LAS VEGAS – Able to discuss the Team USA roster he will manage this summer for the first time, Steve Kerr said he plans to lean heavily on two of New York’s best players – Knicks’ Jalen Bronson and Nets’ Michal Bridges.
One day after USA Basketball officially announced its 12-man squad for the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Kerr said at a press conference on Friday.
“There is no doubt in my mind that Michal Bridges is going to be a huge factor for us defensively,” Kerr continued. “As a coach, you get into these things and say, ‘Okay, who’s going to guard Luka (Doncic), or who’s going to guard Giannis (Antetokunmo)?'” “One of the reasons we build the list the way we did is because we have multiple options for these kinds of things.”
Kerr, the Golden State Warriors’ day coach, is in his first season as the national team’s head coach, after a two-year rotation in which he was the head assistant under Gregg Popovich.
None of the current players have played for Team USA in the World Cup or Olympics, but, as Kerr noted, Bronson played for the Americans in 2014 and 2015 at the FIBA World Championship for 18-19-year-olds.
Bronson will share point guard duties for Team USA with Pacers player Tyrese Haliburton, whom Kerr cited for his “playmaking” as a first star in 2023 and who averaged 10.4 assists. Kerr also highlighted the Nets’ Cam Johnson’s ability to stretch the floor and shoot.
And that’s not all.
There is, of course, the NBA Defensive Player of the Year (Memphis Jaren Jackson Jr.) and a thorn in Kerr’s side from the Western Conference semifinalist (Austin Revis Lakers) to consider.
“In FIBA, there are no three-second defensive violations,” Kerr said, speaking of Jackson, who led the NBA with 3.0 blocks per game last season. “So having a shot-blocker as good as Yarin and being on the edge like him is almost a necessity if you want to win a gold medal. So we’ll be counting on him for his presence on the edge, his defensive strength, his ability to assist from the weak side and cover up fouls and back cuts, that kind Of things. And then on the offensive end, he’s a good kicker guy. As he’s shown over the years with Memphis, he can go out and make 3 but also score on the inside, so he’s really versatile.”
For Reeves, Kerr said, “Watching him kick our butts in six straight games in the Western Conference Semifinals, it was a pretty easy pick.”
“Austin is one of the young, up-and-coming players in this league,” Kerr said. “What you are looking for in FIBA is variety. You want size defensively and the ability to switch and guard multiple positions, and then you want playmaking. You want players who can shoot but also put the ball on the ground and are good passers.
“Austin to me is just a basketball player. He’s a guy who influences winning at a really high level. His story is pretty amazing considering he wasn’t drafted two years ago and now here he is, you know, playing for Team USA and being one of the top three players on the USA team.” Lakers. But it’s no accident.”
Kerr also spoke privately with the athlete About the two players who could end up leading the team in scoring, the Pelicans’ Brandon Ingram and Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards.
“They’re dynamic scorers, and obviously they’ll play big roles for us,” said Kerr, adding that he wouldn’t know the specifics of how his lineup and rotation would change until he saw the team train together.
“We’re going to need everyone,” Kerr said.
Also at CARE’s disposal is Paulo Panchero, the reigning rookie of the year (whom managing director Grant Hill called “the neighbor” because they live in Orlando); defensive wing in Josh Hart of the Knicks; A protector in Utah’s Walker Kessler and senior protege in Milwaukee’s Bobby Portis (Hill and Kerr were asked about Portis, and praised, surprisingly, his versatility as a two-way player).
When considering how Hill, Kerr, and longtime USA General Manager Sean Ford built this team, consider Kerr’s comments about Reaves. Tact on both sides of the floor. Most, if not all of these players have it.
The Americans play exhibition matches in Las Vegas (August 7, against Puerto Rico), in Malaga, Spain (against Slovenia and Spain) and Abu Dhabi (against Greece and Germany), before the World Cup kicks off on August 26 against New Zealand. , in Manila.
In addition to playing for the World Cup title, which the Americans last won in 2014 (finishing seventh in 2019), also at stake this summer is a place in the highly coveted 2024 Paris Olympics – a basketball tournament in which many are expected to want Veteran American stars from the NBA are the most established to play.
None of the 12 on the 2023 US team guarantee a spot on the Olympic team, though dedicating the summer and winning a World Cup would be a good start to making a case. The USA scores have been hand-selected by Hill, Kerr, and Ford, also based in part on fit and availability.
There have been a number of players Hill has spoken to about playing this summer who are either not interested, injured or would rather play next summer.
“There was a real, real excitement in being a part of this, and I found that very encouraging and exciting from my point of view,” Hill said. “And maybe some conversations came up to talk about the possibility of the future, but for the most part it was really centered around here, right now, this team. How do they build on this opportunity that we have in front of us this summer. So there were no promises or guarantees or anything like that, and as You know, we’ll obviously get to next year when we get there and go through the process again, which I imagine will be a completely different process.”
required reading
(Photo: Brad Penner/USA Today)