The World Cup details
The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup begins on August 25 and will take place in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia. Team USA are the early betting favourites on basketball betting sites.
USA has -106 odds to win the World Cup on Bet99. Their roster is headlined by New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Brooklyn Nets forward Mikal Bridges and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards.
USA finished seventh at the 2019 World Cup in China. On paper, the roster has a similar level of talent as it did in 2019, but an argument can be made that this year’s team has a much better bench. Luka Doncic and Slovenia have the third best odds at +880 followed by Australia and France.
Will Canada challenge the USA?
Canada has the second best odds to win the World Cup this year. They have +390 odds to win on Bet99. When compared to the USA, Canada edges them in one area, guard play.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray are two of the top point guards in the world at this point. USA’s Jalen Brunson and Tyrese Haliburton are young stars on the rise, but have not proven they are on the Canadians’ level yet.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished fifth in MVP voting last season and earned his first All-Star selection. Murray is coming off averaging 26.1 points, 7.1 assists, and 5.7 rebounds in the playoffs to go along with an NBA championship.
Combine their talent with the defensive capabilities of some of the other players on the roster like Dillon Brooks, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort, and Dallas Mavericks center Dwight Powell, Canada has a roster that can beat any team at this year’s World Cup.
Two concerns for Canada are chemistry and three-point shooting. The four best players on the team are all listed at 6’7 or shorter. Gilgeous-Alexander and Murray should not have a lot of trouble playing together though because Murray is accustomed to playing off the ball in the NBA.
Canada favoured to win Group H
Canada is favoured to win group H with -154 odds. The three other teams in the group are France, Latvia, and Lebanon. France has the second best odds at +134. The two remaining teams are huge underdogs, Latvia at +1600 and Lebanon at +14900.
Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Davis Bertans are the most notable players on Latvia’s team. Lebanon has no NBA players on their roster. Canada should win this group based on talent alone.
But France is still a threat, they have a few NBA players —Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert is the best player— on their roster. Most of the best players on France are 30 or older.
All of Canada’s best players are in or at the start of their prime. Canada should finish first in this group unless early chemistry problems cost them their game against France.
With veterans like Los Angeles Clippers forward Nicolas Batum, New York Knicks guard Evan Fournier, and Dallas Mavericks guard Frank Ntilikina to go along with Gobert, they can easily defeat Canada if they have a bad game despite their age.
International Basketball history
- 1936 silver medal at the Berlin Olympics was the last medal Canada won in men’s basketball
- Canada has never won a medal at the FIBA Basketball World Cup
Canada’s Roster
- Jamal Murray
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- RJ Barrett
- Dillon Brooks
- Luguentz Dort
- Dwight Powell
- Cory Joseph
- Kelly Olynyk
- Nickeil Alexander-Walker
- Trae Bell-Haynes
- Oshae Brissett
- Zach Edev
- Melvin Ejim
- Kevin Pangos
- Kassius Robertson
- Phil Scrubb
- Thomas Scrubb
