US Fails To Medal In FIBA World Cup Play, Losing To Canada In The Bronze Medal Game

The post-K team has some work to do

The US fell to Canada 127-118 in overtime in FIBA World Cup play as the neighbors won bronze while the US finished fourth. Mikal Bridges made this play to put the game in OT and that goes in his scrapbook forever.

It’s a big deal for RJ Barrett and his Canadian teammates: the last time they won a medal in any international competition was in the 1936 Olympics and that’s getting close to 100 years ago.

For the US, the build of this team was ultimately a failure. It needed more size and better defenders, but you have to balance that with offense obviously. And as Grant Hill noted, the formula that Mike Krzyzewski and Jerry Colangelo worked out, with multi-year commitments, is harder to do now.

One of the things that Coach K did that was pretty brilliant was to make being on the national team a point of immense pride. Prior to his run, a lot of players begged off. During his time, guys complained when they didn't make it.

There’s some tinkering to do for sure, but if Hill and coach Steve Kerr can find the right pieces, this team isn't too far from being a steam roller. And for the US, while losing in basketball is always undesirable, the Olympics have always been our focus. So time to move on to Paris and see what happens there.

One final note: several years ago, it appeared that the international game had moved past ours, which is based much more on athleticism and driving. Watching guys like Alan Iverson work hard to get to the basket for two points, only to see a team of Europeans come down, pass the ball around and hit a perimeter three seemed like the future.

The three pointer has definitely changed the game (thanks ABA). But the international game now looks a lot more like the NBA than we ever dreamed it could.

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• 5 takeaways from Canada’s FIBA World Cup win over USA to claim bronze
• Canada cause upset to leave USA without medal at Basketball World Cup again
• Team USA vs Canada score, result: Dillon Brooks stars in OT win, Canada secures bronze at FIBA World Cup
• U.S. finishes fourth at FIBA World Cup, loses three games for first time since 2004 Olympics