02 - 10
July 2022

Competition History

The FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup has been a very special event since the first edition, which was in 2010 in Hamburg, Germany.

The USA have reached the top of the podium at all five U17 World Cups, including the first when future NBA lottery pick Bradley Beal was named MVP, while numerous other countries have also introduced rising stars. 

Many of the young players taking part are only a few years away from competing on the biggest stages of the game with national teams, clubs or franchises in countries all over the world.

That very first U17 World Cup also had runners-up Poland's finest player the past decade, Mateusz Ponitka, and China point guard Guo Ailun. 

Australian duo Dante Exum and Ben Simmons were at the 2012 U17 World Cup in Lithuania, where they led the team to the Final. 

USA's Jayson Tatum and the event’s overall leading scorer, Rui Hachimura of Japan, were among those in Dubai in 2014.

Canada's RJ Barrett and France's Jaylen Hoard played at the 2016 tournament in Spain, and USA's Jalen Green was among the lead attractions at the 2018 competition in Argentina. 

The tournament has been held five times in all, with the coronavirus pandemic preventing the 2020 competition from taking place.

2010

  • The Best of FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2010

    FIBA started a new global competition for 2010 with the first biennial FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2010 in Hamburg, Germany. The United States dominated the competition and took home the title - not losing a game. This is a look back at what you need to remember about the first U17 showcase.

    The best team: USA

    Rank Team W-L
    1. USA USA 8-0
    2. POL Poland 7-1 
    3. CAN Canada 5-3
    4. LTU Lithuania 5-3
    5. SRB Serbia 4-4
    6. AUS Australia 4-4 
    7. CHN China 4-4 
    8. GER Germany 3-5 
    9. ARG Argentina 3-4 
    10. ESP Spain 2-5 
    11. EGY Egypt 1-6 
    12. KOR Korea 0-7 

     

    Poland came to northern Germany with one of their best-ever generations - Mateusz Ponitka, Przemyslaw Karnowski, Tomasz Gielo and Michal Michalak - but the Americans were too much as Bradley Beal, Andre Drummond, Michael Gilchrist, Quinn Cook and James McAdoo helped United States to the title. Canada would bring home the bronze medal thanks to a group led by Kevin Pangos, future No. 1 overall NBA draft pick Anthony Bennett and Dyshawn Pierre.

    The best video: re-watch the Final between United States and Poland

     
    The best players: MVP and All-Tournament Team

    The legendary Dirk Nowitzki handed out the MVP trophy to Bradley Beal

    Beal was a real force from beyond the three-point line in leading the United States team in scoring with 18.2 points per game - which ranked third in the tournament. Beal led the competition in three-pointers made (31) and attempted (65) and ranked fourth in three-point shooting percentage (47.7 percent). The future three-time NBA All-Star  drained at least four triples in five games, hitting seven in the Quarter-Finals against Australia, four in the Semi-Finals versus Canada and five in downing Poland in the Final. Beal also collected 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocks. Beal ranked tied for fourth in steals.

    Beal was joined on the first All-Tournament team by teammate James McAdoo, Mateusz Pontika (second on the left) and Przemyslaw Karnowski (first on the right) of Poland and Canada's Kevin Pangos (first on the left).

    The best game: Spain vs Australia - Group Phase

    Major drama in the final Group Phase game of the tournament with two world giants - Spain and Australia - battling it out for only one spot in the Quarter-Finals. Spain - led by future stars such as Jaime Fernandez and Dani Diez - built a 12 point lead in the first half and it was 13 points in the third quarter. Australia fought back and tied the game 52-52. The score was knotted at 64-64 and 66-66 and Australia had the ball for the final possession. Norton Mitch missed a three-pointer but Owen Odigie scored at the buzzer to send the Australians into the Quarter-Finals.

    The best performance:  Ailun Guo - China

    In a Group Phase game versus Argentina, the Chinese team star Ailun Guo flirted with a triple-double as he poured in 26 points on 10-of-19 shots and 3-of-6 free throws, grabbed 9 rebounds and dished out 7 assists to go with 1 steal. In the end, China also came away with a victory, knocking off the South Americans 76-64.

