NANJING (China) - New Zealand return to the FIBA Basketball World Cup for the fifth straight time, and they target to reach new heights, according forward Isaac Fotu. 

Drawn in Nanjing's Group F against Montenegro, Brazil and Greece, the 25-year-old admits that winning the group will require extra effort from the 'Tall Blacks', but as Fotu says himself, anything in basketball is possible, especially because the Kiwis are on a special mission.

"BASKETBALL'S THE FASTEST GROWING SPORT IN NEW ZEALAND. HOPEFULLY, WITH THE WORLD CUP WE CAN HELP IT BECOME MORE POPULAR ."
- Isaac Fotu

And although New Zealand have become a regular FIBA Basketball World Cup participant in recent years, they are yet to repeat their fourth-place in 2002 in Indianapolis. 

"Hopefully we can become a top-15 country, and continue to compete with the highest [ranked] teams. I am excited for New Zealand basketball in the future," Fotu told FIBA.basketball.

But how exactly can Fotu and Co. make a difference for New Zealand basketball?

"Basketball's the fastest growing sport in New Zealand. Hopefully with the World Cup we can help it to become even more popular. With Steve Adams in the NBA, basketball's popularity in the New Zealand has grown tremendously. And If we can do well in the World Cup here in China, the game will grow even more," he says. 

"You should see how much basketball is growing in New Zealand. We have a lot of players in colleges at the moment and high-school. In five to ten years, sky is the limit for New Zealand basketball."

Looking at the challenges New Zealand face in Nanjing, the 2.03m (6ft 8in) forward, who is set to make his second straight World Cup appearance, calls it a worth experience. 

"I am definitely excited, we have been in camp for like five weeks now. It’ll be good to finally get into to what we have been preparing for. It’s my second World Cup. Last time I was bit young, and I didn't really appreciate as much. Definitely I'm gonna appreciate this one more. I am really excited to get started," he said. 

Then, Fotu went on to evaluate their Group F opponents: "Brazil has a couple of current and former NBA players, they have a lot of experience. A couple of them have played in four World Cups. They have a lot of size a lot of experience. It's going to be tough. Also Montenegro has some size, they have great European players. They are gonna be tough as well. Greece is obviously one of the best teams in the world, and they have the best player in the world at the moment. It's a very tough group for us, but we’ll try to get as many wins as we can."

When it comes to looking into Group F in more detail, Greece's Giannis Antetokounmpo immediately comes to mind. 

Even Fotu who faced the NBA 2019 MVP five years ago can't avoid it.

"I have faced him [Giannis Antetokounmpo] before, we were a lot younger. Obviously he got a lot better. It was a [2014] pre-World Cup tournament, we played against Greece, they smacked us. Hopefully things will be a bit different this time. He is an insane athlete and I look forward to playing against him."

Ever since Fotu made his debut with the  'Tall Blacks' he feels special and privileged. "I just love it [play for the national team]," he said. "It's a whole different experience coming back. We are not just a team, a lot of us grew up playing against each other, we are all friends here. We are very close friends. I just love coming back and playing for New Zealand. It's an honor to represent my country. Obviously playing in Europe nine months out of the year, it's always good to come back and play with fellow countrymen."

FIBA