ISTANBUL (FIBA Basketball World Cup) - The time is quickly approaching when new leaders will emerge in Turkey's national team set-up.

One player who figures to have a prominent role in the important tournaments to come is 24-year-old Birkan Batuk.

A member of the team the past couple of summers, Batuk is in the 21-man Turkey preliminary squad just announced by the federation, with the FIBA Basketball World Cup tipping off in Spain in less than two months.

He'll show up at training camp with a full year of experience in the Turkish Airlines Euroleague and the Beko Basketbol Ligi under his belt.

The optimism that has enveloped Turkish basketball the past decade is readily apparent when Batuk talks about the national team.

"In 2010 we reached the Final," he said. "This time, with new coach Ergin Ataman, we will participate in the championship and fight for the same goal: to hoist the trophy and be champion.

"But first of all, we have to have a really good camp and prepare really well for the championship."

Batuk, on the books of Anadolu Efes, was used sparingly in the 2013-14 Euroleague Regular Season but had an enhanced role after the team advanced to the Top 16.

The 1.96m forward ended up playing an average of more than 18 minutes per game in the competition.

He was also important to the Anadolu Efes cause in the Turkish league, averaging 8.6 points per game as the team finished third in the regular season.

It's not surprising that Batuk found his way into the sport.

His cousin, Samer Senbayrak, was a professional player in Turkey who also made 67 appearances for the national team.

Batuk often went to see Senbayrak play when he was on the books of Besiktas.

"As I watched those games, a love for basketball began developing within me, and when I was nine years old, I decided to become a basketball player," said Batuk.

"With luck and through hard work, I've reached this point."

Batuk will do his best to clinch a place in the World Cup squad, with 20 other players also vying for spots on the roster.

The Turks will square off against Group C opponents USA, Finland, Ukraine, the Dominican Republic and New Zealand in Bilbao.

Turkish squad for FIBA Basketball World Cup: Birkan Batuk, Kerem Gonlum, Cedi Osman, Doguş Balbay, Mehmet Yagmur, Sinan Guler, Ender Arslan, Cenk Akyol, Furkan Aldemir, Melih Mahmutoglu, Oguz Savas, Emir Preldzic, Barıs Hersek, Barıs Ermis, Berkay Candan, Serhat Cetin, Evren Buker, Samet Geyik, Kerem Tunçeri, Omer Asik and Enes Kanter.

Ersan Ilyasova and Kenan Sipahi are injured and therefore not included in the squad.

FIBA