    The hidden star: Andrew Wiggins - Canada

    Andrew Wiggins was two years younger than the rest of the competition as a 1995-born youngster but the skinny kid showed he belonged, averaging 8.1 points and 3.2 rebounds. His best game came in the Semi-Finals against the United States with 20 points and 5 rebounds and he added 12 points and 5 rebounds to help Canada win the bronze medal over Lithuania.

    Stats leaders

    Scorers
    Player Points Per Game
    CHN Ailun Guo 22.4
    POL Mateusz Pontika 19.0
    USA Bradley Beal 18.3
    EGY Ahmed Hamdy  16.6
    KOR Dong Yeop Lee  16.6
     
    Rebounds
    Player Rebounds Per Game
    EGY Ahmed Hamdy 12.1
    POL Przemyslaw Karnowski 11.0
    LTU Simonas Kymantas 10.2
    CAN Dyshawn Pierre 8.2
    USA James McAdoo 7.9
     
    Assists
    Player Assists Per Game
    USA Quinn Cook 7.4
    USA Marquis Teague 6.0
    CHN Ailun Guo 5.5
    POL Grzegorz Grochowski 4.4
    USA Anthony Wroten 4.3

  • The Best of FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2012

    The United States went to Lithuania in the summer of 2012 looking to defend their first FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup title and the Americans were never really challenged. There were plenty of storylines to come out of Kaunas, including the dominance of a trio of future NCAA champion teammates at Duke; what-if australian thoughts about Dante Exum and Ben Simmons; and the early stage of "Super Mario" - Mario Hezonja.

    The best team: USA

    Rank Team W-L
    1. USA USA 8-0
    2. AUS Australia 6-2
    3. CRO Croatia 7-1
    4. ESP Spain 4-4
    5. CAN Canada 5-3
    6.  ARG Argentina 4-4 
    7. CHN China 4-4 
    8. CZE Czech Republic 2-6
    9. LTU Lithuania 3-4 
    10. FRA France 2-5 
    11. KOR Korea 1-6 
    12.  EGY Egypt 0-7 


    The Americans came into the tournament with a perfect record in the competition's history and perfection was still in place by the time they hoisted a second trophy. United States averaged a winning margin of 39.9 points in the eight games with the closest game coming on Day 1 with a 22-point win over Australia  - the same team they would roll past in the Final by 33 points - 95-62. Croatia lost only once in the tournament - in the Semi-Finals against Australia - and ended up getting third place to at least go home with a medal.

    The best video: re-watch the Semi-Final between Australia and Croatia


    The best players: MVP and All-Tournament Team


    Jahlil Okafor was named the MVP of the tournament

    Jahlil Okafor was truly a man among boys in Lithuania, not only because of his size and mass but also with foundational big man skills that some coaches in Kaunas said could play at that time in the NBA already. Okafor averaged 13.6 points on nearly 60 percent shooting and 8.2 rebounds - 4.1 of those offensive boards - in fewer than 14 minutes per game. Okafor, who collected 17 points and 8 rebounds in 20 minutes in the Final against Australia, was second in scoring and rebounding on the loaded USA team that produced eight future NBA players.


    From left to right - Okafor, Gabriel Deck (ARG), Justise Winslow (USA), Mario Hezonja (CRO), Dante Exum (AUS) 

    Okafor was joined on the All-Tournament team by teammate Justise Winslow, Dante Exum from runners-up Australia, Mario Hezonja from bronze medallists Croatia and Argentina's Gabriel Deck.

    Okafor, Winslow, Jones win NCAA title with Duke

     
    The 2012 U17 World Cup crown was just the first that the future NBA trio of Okafor, Winslow and point guard Tyus Jones would win together. They re-united for the 2014-15 season and carried Duke to the 2015 NCAA championship - the last time the Blue Devils claimed the trophy.

