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Heading into the FIBA World Cup, Team Germany has the sixth-best odds to win a gold medal. Here are some reasons why they might be able to pull off a major upset.
Germany will be carrying a lot of momentum into the World Cup as they performed well in their tuneup games. In the four matchups, they won three. Their only loss came in a down-the-wire matchup with Team USA.
Because of their strong play, Team Germany has earned one of the top spots in the World Cup power rankings. They sit in second, trailing only Team USA.
3 reasons why Team Germany could win FIBA World Cup
1) Young star
With basketball being a global game now, most countries have promising NBA talent on their roster now. Team Germany is no different, which is why they have a chance to walk away with a medal this World Cup.
This year, Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner will be leading the charge for his home country. Along with coming off a strong season with the Orlando Magic, he's performed well in the tuneup games for the World Cup. In a recent matchup against Team USA, he finished with a double-double.
As a 6-foot-9 forward who can do a little of everything on the floor, Wagner will be the focal point of Germany's offense. If he can continue his stellar run of performances, they'll have a shot to be on of the last teams standing.
2) Strong supporting cast
Having a star isn't enough to land a medal in the FIBA World Cup. A strong supporting cast is also needed. In this case, Franz Wagner will be surronded by a handful of defensvie-minded NBA veterans.
Some of the other pro talent on Team Germany's roster includes Mortiz Wagner, Daniel Theis and Dennis Schroder. The two bigs will provide size and toughness around the rim, while the journeyman guard is a strong defender for his position and can score.
Germany isn't the deepest team in the World Cup, but they still have a good amount of talent on the roster. If they can all figure out how to work in sync, they'll be a squad who can get it done on both ends.
3) Coaching
The final reason why Germany should be a threat in the World Cup is because they have good coaching. Gordon Herbert is a basketball lifer that has a strong understanding for the game.
Before getting into to coaching, Herbet played five years in college. Herbet entered his name into the 1982 NBA draft, but didn't get picked. After this, he suited up for the Canadian national team on multiple occasions.
Herbert's mainly coached overseas, but he did spend one year as an assistant for the Toronto Raptors. His biggest coaching accolade came in 2016 when he won Basketball Bundesliga Coach of the Year.
