Wiz of Awes
Fansided

FIBA World Cup Rosters: Tracking former and current Wizards playing

By Cem Yolbulan

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 08: Xavier Cooks #12 of Washington Wizards scores on the Indiana Pacers during the first quarter of a 2023 NBA Summer League game at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 08, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 08: Xavier Cooks #12 of Washington Wizards scores on the Indiana Pacers during the first quarter of a 2023 NBA Summer League game at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 08, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Rejoice basketball fans, your thirst for high-level, competitive basketball will be quenched soon.

32 countries from around the world will partake in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 between August 25th to September 10th. The tournament will be held in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia.

The United States will look to bounce back after losing in the Quarter-Finals to France in the 2019 FIBA World Cup and coming in seventh; their lowest finish ever. The United States will be represented by a young but star-studded roster consisting of Paolo Banchero, Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson, Anthony Edwards, Tyrese Haliburton, Josh Hart, Brandon Ingram, Jaren Jackson Jr., Cam Johnson, Walker Kessler, Bobby Portis, and Austin Reaves.

It’s not only the United States that has NBA stars on its roster. All-Star players like Karl-Anthony Towns, Al Horford (Dominican Republic), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece), Nikola Vucevic (Montenegro), Lauri Markkanen (Finland), Luka Doncic (Slovenia), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada), Rudy Gobert (France), Kristaps Porzingis (Latvia) will be representing their countries in the tournament to take down the defending champions Spain.

The United States will play its group stage games in Group C with Greece, Jordan, and New Zealand, with the top two of each group, qualifying for the second round.

As countries are announcing their rosters for the tournament, it looks like the Washington Wizards will be represented by one player there: Xavier Cooks of Australia.

Cooks made the 18-player extended roster for The Boomers and will try to make the final 12 before the tournament starts.

However, there will be plenty of familiar faces at the FIBA World Cup who the Wizards fans will be happy to see. There are five former Wizards who have received the call-up from their national teams. Bobby Portis (United States), Mo Wagner (Germany), Rui Hachimura (Japan), Kristaps Porzingis (Latvia), and Raul Neto (Brazil) will play important parts in their country’s chase of the Naismith Trophy.

The countries participating and the groups they have been placed in are as follows:

Group A: Angola, Dominican Republic, Italy, Philippines

Group B: China, Serbia, South Sudan, Puerto Rico

Group C: Greece, Jordan, New Zealand, United States

Group D: Egypt, Lithuania, Mexico, Montenegro

Group E: Australia, Finland, Germany, Japan

Group F: Cape Verde, Georgia, Slovenia, Venezuela

Group G: Brazil, Cote d’Ivoire, Iran, Spain

Group H: Canada, France, Latvia, Lebanon

Home/Wizards News