    The best game: Australia vs Croatia - Semi-Finals

    This showdown of basketball powers had almost everything you could want - two great teams with plenty of star power, great individual performances, spectacular highlights and of course plenty at stake with the winner to reach the Final. You can find the full-game video at the top of this feature. Croatia had built up an eight-point lead in the second quarter but then Mirko Djeric drained four three-pointers in a 19-4 close to the first half. Dante Exum took over in the second half for Australia and nothing that Mario Hezonja could do for Croatia ended up being enough as Australia won 83-71. Djeric ended with 21 points on 7 three-pointers and 9 assists and Exum had 18 points while Hezonja poured in 28 points in the loss as he showed why he earned the nickname "Super Mario".

    The best performance:  Heo Hoon - Korea vs Lithuania

    Korea went into their second group game as real underdogs to hosts Lithuania, but Hoon Heo would have none of it. The future Korean senior national team player drained 4 three-pointers in scoring a tournament-high 37 points on 11-of-22 shooting besides collecting 3 rebounds, 8 assists and 7 steals. But all of that production was not enough - though Lithuania needed overtime to beat Korea 119-108. 

    The hidden star: Ben Simmons

     
    Ben Simmons was a year younger than the rest of the competition - just a couple weeks shy of his 16th birthday - but his potential could be seen - especially in two games. The baby-faced future NBA star collected 26 points, 10 rebounds and 5 steals against Czech Republic and followed that up with 13 points and 14 rebounds against Egypt. After playing 77 minutes in those two games, Simmons totaled just 46 minutes in the final four games, picking up 19 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocks. For the tournament, Simmons averaged 9.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.1 assist. It remains the only time Simmons has played for Australia save for two games against New Zealand in the FIBA Oceania Championship 2013. Simmons has yet to team up again for Australia with Exum, who himself has only played for the Boomers at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2014 and 2020 Olympics leaving many Australia fans wondering what-if.

    Solid last placed team - Egypt


    Current Egyptian senior national team leader Ehab Saleh going against Ben Simmons

    Egypt may have finished in last place at 12th with eight losses in eight games, but they represented their continent bravely in a couple of fights with a team that produced two future senior national team leaders in Ehab Saleh and Anas Mahmoud. In Group Phase action, Egypt had eventual silver medalists Australia on the ropes with a five-point lead with 2 minutes left, but the Oceania powers forced overtime and needed a second extra session where they reeled off 15 straight points for an 88-73 2OT win. Egypt also gave Lithuania all it could handle with a 73-72 defeat in the 9-12 classification round. 

    Stats leaders

    Scorers
    Player Points Per Game
    ARG Gabriel Deck 21.5
    CRO Mario Hezonja 20.8
    KOR Hoon Heo 17.7
    AUS Dante Exum 17.3
    LTU Edvinas Seskus 15.7
    EGY Ehab Amin 15.7
     
    Rebounds
    Player Rebounds Per Game
    CHN Qi Zhou 10.1
    CRO Karlo Zganec 9.0
    LTU Evinas Seskus 9.0
    USA Justise Winslow 8.8
    CZE Martin Peterka 8.6
     
    Assists
    Player Assists Per Game
    CZE Radovan Kouril 9.6
    AUS Mirko Djeric 5.6
    USA Tyus Jones 5.4
    ARG Alvaro Merlo 5.1
    CRO Paolo Marinelli 4.4

  • The Best of FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2014

    A special aura began to build around the United States after winning the first two FIBA U17 Basketball World Cups in undefeated fashion. Could anybody challenge the mighty USA?

    In the end, this tournament was historic in many ways. It featured an expansion of teams from 12 to 16; drew the basketball world to the United Arab Emirates; saw the two closest games for the USA; the debut of a record holder from Egypt and a Japanese monster going against the world.

