FIBA World Cup 2019: 3 Talking Points from Czech Republic vs USA

#3 Key takeaways for both the teams going forward

Popovich decided to play small ball, given the lack of dominant big men on the roster

To everyone's surprise, Czech Republic were the more efficient team from the three-point line than their favored opponents. Despite the loss, the Czech shot 8-of-17 (47%) from distance while USA went 10-of-24 (41%) from long-range. Much of this three-point shooting anomaly could be attributed to the absence of Kyle Kuzma who was shooting lights out from deep before pulling out due to injury.

Team USA is due to face Turkey on Tuesday, which possesses professional weapons in Ersan Ilyasova and Cedi Osman. Coach Pop might repeat the smaller lineup and use Brown or Barnes who can handily defend the Turkish stars individually

Having fittingly relied on their biggest NBA export, Czech Republic received much-needed help from Tomas Satoransky who dropped a game-high 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting along with five assists. Next up his team faces Japan who house the latest dynamic NBA addition in Rui Hachimura. Japan dropped their first game to Turkey via a double-digit deficit and would be desperate to get a win on the board.