alexander, Hapoel Tel Aviv (Israel)G – Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Timberwolves of Minnesota (NBA)G/A – RJ Barrett , New York Knicks (NBA)G – Trae Bell-Haynes, Casademont Zaragoza (Spain)A – Dillon Brooks, Rockets de Houston (NBA)G – Luguentz There, Thunder of Oklahoma City (NBA)P – Zach Edey. Purdue University Boilermakers (NCAA)A – Melvin Ejim Unicaja (Spain)G – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder of Oklahoma City (NBA)P – Kelly Olynyk , Utah Jazz (NBA)A – Kevin Pangos, Olympia Milan (Italy)A/P – Dwight Powell, Dallas Mavericks (NBA)G – Phil Scrubb, River Lions de Niagara (LECB)A – Thomas Scrubb, BlackJacks d’Ottawa (LECB)

The French challenge

In order to conclude the tournament among the two best countries on the continent, the Canadians will undoubtedly have to carve out a place for the playoffs. Only the first two teams in each group will have this privilege. In its group, Canada is alongside Lebanon, Latvia and France.

The latter, fifth in FIBA, should fight against the representatives of the maple leaf for the summit. The French have proven themselves in recent international competitions; they won bronze at the last two World Cups, then silver at the Tokyo Games. They even defeated the United States, then led by Kevin Durant and Damian Lillard.

This year, they should bet again on their main stars, including the giant Rudy Gobert, three-time defensive player of the year in the NBA.

Another colossus, Kristaps Porzingis, announced on August 15 that plantar fasciitis will prevent him from competing in the World Cup with the Latvian team. A relief for the Canadians, who can more easily aspire to two – or even three – victories in the group stage. The Latvians, however, should not be overlooked, having won 11 straight European qualifiers. Porzingis was automatically for only two of those meetings.

A small team

One of the reasons for the failure of the Canadian men’s national basketball team for years is its inability to produce quality large format players capable of rebounding and protecting the ring against the opposing giants.

Once again this year, this could be their downfall. In the three games the team have played this month at the time of this writing – two against Germany, then the other against New Zealand – the weaknesses of the defense near the ring have been exploited by adversaries. A concern that was somewhat tempered by a shot blocked by center Kelly Olynyk at the expense of German rival Moritz Wagner with seconds to go in extra time in their last match at the DBB SuperCup, pre-tournament, to confirm the victory of the Reds .

The fact remains that neither Olynyk nor his teammate Dwight Powell were able to dispel doubts about their position. An alarming sign when you are in the same group as a certain Gobert.

Will the inexperienced 7-foot-4 Zach Edey have a significant role? He was named NCAA College Player of the Year with the Purdue University Boilermakers. Edey hasn’t been used by coach Jordi Fernandez in the early preseason games, but his appearances in the past three meetings suggest he’ll be part of the equation when the tournament gets underway.

It will also be necessary to monitor whether the marriage will be happy within the Canadian team, of which Fernandez has been at the helm for less than two months. The players had only rare opportunities to play together. While several teams will rely on the same workforce that helped them earn a place for the world, Canada will focus on a core of players whose NBA season has caused the majority of duels to be missed in national training. A nice problem, of course.

Murray out, Barrett to get up?

Canada could have banked on the most menacing back duo in the world in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray. The latter helped the Denver Nuggets win the first NBA championship in their history. On August 16, he announced his withdrawal from the international tournament, citing a short period of rest between the end of his playoff run and the start of the next NBA season. Let’s not forget, too, that a torn anterior cruciate ligament caused him to miss the entire 2021-22 campaign.

Open in full screen mode

RJ Barrett chasing down Dennis Schröder of Germany

Photo: AP / Soeren Stache

His presence in Asia next week would have given Canada an excellent 2nd option in support of Gilgeous-Alexander. He already shines in this role with the Nuggets, behind Nikola Jokic, even taking the reins of the attack when the opportunity arises. Without him, who will fulfill this role? In light of what has been seen in preseason games, RJ Barrett, a Torontonian playing for the New York Knicks in the NBA, will have a bigger slice of the pie than expected. He excelled in the last game against Germany, making 13 of 14 shots, including the winning field goal, for a total of 31 points.

And Barrett was especially the one who allowed Canada to collect a first gold medal in a FIBA ​​tournament, with the under-19s in 2017. He was named MVP of the competition.

Six years later, to think of replicating a similar result among seniors is utopian, but an Olympic qualification is a visibly achievable goal for Canadians. Their tournament begins on August 25 with a match against France.

If they do not manage to get their ticket to Paris, the Canadians will be able to fall back on a last-ditch tournament next year. However, there will be many more called than chosen, with only four coveted places for 24 countries.

In 2021, in Victoria, Canada was two wins away from qualifying for the Tokyo Games. A bitter 103-101 overtime loss to the underdog Czechs ended Canada’s semi-final hopes. A basket from Tomas Satoransky sealed the game with 1.4 seconds to go in added time.

And who had made life difficult for the Canadians during this meeting? The pivot Ondrej Balvin, 7 feet 1 inch, author of 19 rebounds! Like what the years go by and the issues are alike in the maple leaf. It remains to be seen whether the outcome will be the same.

2023-08-24 15:03:03
#Opportunity #Canada #FIBA #Worlds