    The best team: USA

    Rank Team W-L
    1. USA USA 7-0
    2. AUS Australia 5-2
    3. SRB Serbia 6-1
    4. ESP Spain 3-4
    5. PUR Puerto Rico 6-1
    6. CAN Canada 4-3
    7. CHN China 3-4 
    8. FRA France 3-4
    9. ITA Italy 5-2
    10. ARG Argentina 4-3
    11. ANG Angola 3-4
    12. GRE Greece 3-4
    13. EGY Egypt 2-5
    14. JPN Japan 1-6
    15. PHI Philippines 1-6
    16. UAE United Arab Emirates 0-7


    Through the first 16 games in the first two U17 World Cups, the United States had an average winning margin of 36.8 points - with the closest game being a 12-point win in their first-ever contest in the competition against Argentina in 2010. Their closest game in 2012 was also their opener - a 22-point victory against Australia.

    Greece were first up for USA in Dubai and the Europeans gave the two-time reigning champs a run for their money - losing by just 10 points, 83-73. Team USA would cruise their way back into the Final - a repeat date with 2012 silver medallists Australia. And this time Australia were ready for a battle. In the end, the USA managed to secure a 99-92 win for a third straight undefeated crown. Serbia ended up beating fellow European side Spain 62-59 for the third spot on the podium.

    The best video: re-watch the Final between USA and Australia


    Here's the video for the full game between United States and Australia to decide the title. Malik Newman, of course, is great with 21 points and 11 rebounds, but it's impressive to watch Jayson Tatum - a year younger than the rest of the competition - gather 15 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 2 blocks off the bench.

    The best player: Malik Newman MVP

     Malik Newman took home the MVP award

    Malik Newman was a logical choice as Most Valuable Player as he led the United States in scoring and assists. All told, Newman averaged 14.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists as a combo guard who was stronger than most of the competition and could not be kept from driving because of his quickness. Newman had also led the USA team in scoring at the FIBA U16 Americas Championship 2013.


    From left to right - Diamond Stone (USA), Dejan Vasiljevic (AUS), Newman, Nikola Rakicevic (SRB), Isaac Humphries (AUS)

    Newman was joined on the All-Tournament team by teammate Diamond Stone, Dejan Vasiljevic and Isaac Humphries from runners-up Australia and Nikola Rakicevic from bronze medallists Serbia.

    The best game: Australia vs Spain - Semi-Finals

     
    Two huge teams in world basketball playing in the Semi-Finals for a date with two-time reigning champions United States in the Final - what more could you ask for? Australia made their back to the Final, but it took a near miracle to get it done as they fought back from 22 points down to beat Spain 80-74 in overtime.

    The Australians scored the final eight points in the last two minutes of regulation including two lay-ups after steals by Tom Wilson in the final 35 seconds.  Isaac Humphries paced the Aussies with  22 points, 8 rebounds and 5 blocks while Wilson had 13 points and 11 rebounds. Spain shot themselves in the foot with seven of their 12 turnovers in the final 7 minutes of the game.

    The best performance:  Isaac Humphries - Australia vs Canada

    Isaac Humphries was unstoppable for Australia in their Group Phase showdown with Canada. The big man set a new U17 World Cup scoring record as he torched the Canadians for 41 points, hitting 16-of-23 shots and 9-of-11 free throws. Humphries also grabbed 19 rebounds to go with 2 assists and 5 blocks. But the effort was for naught though as Australia lost to Canada 85-74. A big reason for that was Jamal Murray collecting 25 points and 7 rebounds as he starred for Canada at the tournament.

    The best scorer: Rui vs the world


    Japan finished 14th in the competition with only a victory over United Arab Emirates in the Classification 13-16, but the Asians featured one of the top players in the tournament - Rui Hachimura, who must have felt like he was facing the world alone at times. The future leader of the Japanese senior national team led the event in scoring at 22.6 points to go along with 6.6 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.7 blocks - all despite being a year younger as a 1998-born player.

