FIBA

Ananth Pandian

Losing in an overtime thriller in the bronze medal game, Anthony Edwards and Team USA finished fourth overall in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.

Edwards finished the tournament as USA's top scorer and was instrumental in their overall success.

In USA's final World Cup game against Canada, Edwards scored a team-high 24 points and finished with five rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block.

Here’s everything you need to know about Edwards in the 2023 World Cup, including Team USA results and a breakdown of how the All-Star guard played throughout the international tournament.

Team USA in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023:

In the World Cup, Anthony Edwards and Team USA finished fourth overall and  qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

How did Anthony Edwards play for Team USA:

Starting with exhibition play, Edwards started in every game for Team USA and emerged as one of the team's best two-way players.

In the World Cup, Edwards lead Team USA in scoring with 18.9 points (FG: 47.5%, 3PT: 31.1%, FT: 70%) and was named to the All-Star Five team. He also averaged 4.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists and a 1.1 steals in 26 minutes a game.

Here are more complete Team USA stats for Edwards:

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Anthony Edwards, Team USA at FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023: TV schedule, scores & more

The Minnesota Timberwolves were well represented at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.&nbsp;

Tied with the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Wolves had an NBA-high six players playing in the World Cup: Anthony Edwards (USA), Karl-Anthony Towns (Dominican Republic), Rudy Gobert (France), Kyle Anderson (China), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Canada) and Matteo Spagnolo (Italy).&nbsp;

Want to know how all six of the Wolves played in the World Cup? Here’s everything you need to know.

Taking place from Aug. 25 through Sept. 10, the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 is essentially a qualifying tournament for the 2024 Paris Olympics.&nbsp;&nbsp;

There are 32 teams playing in the tournament: 12 from Europe, eight from Asia and Oceania, seven from the Americas and five from Africa. Those 32 teams are divided into eight groups of four for the First Round.&nbsp;

The winner of the tournament becomes the World Cup champion and will receive a gold medal. Silver (2nd place) and bronze (3rd place) medals will also be awarded.&nbsp;

The top seven teams by region will secure a berth for the Olympics: one team from Africa, two teams from the Americas, one team from Asia, two teams from Europe and one team from Oceania.&nbsp;&nbsp;

France has an automatic Olympic bid for 2024 because they are the host team. The other four remaining Olympic berths will be determined by Olympic qualifying tournaments in 2024.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

In the World Cup, Anthony Edwards and Team USA advanced all the way to the bronze medal game and qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics. USA however, lost 127-118 in overtime to Canada and finished fourth overall in the World Cup.

Read more about Edwards and Team USA here. 

In the World Cup, Edwards lead Team USA in scoring with 18.9 points (FG: 47.5%, 3PT: 31.1%, FT: 70%). He also averaged 4.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists and a 1.1 steals in 26 minutes a game.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker in the World Cup: 

Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Canada finished third in the World Cup and qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

By beating USA to claim bronze, Canada won their first-ever FIBA medal in the country's history. This was also Canada's first international medal in basketball since their silver medal finish in the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

In the World Cup, Alexander-Walker averaged 9.4 points (FG: 39.7%, 3PT: 38.5%), 2 rebounds, 2.1 assists and a steal in 21.9 minutes a game. Alexander-Walker also hit a total of 20 threes, which was the most by any bench player in the World Cup.

Karl-Anthony Towns and the Dominican Republic went undefeated in the First Round of the World Cup but went 0-2 in the Second Round, which knocked them out of the tournament.

For the World Cup, Towns averaged 24.4 points (FG: 45.5%, 3PT: 39.4%), 8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 29.6 minutes a game.

Here are the final results for Towns and the Dominican Republic in the World Cup:

Rudy Gobert and France closed out the World Cup with two wins in the Classification Round to finish 3-2 overall.

In the World Cup, Gobert averaged 10.8 points (FG: 66.7%), 8.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists, one steal and 1.8 blocks in 23.9 minutes a game.

