MANILA (Philippines) - The FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 is headed towards the Second Round and the Classification Games. A day off sounds like a good opportunity to update the Power Rankings. 

And let's just say they needed updating.

This is the fourth episode of the World Cup series. You can read the first volume here, the second one here, and the third one, where we definitely did not have a team eliminated in the First Round in the top three, here.

That didn’t age well 😅 #FIBAWC pic.twitter.com/RU2IWilqiv

— FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 🏆 (@FIBAWC) August 27, 2023

The Power Rankings are in no way an official ranking system but do represent the assessment from the author for each team of finishing high or low at the summit in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia, which tips off on August 25. This fourth volume of the Rankings should be considered as an overview with the First Round behind us.

 

 

#32 Iran (-2)

Number of World Cup appearances: 4th appearance
Best result: 19th in 2010
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 22nd

Wait, the World Cup is not over yet. Despite being out of the hunt almost immediately, Iran could still go on to qualify for the Paris Olympics or to at least book one of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments next summer. Read more about that over here.

#31 Mexico (-15)

Number of World Cup appearances: 6th appearance
Best result: 8th in 1967
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 31st

Ugh... The fact that we had them at #16 last time around, and they got blown out in three straight games? You broke our hearts, Mexico. No words.

#30 Venezuela (-5)

Number of World Cup appearances: 5th appearance
Best result: 11th in 1990
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 17th

The final points difference in three defeats isn't bad, but that's a thin rope to be holding onto heading into the Classification Games 17-32. Venezuela's offense was on point for the first two games, getting 85 against Slovenia and 75 against Cape Verde, but a 59-point outing against Georgia should sound the alarm.

#29 Lebanon (-1)

Number of World Cup appearances: 4th appearance
Best result: 16th in 2002
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 43rd

To be fair, they nearly stunned France. But then again, "nearly" doesn't get you a lot in a close competition such as the World Cup, because France "nearly" made it through, or Philippines "nearly" went 3-0 when they went 0-3. You get the point. Nearly is not good enough.

#28 Jordan (+4)

Number of World Cup appearances: 3rd appearance
Best result: 23rd in 2010
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 33rd

It's Rondae Hollis Jefferson's world, we're just living in it.

 

#27 China (-6)

Number of World Cup appearances: 10th appearance
Best result: 8th in 1994
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 27th

As tough it is to focus on the positives when you go 0-3 in the World Cup, coach Sasa Djordjevic can look at the roster with optimism, because other than Kaier Li (Kyle Anderson) and Peng Zhou all the players are still in their 20s. Lessons learned, now time to apply them to challenge for the Olympic ticket.

#26 Philippines (-7)

Number of World Cup appearances: 7th appearance
Best result: 3rd in 1954
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 40th

The record is here! Two things remain on their mind the rest of the way in Manila: Can they reach the Olympics as the best Asian team? Can Jordan Clarkson be the top scorer of the World Cup?

 

#25 Cape Verde (+7)

Number of World Cup appearances: 1st appearance
Best result: 1st appearance
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 64th

Get this...

#24 Egypt (+3)

Number of World Cup appearances: 7th appearance
Best result: 5th in 1950
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 55th 

...all five African teams have won a game at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023...

#23 Cote d'Ivoire (+9)

Number of World Cup appearances: 5th appearance
Best result: 13th in 1982 and 1986
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 42nd 

...which means all five are in a crazy, crazy, too-close-to-call-it race...

#22 Angola (+7)

Number of World Cup appearances: 9th appearance
Best result: 9th in 2006
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 41st

...for a direct flight to the Paris 2024 Olympics...

#21 South Sudan (+1)

Number of World Cup appearances: 1st appearance
Best result: 1st appearance
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 62nd

...but there is also a matter of African pride.

We see you, South Sudan, Angola, Cote d'Ivoire, Egypt and Cape Verde! This could be the official tipping point for African basketball, rest assured none of these teams would be happy with just a single win when we arrive in Qatar for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027.

The potential for all five of these teams is off the charts. No wonder the entire world is talking about these guys as one of the biggest positive surprises of the World Cup.

#20 New Zealand (=)

Number of World Cup appearances: 7th appearance
Best result: 4th in 2002
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 26th

So, so close... Coach Pero Cameron will probably feel a bit unlucky because of the draw which saw them square up against the United States as the biggest favorite to win it all, and against a perennial medal contender in Greece. But they put up a fight, almost stunned coach Dimitris Itoudis and his crew, and earned a standing ovation at the end of the first round in the Mall of Asia Arena.

#19 Finland (-7)

Number of World Cup appearances: 2nd appearance
Best result: 22nd in 2014
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 24th

Sure, they went 0-3. But also, they still have Lauri Markkanen on their roster, and nobody would be surprised if they finished at 2-3 at the end of this event. That could be enough to sneak into one of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments.