    Even with Hachimura, Japan finished 15th of 16 teams in scoring at 60.7 points per game. The future Washington Wizards star accounted for 37.2 percent of his team's points. The only time he produced fewer than 25.0 percent of Japan's points was when he had 14 of 91 points - 15.4 percent - against UAE. Hachumira scored 52.9 percent of Japan's points against France (27 in 96-51 loss), 58.9 percent against Italy (35 in 83-56 defeat) and an outrageous 65.8 percent versus United States (25 in 122-38 loss). Hachimura was the only Japanese player to score more than two points against the Americans as he made 10-of-28 shots and 4-of-7 free throws to go with 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks and just 1 turnover in 36 minutes. He was the only Japanese player who really went toe to toe with a USA team that included nine future NBA players. 

    The hidden star: Ahmed Khalaf - Egypt

    Egypt did not really stand out in Dubai, picking up just wins over Philippines and Japan for a 2-5 record and 13th place. But the Africans did have one of the biggest stars in the history of the competition - a 15-year-old Ahmed Khalaf. The center was fourth on the team in scoring with 8.6 points and led Egypt in rebounding at 9.3 boards per game. Khalaf grew more and more in confidence over the course of the tournament, combining for 15 points, 13 rebounds and 11 blocks in the first three games. In the fourth game against Puerto Rico he had 1 point but picked up 10 rebounds and 8 blocks.

    Khalaf was a force in the last three games, averaging 14.7 points, 14.0 rebounds and 5.0 blocks. He collected 15 points, 19 rebounds and 6 blocks against Japan and had 10 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks against Greece and big man Georgios Papagiannis. He finished with 4.9 blocks per game - still the highest average of blocked shots in the first five U17 World Cups. The tournament was the first of four youth FIBA World Cups for Khalaf, who played again at the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2016 as well as the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2015 and 2017.

    Stats leaders

    Scorers
    Player Points Per Game
    JPN Rui Hachimura 22.6
    CHN Zhao Yanhao 21.6
    AUS Isaac Humphries 18.9
    FRA Amine Noua 18.7
    CHN Hu Jinqiu 17.4
    AUS Dejan Vasiljevic 17.4
     
    Rebounds
    Player Rebounds Per Game
    PUR Arnaldo Toro 13.6
    CHN Hu Jinqiu 12.3
    AUS Isaac Humphries 11.6
    ANG Bruno Fernandes 10.6
    FRA Stephane Gombauld 10.3
     
    Assists
    Player Assists Per Game
    SRB Stefan Peno 3.6
    CHN Liu Chunqing 3.3
    AUS Matthew Owies 3.1
    ARG Guillermo Aliende 3.0
    USA Malik Newman 3.0

  • The Best of FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2016

    Following a couple of scares in Dubai two years earlier, USA once again exerted their total dominance and rolled to the title at the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2016 with little resistance. The tournament also featured some Turkish delight, a historic Dzanan Musa performance, more U17 World Cup heartbreak for Spain and Canada and a truly special showing by Yves Pons.

    The best team: USA

    Rank Team W-L
    1. USA USA 7-0
    2. TUR Turkey 5-2
    3. LTU Lithuania 5-2
    4. ESP Spain 5-2
    5. CAN Canada 6-1
    6. FRA France 4-3
    7. AUS Australia 3-4
    8. KOR Korea 3-4
    9. BIH Bosnia and Herzegovina 5-2
    10. CHN China 3-4
    11. DOM Dominican Republic 2-5
    12. FIN Finland 2-5
    13. ARG Argentina 2-5
    14. TPE Chinese Taipei 1-6
    15. MLI Mali 2-5
    16. EGY Egypt 1-6


    USA's first-game jitters from past U17 World Cups were non existent in Zaragoza as they opened against Chinese Taipei and won by 74 points. They were never really challenged in the second game against Turkey with an 18-point victory and followed that with wins by 47, 53 and 52 points before brushing aside Lithuania by 28 points in the Semi-Finals and then walloped Turkey a second time around by 40 points - 96-56 - for their fourth straight undefeated title.

