FIBA: Serbia vs Germany Basketball Preview: Prediction, odds and more for the FIBA World Cup 2023

The battle for world basketball supremacy boils down to two teams as Serbia and Germany duke it out in the gold medal game of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup on Sunday, September 10, at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, Philippines.

World No. 6 Serbia outgunned Canada, 95-86, in their semi-final joust on September 8 to make its way to another finals appearance for the second time in the last three editions of the basketball spectacle.

Germany, the 11th-ranked squad in the world, for its part, survived a ferocious late rally by the United States in their own final four clash, narrowly winning 113-111, to book a spot in the World Cup finals for the first time in history.

Serbia vs Germany 2023 FIBA World Cup preview

Serbia is back in the FIBA World Cup finals for the second time in the last three editions of the tournament. (FIBA)

Germany and Serbia have played one another only once before in the FIBA World Championship, the predecessor of the World Cup. It was in a Group A match at the 2010 edition of the tournament, which saw the Germans outlast the Serbians in double overtime, 82-81.

For their game at hand, there is every reason to believe that it is going to be a tightly fought contest once again.

Germany, led by their NBA stars Dennis Schroder, Daniel Theis and Moritz Wagner, has yet to be defeated in the tournament so far. Their balanced attack has proven to be a gem that is hard to crack for the opposing teams.

For Serbia, consistency has been key, which has served it in good stead, especially in the championship round, beating quality teams in succession in Lithuania (quarterfinals) and Canada.

Bogdan Bogdanovic has been a solid leader for the Eagles, with averages of 19.4 points and 2.3 steals. He is ably backstopped by Nikola Milutov (13.6 PPG and 9 RPG) and Nikola Jovic (10.3 PPG).

Serbia vs Germany predictions and odds

Germany is in the FIBA World Cup finals for the first time. (FIBA)

It is likely going to be a toss-up between Germany and Serbia as both have shown they are capable and well-deserving of being crowned world champions.

Unbeaten up to this point, however, it is hard not to like the chances of the Germans. They have had the tougher road to the finals between the two teams, which also included matches against Slovenia and Australia in earlier rounds, and they rose to the challenge each time.

Expect Serbia though to put up a tough fight. And if they find their shots consistently in the championship game, it can be a handful even for a team like Germany.

Serbia vs Germany odds

According to FanDuel Sportsbook, Germany sits as a very slight favorite with -120 betting odds, while Serbia sits with -102 odds. To put these numbers in perspective, -120 odds for Team Germany means that in order to win $100, a potential bettor would have to put $120 on the team.

Serbia's World Cup roster

· Filip Petrusev

· Nikola Jovic

· Bogdan Bogdanovic

· Vanja Marinkovic

· Ognjen Dobric

· Dusan Ristic

· Marko Guduric

· Stefan Jovic

· Dejan Davidovac

· Borisa Simanic

· Aleksa Avramovic

· Nikola Milutinov

Germany's World Cup roster

· Isaac Bonga

· Maodo Lo

· Niels Giffey

· Johannes Voigtmann

· Franz Wagner

· Daniel Theis

· Moritz Wagner

· Dennis Schroder

· Justus Hollatz

· Johannes Thiemann

· Andreas Obst

· David Kramer