#18 Japan (+8)

Number of World Cup appearances: 6th appearance
Best result: 11th in 1967
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 36th 

All of us who had a chance to witness Japan's women's basketball team in major events from 2017 to 2021 had a feeling this could happen. Coach Tom Hovasse is simply a genius, no other way to describe that the man who led the women's team to the Olympic Final also managed to battle for the Second Round here despite not his superstar Rui Hachimura. Young guards, a lot of passing, a lot of shooting... You'll hear about Japan in the future, no doubt.

#17 France (-14)

Number of World Cup appearances: 9th appearance
Best result: 3rd in 2014 and 2019
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 5th 

Ugh. Let's not talk about this.

#16 Puerto Rico (+7)

Number of World Cup appearances: 15th appearance
Best result: 4th in 1990
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 20th 

Second Round, again!? It's becoming a habit now for Puerto Rico, not showing anything to get too excited about during the preparation period, and then becoming a Dream Team at the event, capable of setting a new World Cup record with four (yes, 4) players with double-doubles in a single game. Puerto Rico are impossible to read, we never get it right with these guys.

#15 Georgia (+3)

Number of World Cup appearances: 1st appearance
Best result: 1st appearance
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 32nd

Could they be a Poland? Or a Czech Republic? Because back in 2019, Poland and Czech Republic both reached the Quarter-Finals even though it was their maiden World Cup, for both. Actually, they are going to need to pull off a Czech Republic, because the Czech were the only #2 seed from the First Round to make it through to the Quarter-Finals. Georgia have Germany and Australia up next and the least we can say is that this will be very difficult.

#14 Montenegro (+3)

Number of World Cup appearances: 2nd appearance
Best result: 25th in 2019
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 18th 

See here, this is the big difference between being there and getting there. Montenegro were neck and neck with Lithuania, trading blows, staying close for a half, but then they started missing wide open layups and threes. That's the "getting there" part. The "being there" part was Lithuania, who punished every single Montenegro mistake.

That's the experience of tens or hundreds of games like this already played in Lithuania's history, compared to Montenegro's lack of big game experience. Oh, one more thing. Nikola Vucevic is the best player nobody talks about.

#13 Greece (+2)

Number of World Cup appearances: 9th appearance
Best result: 2nd in 2006
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 9th

The toughest part is out of the way. They faced the United States, they felt that one, and advanced to the Second Round despite that -15 scare v New Zealand. Now they know the drill, against two teams they know really well in Montenegro and Lithuania, two wins would most likely put them through to the World Cup Quarter-Finals. Greece haven't been there since 2006...

#12 Brazil (-1)

Number of World Cup appearances: 19th appearance
Best result: winners in 1959 and 1963
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 13th

For years, former head coach Aco Petrovic warned about a certain point guard, top prospect, worldwide talent. He introduced him to the national team, and now, under new head coach Gustavo Conti, that kid is ready to take over.

Yago Santos is 24, he's coming off of a fabulous German League winning campaign, where he was the Finals MVP, and in the game against Cote d'Ivoire he became the first Brazilian player with 20+ points and 10+ assists since FIBA introduced assists to the official boxscores in 1994. Aco was right all along!

 

#11 Italy (-4)

Number of World Cup appearances: 10th appearance
Best result: 4th in 1970 and 1978
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 10th

The problem with that loss to the Dominican Republic? Italy now know they probably have to defeat Serbia to have a chance of reaching the Quarter-Finals. Feels like we've seen a few of do-or-die games between Italy and Serbia recently, with Italy winning all of them - like at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade in 2022, like at the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 Round of 16, like in the tuneup games this summer. Rest of the world will get their popcorn ready.

#10 Latvia (+4)

Number of World Cup appearances: 1st appearance
Best result: 1st appearance
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 29th

Good news? They stunned France, they stunned the world, they advanced to the Second Round.
Better news? Their fans are the feel good story of the whole event, making it feel like the games are played in Riga since day one.
Bad news? Kristaps Porzingis is here, but in spectator mode, not able to help his squad on the court due to injury.
Worse news? Dairis Bertans also got injured and will miss the rest of the World Cup.
Best news? Arturs Zagars has arrived! Finally, might we add, after witnessing his incredible prospect in various FIBA Youth Events.

 

#9 Lithuania (+4)

Number of World Cup appearances: 6th appearance
Best result: 3rd in 2010
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 8th

The defense will be the key for this Lithuania squad - just make sure to check out the crossmatches when Tadas Sedekerskis guards the "five" man, and Jonas Valanciunas takes the worst shooter on the opponents' team and just plays a basketball version of a sweeper, protecting the rim, protecting the paint, taking maximum advantage of the "no defensive three seconds" scheme in our events. Masterful coaching by Kazys Maksvytis so far!

