![German Dennis Schroder and Austin Reaves of Team USA](https://sports.inquirer.net/files/2023/09/IMG_1814_FIBA-world-cup-semifinals-USA-vs-Germany_Austin-Reaves-and-Dennis-Schroder-620x413.jpg)
German Dennis Schroder and Austin Reaves of Team USA. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
A successful basketball program is often built on players who act as cogs in a well-oiled machine.
In Germany there are no gears. There is only the machine. There is simply Die Mannschaft.
“I can’t take credit for it. The credit goes to the players,” Germany coach Gordon Herbert told reporters after a 113-111 defeat to the United States on Friday evening in the Fiba (International Basketball Federation) World Cup that left Mannschaft on the brink. from history.
“You know, we talked about a three-year plan. We wanted the boys to commit for three years. This is year two,” Herbert added. “Commitment is one thing, but that’s what caring takes. We have players who care about each other. They pull for each other, they fight for each other. So it is a special group with many special players and even better people.”
In that period, the Germans moved from eighth place at the Tokyo Olympics to winning a bronze medal in the EuroBasket. On Sunday the Germans were able to win their very first World Cup gold.
No clear stars
There are no clear stars in this team with four standouts – Dennis Schröder, Franz and Moritz Wagner and Daniel Theis – plying their trade in the National Basketball Association (NBA). On Friday evening, it was Andreas Obst who led the unrest in the United States.
“This is not something for a year. We are all very aware that this is a body of work spanning several years and that is what it takes, and I am very happy to be part of that,” said Moritz Wagner.
“We are a very, very deep team. I think we have a lot of confidence. Everyone accepts their role and everyone is excited for each other because we just want to win,” he added.
That long commitment has done wonders for Germany and is further emphasized when compared to the results of hastily assembled teams such as the United States and the Philippines, who failed to reach the second round.
The Americans did not begin training at full strength until August 3. The Philippines, meanwhile, had months of core training, with Jordan Clarkson and Kai Sotto – two of the program’s biggest names – kicking off barely two weeks before the World Cup. out.
Carmelo Anthony, Team USA’s most decorated player, said Saturday that it’s time for basketball officials to “respect the game a lot more.”
“We can’t overlook these guys who are working hard and competing here right now,” he said of the field. “Win, lose or draw, they’re still there.”
Karl-Anthony Towns, one of the few top NBA players who chose to represent their roots at the World Cup, made an even more powerful statement.
“The game is international. Some of the best players in the NBA today are all clearly international,” referring to Most Valuable Player winners Nikola Jokić and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
“It’s clear that the world is bigger than just America when you see the games in the NBA. There are a lot of great players who just don’t get the chance to be one of the 450 [NBA players]”, said the Dominican Republic ace.
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