In 1992, the Dream Team put the basketball world on notice that USA Basketball is the best in the business. The world responded, and in 2004, Team USA lost three games and picked up the Olympic bronze medal. Bringing home gold in international competition is expected but not guaranteed. Stephen Silas has been tabbed to build the squads, get them through qualifying, and bring home the gold in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027.
The first leg of qualifying has already begun. Team USA soundly defeated Nicaragua 102-67 in Managua, Nicaragua, last Friday night. MarJon Beauchamp led Team USA with 24 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks. Silas emptied the bench, and 12 players chipped in on the scoreboard. Most of the players on this roster have modest minutes on NBA and G-League rosters but are known primarily to serious hoop junkies.
Tryouts for the team were held in August and will resume in February. Silas and his staff have a lot of work to do between now and then. With so much talent in the U.S, assembling the roster is difficult. “
Silas: There’s obviously the talent piece that you have to really pay attention to, but the fit piece is just as important. You know, how do they play well together? How do they mesh with each other? What do the rotations look like? And what’s necessary? Like, do we need a big guy who can really fight in the post and play traditional center, or do we need a stretch five that can space the floor? Now we can, you know, play five out. So it’s tough in that the way that you’re saying it’s really tough because, yes, we want the talent, but it all has to fit together well. And you really don’t know until you know. You think you know, but you don’t know until they’re actually out there together. So it’s tough.
The influx of international talent in the NBA has been nothing less than spectacular. The last seven league MVPs are foreign-born. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, and Giannis Antetokounmpo have citizenship in Canada, Serbia, France, and Greece. Last year, French native Victor Wembanyama arrived and changed the game.
None of those guys or their Team USA counterparts are playing in these opening rounds, but they likely will for the qualifying rounds in February. Getting to that point starts with getting this current group to perform at their best. It’s going to require the kind of chemistry that makes coaches comfortable. During practice on Monday, team scout Clay Moser noted how the squad was showing signs of it during a water break. “You see how they are hanging together instead of going off by themselves,” said Moser.
Silas echoed those sentiments.
Silas: There are highly motivated guys because of what the world is doing. So if they’re motivated, they’re motivated to do it the right way. They’re motivated to win first and foremost. Then, you know, guys are willing to play their role. And the more they’re together, the better it is. But we have to do a good job as a staff, as a USA basketball organization to… send them stuff and keep them together and do dinners and do stuff off the floor that can keep them, you know, cohesive as a group. So there’s a lot that goes into it, as far as off the floor and on the floor. The togetherness and the motivation part, you know, is paramount.
Every player who reaches this level has been the main guy at one point in his career. It takes maturity for players to accept the realization that they may not be asked to be the player they were on their previous team.
Silas: A lot of times, the role is different for them when they come to USA Basketball as opposed to what it is when they’re playing with their teams. So being really specific about the role definition part is important. A lot of times, you don’t know until they’ve played a few games, how they fit together and what the roles are going to be and all that stuff. So some of it’s trial and error. Some of it’s a lot of study and knowing what guys’ strengths are and what guys’ weaknesses are. And for us, you know, sometimes it’s trial and error, but there is a lot of study and film work that goes into it, and actually seeing the guys and touching them and putting them through situations and practice and all that stuff.
The ultimate goal for Team USA is to win the gold medal in a style of basketball that’s not familiar to the majority of players. There are quite a few FIBA rules and regulations that differ from NBA/NCAA rules.
| Rule | FIBA | NBA/NCAA |
| Court size | 91 ft 10 in x 49 ft 2.5 in | 94 ft x 50 ft |
| Playing Time | Four 10 minute Quarters | Four 12 minute quarters / 2 20 minute halves |
| Three point line | Same distance from every angle 22 ft 1.75 in. | 23 ft 9 in. and 22 ft from the corners |
| Timeouts | 1 minute, 2 in the 1st half, 3 in the 2nd half, limited to 2 in the last 2 minutes of a game | 7 timeouts in NBA, 2 in OT, limited to 4 in the 4Q and 2 after 3 minute mark. Length varies from 30 seconds to 2:26 for media timeouts |
| Roster size | 12 players | 15 players |
| Fouls | 4 fouls per quarter, 2 Free Throws for each additional foul. | 6 NBA / 5 NCAA |
| Technical fouls | Technical fouls counted as personal fouls | Not counted as personal fouls |
| Inbounding the ball | 8 seconds | 5 seconds |
| Basket interference | No goal tending if the ball touches the rim and is not over the cylinder | Ball must leave the perimeter of the rim before touching |
| Shot clock | 24 secs, Offensive rebound resets clock to 14 seconds | 24 seconds, resets to 24 seconds after a rebound |
| Traveling violation | Dribble before taking a step | Dribble after taking a step |
| Three seconds | No penalty for defensive three seconds in the paint | Three second penalty for offensive and defensive players in the NBA only |
The Team USA organization made sure these differences won’t affect the outcome. Silas and his staff emphasize the differences with drills during practice and in other ways.
Silas: We do a rule of the day with the group, just so they can know the difference in rules, like certain times the clock is gonna run. When the ball goes through the rim in the first three quarters, the clock is gonna run. So we got to get it out quick or maybe we hold it so we can get the last shot. There’s certain times where you could throw it in the backcourt, and you can’t there’s certain times you can’t throw it in the backcourt. There’s little stuff, but overall, the physicality, there’s much more physicality in FIBA than there is in the NBA, because the freedom of movement, all those rules don’t apply. And then, you know, there’s no illegal defense in FIBA as opposed to the NBA. So there’s a lot of stuff. And for me, like the timeouts, the timeouts in the NBA can be two minutes and 30 seconds, where in FIBA, they’re 60 seconds. You know, so get with the coaches to figure out what we want to tell the players, and getting a play in sometimes can be a little bit rushed. But yeah, there’s some stark differences, especially for the coach as far as calling timeouts, when you can call a timeout, when you can’t call a timeout. There’s a lot. So we try to brief them on that stuff, but we study it a lot as a staff.
There are a lot of moving parts in order to get to Qatar, the host of the FIBA Basketball World Cup. Twelve new guys will arrive to replace some or all of the current roster of players that can be viewed here. The 2023 team included familiar NBA players like Anthony Edwards, Jalen Brunson, and Cam Johnson. Whoever makes the team will have to meet the standards of this coaching staff.
Silas: We have a way of doing things. We have a good feel for the FIBA game. We have a good feel for what’s important, the five main things that are important as far as winning a FIBA game, but it’s different because you have different players.
Team USA has a rematch with Nicaragua tonight, Dec. 1, at The Gateway Center Arena near Hartsfield Jackson Airport at 7:10 pm. The arena can be accessed by taking the free ATL SkyTrain from the airport or by car/ride share. Find directions on the arena website.