OKINAWA (Japan) - Dennis Schroder isn't one to dwell on the past.

He is no longer bothered by how Germany's campaign in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in China turned out, no matter how disappointing it was.

It's been four years, after all.

"THE PEAK OF THE MOUNTAIN IS HERE, WE'RE HALFWAY UP. WE HAVE HIGHER EXPECTATIONS."

- GORDIE HERBERT

Besides, Germany have been successful since. After reaching the 2020 Tokyo Olympics Quarter-Finals, they reached the podium in the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 and won bronze. So there's plenty of positive vibes.

What matters to Germany's star guard now is to build on the gains the program has had in the past few years, and create more history, especially in the ongoing World Cup.

"Last year, we got bronze in the [EuroBasket]. We're looking forward to this challenge, and just try to give everything I have or we have as a team to write history again," he said.

They are on pace to do that.

Most recently, Germany dealt Finland a101-75 rout to sweep Group E with a 3-0 record, taking care of business even if they were guaranteed to enter the Second Round as the pool's top seed.

In what was considered the World Cup's "Group of Death" along with Australia, Finland, and Japan, Schroder and Co. beat them all and emerged unscathed.

Going to the Second Round this year means a lot for Germany, especially after failing to do so in the 2019 edition. They went just 1-2 in the Group Phase, ultimately finishing 18th.

Even if they've already achieved a goal in going further than last time, they're not done yet.

"We expected to advance," said Head Coach Gordie Herbert. "Our thing was playing one game at a time. It's nice to go into the next group 3-0, but we're just in the beginning of what we want to do."

"The peak of the mountain is here, we're halfway up," he added. "We have higher expectations."

And Schroder likes their chances.

"For ourselves, as a team, in the locker room, we know what we can do and what we can't do, and I think when we get everything we have every single game, we like our chances," he said.

"We're looking forward to it."

FIBA