    The best video: re-watch the Final between USA and Turkey

     
    Check out the full game between United States and Turkey. The Americans watched Turkey take a 6-0 lead and shortly thereafter reeled off 19 straight points to lead 21-8 and never looked back.  

    The best player: Collin Sexton MVP

     MVP Collin Sexton

    Collin Sexton was easily the Most Valuable Player of the tournament as he led USA in scoring with 17.0 points per game while also averaging 4.2 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.7 steals per contest.  In the Final victory over Turkey, the guard collected 16 points, 8 assists and 2 steals.


    From left to right - Sergi Martinez (ESP), Sexton, Arnas Velicka (LTU), Dzanan Musa (BIH), Wendell Carter Jr (USA)

    Sexton was joined on the All-Tournament team by teammate Wendell Carter Jr, Arnas Velicka from bronze medallists Lithuania, Sergi Martinez from fourth-placed finishers Spain and leading scorer Dzanan Musa of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

    The best game: Turkey vs Spain - Semi-Finals

     
    The first Semi-Finals game was between first-timers Turkey and hosts Spain - with one team about to make history by clinching their first-ever U17 World Cup medal. Spain were looking good with a 15-point lead late in the first half and it was still a 14-point cushion (49-35) with under 6 minutes left in the third quarter. Turkey fought back into the game and Onuralp Bitim's tip-in with 3 seconds left forced overtime where Turkey disappointed the home side 83-79 to reach the Final.

    The best performance: Dzanan Musa - Bosnia and Herzegovina vs Chinese Taipei

     
    Dzanan Musa not only led the tournament in scoring but he also set a new single game scoring record - and it was after shedding tears of disappointment. The Bosnia and Herzegovina star dropped 50 points against Chinese Taipei in the Classification 9-16 a day after the Europeans lost to Australia in the Round of 16. Musa made 18-of-26 shots from the field, went 11-of-15 from the free-throw line, grabbed 7 rebounds, handed out 4 assists and drew 12 fouls in 27:15 minutes. He broke the record of 41 points set by Isaac Humphries of Australia in 2014 and matched by Jaylen Hoard of France earlier in the tournament.  

    More heartbreak: Semi-Finals for Spain, Quarter-Finals for Canada

     
    The FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup has become something of a curse for Spain and Canada. Both storied countries have suffered some major heartbreak over the course of the tournament's history and it was repeated in 2016 in Zaragoza.

    The hosts Spain came into the competition having lost in the Semi-Finals in 2012 (to United States) and 2014 (to Australia) and then left empty-handed by losing in the bronze medal game both editions (2012 to Croatia and 2014 against Serbia). History repeated in 2016 as the Spanish lost to Turkey in the Semi-Finals and then were beaten by Lithuania to finish fourth for a third straight edition.

    Canada meanwhile had actually took third place in 2010 but since then the North Americans have seen red at the Quarter-Finals stage. Canada were defeated in the 2012 quarters by United States and then fell to Serbia in 2014. In 2016, Canada had their eyes set on a showdown with the rival United States in the Final but they were tripped up by Turkey two games before that.  And Turkey would end up taking home the silver medal in their debut.

    The decision: RJ Barrett for OQT or U17 World Cup


    RJ Barrett almost played the 2016 OQT over the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup

    Days before Canada were to start the FIBA  U17 Basketball World Cup 2016, the team did not know if a wildly talented youngster would be playing for them in Spain or not. In the build-up to the tournament, RJ Barrett, who at the time was a year younger than the rest of the competition, was actually working out with the Canadian senior national team for the  2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Manila.

    Barrett, who celebrated his 16th birthday during the senior team training camp, even played in Canada's warm-up game against Croatia and scored 5 points. In the end, Barrett joined the U17 team and was the team's leader, averaging 18.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists.  

    The best show: lift off for Air Pons 

     
    One of the biggest showstoppers in the tournament was Yves Pons, a freak athlete for France who came up with some of the most electric dunks and blocks seen in the history of the competition.  Pons' performance was also featured - titled "When Yves Pons took the world's breath away" - in which his outings in Zaragoza were broken down in detail.      

