MADRID (FIBA Basketball World Cup) - No one has a crystal ball and can say with all certainty which teams are going to meet in the Final of the FIBA Basketball World Cup.

If one looks at recent history, though, and the FIBA Rankings, it wouldn't be outlandish to suggest that the United States and Spain will clash for title.

The USA are the defending champions and No. 1 in the rankings, ahead of Spain - the side they beat in the last two Olympic Finals in very close contests.

While the European giants exited the 2010 FIBA World Championship at the Quarter-Final stage after a long three-pointer at the death by Serbia's Milos Teodosic condemned them to a 92-89 defeat, it's worth remembering that Pau Gasol wasn't in that Spanish side, unlike the team that played at the last two Olympic Finals.

If two of the powerhouses of international basketball, USA and Spain, do end up squaring off in a battle for top spot on the podium, fans would be guaranteed of a true spectacle.

The USA announced earlier this year a pool of players that has nothing but star power from the NBA.

Even so, Juan Antonio Orenga, who coached a Spanish side without Pau Gasol, Juan Carlos Navarro and Serge Ibaka to third place at last year's EuroBasket, would like his team's chances with the added bonus being home-court advantage.

"There is a lot of talk of the United States and a hypothetical Final (against Spain) which we (Spaniards) would all like to happen," Orenga said on the Spanish Basketball Federation website.

"I always say that they have the best roster (of talented players) but we have the best team since we're talking about a generation forged for more than a decade in which we have competed in every championship."

Spain finished runners-up at Eurobasket 2003 and they were unbeaten at the 2004 Olympics before falling to the USA in the Quarter-Finals, 102-94.

After a fourth-place at EuroBasket 2005, a title at the 2006 FIBA World Championship and a runners-up finish at EuroBasket 2007, Spain won championships at the EuroBaskets in 2009 and 2011.

"Our players always want to win and what better place to try to do that that in our own home and with the support of our fans," Orenga said.

"Undoubtedly, this is an additional pressure but we want to transform that into a dream that spreads throughout the entire country."

Spain are due to announce their squad for the FIBA Basketball World Cup on 1 July.

They will compete in Group A against France, Serbia, Brazil, Iran and Egypt while the United States will compete in Group C against Ukraine, Turkey, Finland, the Dominican Republic and New Zealand.

FIBA