Here are the final results for Gobert and France in the World Cup:

Eligible for Chinese citizenship through his maternal great-grandfather, Kyle Anderson obtained Chinese nationality in July and represented China for the first time in the 2023 World Cup. His Chinese name of Li Kaier was featured on the back of his jersey.

In the World Cup, Anderson averaged 13 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists and a steal in 32.1 minutes. Anderson and China finished the World Cup with a record of 1-4.

Here are the final results for Anderson and China in the World Cup:

Picked 50th overall by the Timberwolves in the 2022 NBA Draft, Matteo Spagnolo is the third-youngest player to play for Italy’s senior team.

Italy made it to the Quarter Finals of the World Cup but lost to Edwards and Team USA. They ended up finishing eighth overall.

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Timberwolves at FIBA World Cup 2023: schedule, updated scores & more 

Taylor Nardinger

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Wolves Pics: FIBA World Cup Media Day Photos

admin

The Minnesota Timberwolves have three players on their roster (Ricky Rubio, J.J. Barea and Gorgui Dieng) playing in the FIBA World Cup. As the tournament moves along, we’ll provide you with updates on how the players and their respective teams do. Today, we'll recap Thursday’s action.

Senegal Loses; Still Advances To Round Of 16

Dieng’s squad played early on Thursday morning and fell 81-79 to Philippines. Dieng played a game-high 44 minutes and had 13 points to go with a game-high 14 rebounds. He added five assists, four steals and three blocks. He led the team with an efficiency mark of 26.

In five games, Dieng is averaging 18 points (8th overall) to go with 11.4 rebounds (2nd). Pretty impressive stuff.

Dieng will matchup against Spain in the Round of 16 on Saturday.

Puerto Rico fell 103-82 to Croatia on Thursday, but Puerto Rico star J.J. Barea had a nice game. The guard finished with 20 points, one assist and one steal. He shot 6-of-13 from the field, 5-of-9 from the 3-point line and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line.

Puerto Rico did not advance to the Round of 16. Barea finished the tournament averaging 22 points (1st overall), 3.2 assist (23rd overall) and 3.2 rebounds in five games.

Point guard Ricky Rubio had a very nice all-around game on Thursday as Spain defeated Serbia 89-73. Rubio finished with 12 points, shooting 3-of-5 from the field and 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. He had a team-high six assists and seven steals to go with four rebounds. He did commit seven turnovers, however.

The FIBA website had plenty of highlights from Rubio’s game.

You can check it all out here. Our favorite is at the 0:42 mark. Classic Ricky.  Steals for days.

Rubio is averaging 5.4 points, 5.8 assists (1st overall), 4.8 rebounds and 3.4 steals (1st overall) in five games. His Spanish club will face off against Dieng and Senegal on Saturday. If there is a Rubio to Dieng alley-oop, someone made a mistake.

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Wolves At FIBA World Cup: Thursday Wrap-Up

The Minnesota Timberwolves have three players on their roster (Ricky Rubio, J.J. Barea and Gorgui Dieng) playing in the FIBA World Cup. As the tournament moves along, we’ll provide you with updates on how the players and their respective teams do. Today, we'll recap Wednesday’s action.

After a hot start to the FIBA Tournament, center Gorgui Dieng cooled off a bit as Senegal fell to Argentina 81-46 on Wednesday. Dieng finished with 11 points and eight rebounds, both marks led the team. He did commit five turnovers, though. He finished shooting 4-of-12 from the field and 3-of-3 from the free-throw line.

He added this block which led to two points for Senegal. He won the "Block of the Game". We assume he'll be getting his trophy soon.

Dieng’s squad played again early on Thursday morning and fell 81-79 to Philippines. Dieng played a game-high 44 minutes and had 13 points to go with a game-high 14 rebounds. He added five assists, four steals and three blocks. He led the team with an efficiency mark of 26.

