Former NBA shooting guard JJ Redick recently broke down why Team USA didn’t succeed at the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
(via The Old Man and The Three w/ JJ Redick and Tommy Alter):
“I don’t think our guys were great at the fact that you can be in the lane for three seconds, there’s no D-3. Like even [Dennis] Schroder’s blow-by at the end of the game against Germany, the help should have been there on Austin Reaves. He’s got Austin Reaves in ISO, what do you think he’s gonna do? The help should have been quicker, there’s no defense. You watch the other team play defense against us, and they’re packing the paint. And that’s where I think the roster… I don’t think we had enough shooting.
“I know Cam Johnson was on the roster, he’s an incredible shooter. A bunch of these guys have shot 40% or close to 40% or better than 40% in their careers, not in their careers, but in certain years in their careers. So it’s not to say we don’t have guys that can shoot the ball, but when I talk about shooting, I mean gravity. I mean actual gravity. I mean off-ball movement. The kid from Germany that killed us in the semifinals (Andreas Obst), he’s creating a reaction from the defense with all of his off-ball movement. Where I think we were really heavy with ISO and really heavy on a set pick and roll against a set defense. And when you’re not defending at a high level and you’re not getting out in transition, you’re gonna have a hard time winning in FIBA.”
Additional quote: “There weren’t guys on this team, outside of Josh Hart, who is a 6-5 wing who consistently in their careers rebound outside of their space. So that was always gonna be a problem.”
