Look at the athletes who most impressed you during the FIBA World Cup action on August 25.
The 2023 FIBA World Cup got underway on Friday with an eight-game schedule, and a few players are already making an impact. While Patty Mills, Josh Giddey, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shone brightly in the backcourt, big players like Nikola Vucevic, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Jonas Valanciunas played strong to propel their teams to victories.
A closer look at some of the standout players from the games played on August 25 is provided below.
Canada’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Gilgeous-Alexander, an All-NBA standout the previous season, showed off his whole skill set as Canada defeated France 95-65 to win its Group H opener. With 13 points in the third quarter, Gilgeous-Alexander went on a scoring display that proved crucial for Canada. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 27 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 27 rebounds overall as Canada’s defence held France to 42% shooting and a 6-for-28 performance from outside the arc. In the FIBA opening, Houston Rockets guard Dillon Brooks and New York Knicks star RJ Barrett combined for an efficient performance on both ends. RJ Barrett finished with five points on 1-for-10 shooting for the New York Knicks.
Australia’s Patty Mills and Josh Giddey
In its 98-72 victory over Finland in Group E play, Australia’s guards went wild, but Mills and Giddey may have had the biggest influence. In 28 minutes, Mills, who is currently playing for the Atlanta Hawks, had 25 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals. Giddey made an impact as well, putting up the usual Thunder stat line of 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists in 25 minutes. Giddey is an Oklahoma City standout. In a losing effort for Finland, Utah Jazz standout Lauri Markkanen finished with 19 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. For Australia, new Dallas Mavericks player Dante Exum was solid off the bench with 10 points.
Montenegrin Nikola Vucevic
The former All-Star Vucevic displayed his range of abilities in Montenegro’s opening Group D game victory over Mexico, 91-71. The big man for the Chicago Bulls was on fire, scoring 27 points on 11 of 15 shots and going 3 for 3 from beyond the arc. He contributed 10 additional rebounds and two blocks as Montenegro defeated Mexico 35-28 in the paint and won the game with a late third-quarter surge.
from the Dominican Republic, Karl-Anthony Towns
The Dominican Republic defeated the Philippines 87-81 in an exciting Group A game thanks to the performance of Towns. The Minnesota Timberwolves star put in 26 points, went 15-for-16 from the charity stripe, and grabbed 10 rebounds, much of which came during a tense fourth quarter. He was simply too much for the Philippines’ frontline to handle. The Dominican Republic struggled overall from the line (23-for-34) and would have shot 44.4% (8-for-18) from the line without Towns’ performance. Towns’ performance at the line proved essential. Jazz standout Jordan Clarkson, who finished with 28 points (9-for-14 shooting), seven rebounds, and seven assists before fouling out in the fourth quarter, was a big reason why the Philippines were able to stay in the game.
Germany’s Mo Wagner
With the Orlando Magic, Wagner is often known as a reliable reserve player, but in Germany’s 81-63 rout of Japan in its Group E opener, he took on the role of hero. He set the tone with his powerful drives to the hoop and his rebounding efforts in the first half as Germany built a 53-31 advantage. Overall, Wagner had 25 points on 10-for-14 shooting, nine rebounds, and a great 8-for-9 performance at the free throw line.
Latvian
In the first game of Group D for both teams, Lithuania defeated Egypt by a score of 93-67 with little difficulty. Valanciunas, who continued Friday’s trend of dominant big man play with a 15-point, 10-rebound performance in 17 minutes when he ran roughshod over Egypt with interior buckets, tough rebounds, and some interior defence, deserves the most of the credit for that simple road.