ISTANBUL (Türkiye) - Türkiye senior national team head coach Ergin Ataman was considering bringing Omer Kutluay and Darius Karutasu into his team for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 European Qualifiers, but the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2026 was taking place at the same time.
“If the U17 World Cup had not been taking place, I was actually considering calling one or two players into the current squad. However, the tournament coincided with the same dates," Ataman told a press conference ahead of Türkiye's up-coming qualification games.
Türkiye top Group C with a 4-0 record and will take on Bosnia and Herzegovina on the road on Thursday July 2 before hosting Switzerland on Monday July 6.
Türkiye won their first game at the FIBA U17 World Cup, thanks in large part to the duo of Kutluay and Karutasu, who combined for 76 points in the team's 112-100 double-overtime win over New Zealand.
The FIBA U17 World Cup will end on July 5 in Istanbul. And just because the dynamic duo cannot play in this window, it doesn't mean they might not make their senior national team debut this summer, Ataman hinted.
"First of all, we expect our U17 National Team to win a medal at the U17 World Cup. After that, we may include one or two players in the squad during the August camp," the coach said. "They are only 17 years old, but we have two players who are truly very promising for the future."
FIBA