In five games, Dieng is averaging 18 points (8th overall) to go with 11.4 rebounds (2nd).

Barea Has Big Fourth Quarter To Lead Puerto Rico

Guard JJ. Barea had 10 points in the final four minutes to lead Puerto Rico to a 77-73 win over Philippines. Barea finished with a game-high 30 points to go with five rebounds, two assists and a steal. He shot 8-of-15 from the field, 3-of-7 from the 3-point line and 11-of-12 from the free-throw line.

In four games in the tournament, Barea is averaging 22.5 points (2nd) and 3.8 asissts (18th) per game. Puerto Rico will next play today against Croatia.

Spain remains undefeated after defeating France 88-64 on Wednesday.

Guard Ricky Rubio played 17 points and finished with four points, five assists, four rebounds and a team-high three steals. He shot 2-of-4 from the field.

Rubio is now averaging 3.8 points, 5.8 assists (2nd), 3.8 rebounds and 2.5 steals (2nd) per game.

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Wolves At FIBA World Cup: Wednesday Wrap-Up

Nelson Beltran

SEVILLE, Spain - FIBA Americas runner-up Puerto Rico came from behind to frustrate Gilas Pilipinas, 77-73, in another sparkling moment that flickered out in the end for the Filipinos in the penultimate day of the FIBA World Cup group play here Wednesday night.

The Nationals got off to a rousing start and set the pace most of the way only to crumble down on crucial errors and on Jose Barea's 10-point explosion in the last four minutes of play.

With four losses, including three heartbreakers, Gilas Pilipinas moved out of the fight for the 16-team knockout stage to be played in Madrid and Barcelona.

The Nationals, who had little expectation of advancing to the Round of 16 in the first place, seek to avoid a winless stint in their first World Cup in 36 years as they play Senegal at 2 p.m. Thursday.

"In the second half, we're right there but we kept turning the ball over and couldn't make the shots in the end," rued Gilas coach Chot Reyes.

"We have the skills to play at this level but we don't have the experience to win," Reyes also said moments after the loss as frustrating and disappointing as their defeats at the hands of Croatia and Argentina.

Gilas Pilipinas was still ahead at 70-67 before Barea, an eight-year NBA veteran now with the Minnesota Timberwolves, completely took over the game, sending the Filipinos down on their nears with eight straight points to cap a breathtaking 30-point performance.

Sweet-shooting center Ricky Sanchez and steady wingman David Huertas contributed 13 points for the Puerto Ricans who bucked the absence of skipper Carlos Arroyo and two other injury-stricken players in nailing a first win in the tourney.

Puerto Rico, not finishing below fourth in the last three FIBA Americas, stretched its domination of the Philippines which it has also beat in two previous meetings.

The Filipinos bested the Puerto Ricans only once in five matches - an 82-80 nail-biter pulled off in the 1960 Olympics.

Barea, a prolific guard with an NBA championship ring won with the Dallas Mavericks, had a huge hand as they kept their mastery of the Filipinos.

"First of all, I'd like to commend Gilas. They're a great team. They have small guards who can make shots like me," said Barea humbly.

The truth was that LA Tenorio, Jimmy Alapag and Jayson Castro held their own against Barea only in the first half.

The 30-year-old Mayaguez, Puerto Rico native sizzled with 14 points in the first half, added six in the third period before scoring 10 of their last 12 points.

For Puerto Rican coach Paco Olmos, the big key was allowing Andray Blatche to get his points while clamping down on the Gilas gunners.

The Puerto Ricans dealt the Filipinos decisive beating on three-point shooting with an 11-of-26 clip as against Gilas' 6-of-28.

Gilas was limited to two treys in the last 27 minutes of play, including the last one Blatche made following a loose ball recovery giving the Nationals their last taste of the lead at 70-67.

In his best showing so far in the tourney, Tenorio sparked a swashbuckling start by Gilas as the Filipinos took the first quarter at 25-13 and led by 14 twice early in the second period before settling for a 44-39 halftime lead.