    The only U17 World Cup triple-double: Aljosa Jankovic


    Aljosa Jankovic made FIBA U17 World Cup history against Dominican Republic

    Trying to guess who the only player in FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup history to register a triple-double was would take a long, long, long time. Those who remembered Aljosa Jankovic doing it deserve some major respect. Not only did Jankovic come off the bench for Bosnia and Herzegovina in their Classification 9-12 game against Dominican Republic to pick up 15 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists - to go with 5 steals - but the performance was actually overshadowed by Dzanan Musa pouring in 34 points with 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks.

    Stats leaders

    Scorers
    Player Points Per Game
    BIH Dzanan Musa 34.0
    FRA Jaylen Hoard 22.4
    TPE Ting-Chien Lin 21.3
    ESP Sergi Martinez 19.9
    KOR Lee Junghyun 18.9
     
    Rebounds
    Player Rebounds Per Game
    EGY Ahmed Khalaf 14.0
    ESP Sergi Martinez 12.9
    TUR Ahmet Can Duran 12.0
    EGY Esam Mostafa 11.6
    AUS Sam Froling 10.4
     
    Assists
    Player Assists Per Game
    LTU Arnas Velicka 4.7
    TPE Yu-Wei Chen 4.3
    USA Collin Sexton 4.2
    ESP Carlos Alocen 4.0
    BIH Sani Campara 3.9
    KOR Lee Junghyun 3.9

  • The Best of FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018

    The main question going into the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018 was - just like every two years - can anybody beat the United States? And the answer to each of the past four editions has been no. This time around it was France who hoped to do the trick with a golden generation, but in the end the Americans rolled to another undefeated title. 

    France would reach the Final and take home their first medal while the tournament also featured Puerto Rico pulling off some magic to the detriment of Canada; Mali laid an important foundation for future youth global magic; and a young Alperen Sengun was sensational for Turkey.

    The best team: USA

    Rank Team W-L
    1. USA USA 7-0
    2. FRA France 6-1
    3. PUR Puerto Rico 5-2
    4. CAN Canada 5-2
    5. TUR Turkey 5-2
    6. AUS Australia 4-3
    7. CRO Croatia 4-3
    8. MNE Montenegro 3-4
    9. DOM Dominican Republic 3-4
    10. SRB Serbia 4-3
    11. ARG Argentina 3-4
    12. MLI Mali 2-5
    13. PHI Philippines 2-5
    14. NZL New Zealand 1-6
    15. CHN China 1-6
    16. EGY Egypt 1-6


    USA went into the tournament ablaze with a 78-point win over China to start and never slowed down. Their "closest" game was a 32-point drubbing of Serbia in the final Group Phase game, then they coasted in the Knockout Phase with victories by 43, 74, 49 and 43 points - the latter in the Final over France. While United States improved to 37-0 all time in the U17 World Cup, France claimed their first medal and then Puerto Rico down Canada for bronze - their first time standing on the podium as well.

    The best video: re-watch the Final between USA and France

     
    France went into the game with high hopes of having two future NBA guards in Killian Hayes and Theo Maledon. But the United States led 23-14 after 10 minutes and the score was already 45-25 at halftime. 

    The best players: Jalen Green MVP

    MVP Jalen Green

    Jalen Green not only led the USA team in scoring - at 15.7 points per game - but he did so playing just 18.7 minutes per game, ranking fifth on the team. He also averaged 2.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals per contest. Green exploded for 27 points with 5 three-pointers against Croatia in the Quarter-Finals and then poured in 25 points in the Semi-Finals against Canada. Those performances - which reminded one of Vinnie "Microwave" Johnson because he got so hot so fast - were the key to giving Green the green light to win the Most Valuable Player award.

