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I wasn’t surprised that the United States men’s national basketball team didn’t win the 2019 FIBA World Cup. I was a bit surprised that they lost in the quarterfinals to France on Wednesday, however.
There are a couple reasons why the Americans didn’t perform as well. First, the Americans didn’t bring any of their top players to China. And second, the Americans don’t have a core group of players who have much chemistry together, something that most FIBA Europe teams like France have.
I don’t think the Americans played particularly poorly in China. And they had their moments. But it’s also clear that Team USA can still use a talent boost in addition to building around a core group that appears to consist of Kemba Walker, Donovan Mitchell and Harrison Barnes, the three leading scorers in this World Cup.
It’s clear that Team USA won’t have everyone back for next year’s Olympics in Tokyo and they don’t want to end up medal-less for the second world tournament in a row. So, does that leave the door open for Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal?
The chances of Beal making the 2020 Olympic team after turning down opportunities to play on the 2016 Olympic team and this year’s World Cup team are slim. They may be close to none if stars like Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson decide to return. But still, I just don’t think that the door is totally shut on Beal, who had a career-best season in 2018-19.
Do you think Beal will get one more invite to play for Team USA in the 2020 Olympics? Let us know in the poll below.