Holding the Puerto Ricans scoreless in a 10-minute stretch in the first half, the Filipinos came through with an 18-to-nothing run to post their first of 14-point margins at 27-13.

But crucial errors and lapses by Gilas towards the end of the second quarter allowed Puerto Rico to cut its deficit to a more manageable level at the turn.

Tenorio shone bright in the first two quarters, battling Barea toe-to-toe with a 5-of-5 from the field for 13 points. The ace Puerto Rican playmaker had 14.

PUERTO RICO (77) - Barea 30, Sanchez 13, Huertas 13, Rivera 5, Galindo 5, Diaz 4, Franklin 2, Clemente 2, Balkman 2.

GILAS PILIPINAS (73) - Blatche 23, Tenorio 18, Lee 10, Alapag 6, Norwood 6, Castro 4, De Ocampo 2, Pingris w, Aguilar 0, Chan 0.

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Barea explodes as Puerto Rico rallies to oust Gilas Pilipinas

Minnesota Timberwolves Gorgui Dieng is currently the Most Efficient Player of the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, taking place in Spain.

The 24-year-old is the player responsible for Senegal’s impressive campaign at the tournament.

In Monday’s 77-75 triumph over Croatia, which followed a 82-75 victory over Puerto Rico the day before, Dieng contributed 27 points, eight rebounds and two block shots.

Since he announced his availability to wear the colours of his country in Spain 2014, the 2.11m centre has averaged 22 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.7 block shots.

Senegal have increased their chances of advancing to the Round of 16 of the World Cup, but will need to succeed in the remaining two Group B games against Argentina and the Philippines.

The West African country will return to group action on Wednesday, to take on the South Americans.

Senegal coach Cheikh Sarr has described his side’s victories as achievements rather than miracles as suggested by some.

"Other teams come here to win the tournament. We are here to learn,” he explained.

"This is history. We joked around coming here saying we were trying to make history, but we really had in mind that we wanted to make history," said Senegal centre Hamady Ndiaye.

"It would be great to keep playing and continue to ride the wave. But we'll use the day to get some rest. And we will be focused the same for the next game against Argentina."

Senegal’s World Cup campaign is making waves around the world with some prominent international media outlets taking note.

Frenchman Boris Diaw, who has been a centrepiece for his country at the World Cup took to twitter to congratulate the countryman of his father.

“Congratulations to Senegal for the win against a good Croatian team,” he wrote.

2013-14 Season: GP: 60 | MIN: 13.6 | PTS: 4.8 | REB: 5.0 | FG%: 49.8

His string of five double-doubles in his first six games as a starter included his 22-21 rampage against the Rockets on 20 March, 2014.

Nominated for Rookie of the Month in April

1. The name Gorgui means ‘The Old One’ in Wolof, the most widely spoken language in Senegal

2. Dieng holds the University of Louisville record for blocks in a season, which he set in his sophomore season of 2011-12, swatting a total of 128 (3.2 per game).

3. At Louisville, Dieng played for Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Rick Pitino, a college coaching legend who also spent a combined six years at the helm of the Knicks (two years) and Celtics (four).

4. He’s one of eight children born to his parents, Momar Dieng and Seynabou Diagne.

5. His favourite athlete outside of basketball is Lionel Messi (courtesy of Louisville Athletics).

Download NBA GAME TIME to find out more about Dieng and the NBA’s international players in the ‘Around The World in 90 Days’ series.

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Explosive Dieng On Fire At FIBA WC

minsflood

Megan SchusterWeb Editorial AssistantEmail / Twitter

With the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup quickly approaching, the Wolves' own Ricky Rubio has been sharing moments and photos of his training with the Spanish national team. He and his teammates are getting ready to host the competition, which starts on August 30.

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Ricky Rubio Trains with Spain for FIBA World Cup

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