The USA National team has a numbers problem.
The Americans are down to only 13 candidates for the final 12 spots for the FIBA World Cup team in China after point guard De’Aaron Fox of the Sacramento Kings withdrew from the consideration for the team Friday night, just before it flew to Australia for three pre-tournament exhibitions. Earlier in the day forward P.J. Tucker of Houston withdrew with a minor ankle strain.
The remaining candidates include forward Harrison Barnes of Sacramento, point guard Kemba Walker, forward Jayson Tatum and wing Jaylen Brown and guard Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics; guard Joe Harris of the Brooklyn Nets; forward Kyle Kuzma of the Los Angeles Lakers; center Brook Lopez and forward Khris Middleton of the Milwaukee Bucks; guard Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz; center Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers; center Mason Plumlee of the Denver Nuggets and point guard Derrick White of the San Antonio Spurs.
This watered- down version Team USA, coached by Gregg Popovich of the Spurs, got its first taste of international competition Friday night when it defeated Spain, 90-81, at the Honda Center in Anaheim. The U.S. balanced scoring, with Mitchell leading the Americans in double figures with 13 points. Middleton had 12 points while Walker and Tatum each had 11 points apiece. Walker also had eight assists.
Fox only scored two points and played just 6:11 – the fewest minutes on the American team—before announcing his decision. Smart, who is nursing a calf strain, did not play.
Center Marc Gasol and point guard Ricky Rubio, two of the handful of NBA players for Spain, led their team in scoring with 19 and 16 points.
“The wins and losses are pretty unimportant at this time,’’ Popovich said. “It’s more about getting better, getting together, a group learning to execute together. I thought Spain was just astounding with all that offense that they ran, the way they execute. The way they read each other you can really see the experience. And it’s going to be difficult in this short time.
Offense shouldn’t be a problem for the unselfish Americans. But it was is the defense and rebounding that overcame the small glitches in the Americans’ play. The U.S. shot 54.8 percent (34 for 62) and 57.9 percent from three- point range (11 of 19). The Americans limited Spain to 40.8 percent (29 of 71) shooting and limited the Spaniards’ second chance opportunities with a 42-20 rebounding advantage, 33 which came on the defensive end.
“I think a lot of guys are willing to sacrifice for one another,’’ Mitchell said. “I think that’s the biggest thing. You want to be on a team like that. You want to be around guys that want to be around each other.’’
The U.S. is attempting to become one of seven qualifiers from the World Cup for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.