    From left to right - Vernon Carey  Jr. (USA), Killian Hayes (FRA), Jalen Green (USA), Andre Curbelo (PUR), Oumar Ballo (MLI)

    Green was joined on the All-Tournament team by teammate Vernon Carey Jr, Killian Hayes from runners-up France, Andre Curbelo from bronze medallists Puerto Rico and second-leading scorer and top rebounder Oumar Ballo of Mali.

    The best game: Mali vs Dominican Republic - Classification 9-12

     
    You might be wondering why pick a 9-12 Classification Game as the best game - well this showdown between Mali and Dominican Republic went to triple overtime and had some absolutely amazing individual performances by some future stars. David Jones collected 39 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals in Dominican Republic's 110-108 win and Jean Montero added 33 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 7 steals. At the other end, Oumar Ballo had 32 points and 32 rebounds in the loss for Mali.

    The best performance: Oumar Ballo - Mali vs Dominican Republic

    Oumar Ballo Set a new rebound record vs Dominican Republic

    Oumar Ballo was like a man among boys throughout the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018, but that seemed especially the case against Dominican Republic. The Mali big man led the team with 32 points - on 12-of-19 shooting and 8-of-14 free throws - while he grabbed 32 rebounds, setting a new U17 World Cup record. On top of that he chipped in 1 assist, 1 steal and 2 blocks for an efficiency of 53.

    Not so fast: Puerto Rico trip up Canada for bronze

     
    Canada finally had gotten over their curse of bowing out in the Quarter-Finals - where they were bounced the previous three editions - and the North Americans were thinking of finally adding another medal to bronze from 2010. A loss to United States in the Semi-Finals wasn't unexpected but Canada thought it still would grab a spot on the podium as they were facing Puerto Rico in the bronze medal game. Puerto Rico, however, were not ready to just hand them the medal and outplayed Canada in the second half for a 90-77 victory - thanks to 24 points and 11 rebounds from Jermaine Miranda while Tory San Antonio scored 23 points 

    Ballo, Kanoute set framework for U19 World Cup Mali magic

    Mali may have only finished 12th in the tournament but the event in Argentina also in essence laid the foundation of what would become absolute magic the next summer at the the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2019. Siriman Kanoute led the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018 in scoring at 24.6 points per game while Oumar Ballo earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team because he was second in scoring at 20.6 points per game and led the competition in rebounding at 16.9 rebounds per game. Those two would team up the next summer and help guide Mali to second place at the U19 World Cup - the greatest basketball achievement on the global stage for an African nation.

    The hidden star: Sengun shines  for Turkey


    Alperen Sengun showing Turkey the way at FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018

    Turkey came into the tournament having finished second in 2016 and were hoping for more hardware. A loss to France in the Quarter-Finals meant the best the Turks could do was fifth place, which is exactly where they ended up - thanks in large part to a player one year younger than the rest of the competition and who would soon become a major star. Alperen Sengun collected 12 points and 9 rebounds in the first game of the tournament against Puerto Rico and never slowed down - registering four double-doubles, including 26 points and 17 rebounds against France in the aforementioned Quarter-Finals. Sengun, who played for Turkey's senior national team at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament and had a solid debut in the NBA in 2021-22, ended up averaging 15.9 points and 12.3 rebounds per game and shooting 58 percent from the field.

    Stats leaders

    Scorers
    Player Points Per Game
    MLI Siriman Kanoute 24.6
    MLI Oumar Ballo 20.6
    DOM David Jones 19.7
    MNE Bojan Tomasevic 19.1
    TUR Mustafa Kurtuldum 18.1
     
    Rebounds
    Player Rebounds Per Game
    MLI Oumar Ballo 16.9
    AUS Luke Jackson 13.7
    TUR Alperen Sengun 12.3
    EGY Youssef El-Madawy 12.1
    PHI Kai Sotto 10.6
     
    Assists
    Player Assists Per Game
    PUR Andre Curbelo 5.9
    SRB Stevan Karapandzic 4.6
    TUR Omer Ilyasoglu 4.4
    MNE Jovan Kljajic 4.3
    FRA Theo Maledon 4.1