Top 15 biggest names to play U17 World Cup: Places 6-10

MIES (Switzerland) - The FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup has seen some amazing players over the course of five tournaments since 2010. Who are the top stars to have played in this event? We look at the Top 15 biggest names and how they performed at the event.

Here is places 11-15 plus Honorable mentions

Here is the second installment with places 6-10.

10 - Dante Exum - Australia - 2012

Exum was the clear leader of an Australia team that reached the Final in 2012, coming back to knock off Croatia in the Semi-Finals. It was Exum who took over in the second half of that game with 18 points for the contest. He ended up with 17.3 points per game - ranked fourth in the competition - to go with 4.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 steals to grab a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Exum wound up getting picked fifth in the 2014 NBA Draft and was in the NBA until December 2021, when he joined Barcelona in Europe. His pro career has a big what-if attached to it as he dealt with a series of major injuries that cost him major portions of three seasons in which he played fewer than 15 games. But he shined bright in Kaunas.

9 - Jalen Green - USA - 2018

Green was instant offense for the United States in Argentina, scoring 15.7 points in just 18.7 minutes per game. In addition to being the Americans’ leading scorer, he added 2.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals and was named MVP of the tournament. Green was unstoppable in the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals, draining 5 three-pointers for 27 points against Croatia to book a spot in the last four, where he tallied 25 points against Canada to get United States to the Final. Green followed up the U17 gold with the title at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2019 and then was drafted No. 2 overall in 2021 and had a strong rookie season in 2021-22 with 17.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists.

8 - Scottie Barnes - USA - 2018

Like Jalen Green, Barnes also collected two world titles, helping the Americans to the 2018 U17 World Cup crown and then taking gold at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2019. In Argentina, Barnes played a major role in getting to the top of the podium with 9.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals. After helping Florida State reach the NCAA Sweet 16 in his sole college season, Barnes was chosen with the fourth pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and produced a great rookie campaign in 2021-22 with 15.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.1 steals for the Toronto Raptors. He collected three double-doubles in the last eight games of the season.

7 - Rui Hachimura - Japan - 2014

Hachimura was an absolute superstar in Dubai as he led the U17 World Cup in scoring at 22.6 points - accounting for 37.2 percent of the 60.7 points Japan averaged in the tournament. His 25 points against United States were an unreal 65.8 percent of his country’s points in a 122-38 loss in which Hachimura was the only Japanese player who legitimately belonged on the court with the number of future NBA players. He also collected 6.6 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.7 blocks. Hachimura later was the second-best scorer in the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2017 and already has become a major leader for Japan’s senior national team. The No. 9 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft averaged 11.3 points in 2021-22 - after at least 13 points per game in his first two seasons - to go with 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists for the Washington Wizards.

6 - RJ Barrett - Canada - 2016

Barrett arrived with the Canadian team in Spain just before the tournament after working out with the Canadian senior national team ahead of the 2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament. He had only turned 16 during his time with the senior team but he dominated in Zaragoza for Canada, averaging 18.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists. The following summer he made history for Canada, guiding the country to their best achievement ever with the gold medal at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2017 - where he was two years younger than the rest of the competition. After one collegiate season a Duke, Barrett was chosen third overall in the 2019 NBA Draft and he completed his best season thus far for the New York Knicks in 2021-22 with 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists.

We will round out the top 15 later this week.

FIBA