#8 Australia (-2)

Number of World Cup appearances: 13th appearance
Best result: 4th in 2019
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 3rd 

Why so low? Technically, they are high, because they are the highest ranked #2 seed here, but this is a matter of the schedule difficulty now. The Boomers start the Second Round at 2-1, a win behind Slovenia and Germany. Two wins in two are might be needed for Australia if they want to continue their ongoing streak of reaching major Semi-Finals, something they started in Rio 2016. Also, Josh Giddey looks like a good bet to reach the first triple-double in World Cup history. Don't forget he's still 20...

#7 Dominican Republic (+3)

Number of World Cup appearances: 4th appearance
Best result: 12th in 1978
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 23rd

Googling how to get Dominican citizenship, because...

They are 3-0, people. We had them in the Top 10 this entire time, we saw it coming when they prevented the 2019 runners-up Argentina from qualifying, and all of that was before anybody knew how a superstar such as Karl-Anthony Towns would fit in. Guess what, it was as smooth as it gets.

#6 Serbia (+3)

Number of World Cup appearances: 7th appearance
Best result: winners in 1998, 2002 (as FR Yugoslavia)
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 6th

Everybody talked about Serbia at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019, they got eliminated before the medal battles even began. Everybody talked about Serbia at the FIBA EuroBasket 2022, they got eliminated before the medal battles even began. Not a lot of people talked about Serbia at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023, and you know, maybe that actually suits them better.

No pressure of expectations, just getting out there and enjoying the Bogdan Bogdanovic show. People talk about FIBA Patty or FIBA Fournier... But don't tell us you forgot about FIBA Bogdan. One of the most pleasant experiences in international basketball.

#5 Slovenia (+3)

Number of World Cup appearances: 4th appearance
Best result: 7th in 2014
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 7th

Luka Doncic is averaging exactly 30.0 points per game after the First Round in 2023. The last player to average 30 or more in World Cup history? Oscar Schmidt back in 1990, when he had 34.6 points per game. Feels like any time Luka is entering a global event, Oscar's records are in danger.

Slovenia warmed up nicely for the Second Round, not leaving a glimpse of hope to anybody to endanger their perfect record. Australia and Germany up next and that sounds awesome!

#4 Spain (=)

Number of World Cup appearances: 13th appearance
Best result: winners in 2006 and 2019
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 1st

This part was supposed to say something like, "the defending champs are defending;" but it turns out, this version of Spain is actually attacking. Sergio Scariolo's men have scored 85 or more in each of their first three games, with a variety of players who can fuel that offense.

We're going to have the same conundrum like at the FIBA EuroBasket 2022. If Spain win, who's the MVP? Is it Willy? Is it Juancho? Is it Aldama? Is it Juan Nunez? Do they care? They don't. They just do the most Spanish thing and win as a team.

#3 Canada (+2)

Number of World Cup appearances: 15th appearance
Best result: 6th in 1978 and 1982
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 15th

This tweet is important, because only three of the 18 champions have reached gold despite not winning their group. And Canada not only won the group, they won it with so much authority that it looked scary at times.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander looks like he's in fourth gear, and it's still two gears too much for anybody else at this level, while the entire team is shooting 55 percent from the field and 43 percent from deep. Scary sounds about right!

 

#2 Germany (=)

Number of World Cup appearances: 7th appearance
Best result: 3rd in 2002
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 11th

Admit it, you looked at the last edition of the Power Rankings and said, "LOL Germany at 2, this is ridiculous!" Well, a Franz Wagner-less win over Australia probably changed your mind, especially because Dennis Schroder has every intention to make the MVP debate even more interesting.

Germany are enjoying their finest post-Nowitzki days, even Anthony Edwards said Germany gave them the most problems during the preparation period this summer. A re-match between USA and Germany would be... Sorry, could not finish sentence, we were drooling over the keyboard and it died.

#1 USA  (=)

Number of World Cup appearances: 19th appearance
Best result: winners in 1954, 1986, 1994, 2010, and 2014
FIBA World Ranking presented by NIKE: 2nd

It's a bit cold in the Mall of Asia Arena, because of the windmill called Anthony Edwards firing on all cylinders! He's everything you imagine him to be, and he's confident enough to say out loud that he's going to chase Kevin Durant's 38-point record in the national team jersey.

Add to the mix the lineup tweaks by coach Steve Kerr and his staff, add more greatness by fan favorite Austin Reaves, and you get a clear favorite to re-take the World Cup title.

 
*The power rankings are entirely subjective and are in no way a true and accurate ranking system. All comments are purely those of the author.

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