With one spin move and monstrous jam — or a fake pass that led to a dunk — the FIBA World Cup’s first round came to a close.
Paolo Banchero put the exclamation point on an 110-62 win over Jordan for the United States to complete a 3-0 run through the first round of the FIBA World Cup. It was an exclamation point for a very impressive run for this young American squad.
They were the favorites, as they always are, but they continued to establish themselves as a different kind of American team. Still thrown together at the last second, but figuring things out fast.
Banchero has been at the center of it — literally — as one of the leaders on a bench unit that has decimated teams to this point.
The U.S. is not alone as contenders in this World Cup or with Orlando Magic players making an impact.
The Orlando Magic’s players all made an impact as they all advanced to the second round of the FIBA World Cup.
Moe Wagner has provided a similar role off the bench as a force around the basket for Germany as the team has had to rally together after Franz Wagner’s ankle injury in the tournament’s first game. Goga Bitadze too has come off the bench and anchored Georgia’s surprisingly deep team as they fought their way out of the first round in their first World Cup appearance.
Joe Ingles has continued to provide a solid veteran presence for Australia in their quest to medal at this tournament.
The teams in group play were pretty spread out. Outside of France’s surprise loss to Latvia that knocked them out, all the contenders for the World Cup are still alive. Now comes the second round when the field will get winnowed down to eight after the second round of group play on Friday and Sunday.
The competition is only getting set to ramp up.
The past week of games has been a good introduction to the teams and the tournament as a whole. We are preparing to enter a more intense phase very soon.
Still, this is a good time to take a step back and reflect on what we have learned so far about these teams and the Magic’s players.
5 things to know after the Orlando Magic’s FIBA World Cup first round
Paolo Banchero is making gains defensively
Everyone knew when Paolo Banchero signed up to play for Team USA that he would be asked to do something different. He was not going to be the team’s primary scorer. The question for everyone was: How would he carve out his role? What would he learn in the process?
If anything, Banchero’s offense has taken a back seat and has been slower to develop during his run with the national team. He has been focused intently on his defense and trying to be engaged on that end. He has been a surprising shot blocker too with four blocks in his first game against New Zealand.
Banchero has quietly become a decent defender for Team USA. He has at least done everything coach Steve Kerr has asked him to do. And now he is one of the first guys off the bench for a second unit that tends to expand leads.
Banchero’s defense is quite a surprise. The Magic had a 115.3 defensive rating with Banchero on the floor last year. He was as bad defensively as you expect a rookie to be.
He showed some signs of improvement throughout the year. And there are at least a few things he could build upon as he got more comfortable.
Banchero though is not going to be known for his defense. The Magic drafted him knowing he might have some defensive questions to answer. And those questions still need some answering at the NBA level.
But with so much of his focus on improving his defense, Banchero has shined. It is not just the blocks that deserve highlight-reel notoriety, he is in his spots better and holding his ground within the switching schemes and against bigger players.
It will be interesting to see how much the U.S. uses him in the next two games going up against Nikola Vucevic and Montenegro and Jonas Valanciunas and Lithuania. But Banchero has established himself as a part of this group and key part with his ball-handling at his size.
Offensively, Banchero has been a foul machine, averaging 5.7 attempts per game in 16.1 minutes per game. He is struggling to shoot — 64.7 percent from the line and 63.2 percent from the floor overall mostly on dunks and shots around the basket. He is averaging 12.3 points per game (37 points with 21 coming in that first game against New Zealand).
But all of that will return when the ball is in his hands more. He is looking comfortable and confident and getting a lot out of the experience.
5 things to know after the Orlando Magic’s FIBA World Cup first round
Orlando Magic will have a center battle
We already have an eye on training camp which begins in a little bit more than a month at the beginning of October. The World Cup is giving us a brief glimpse at some of these players. But things will obviously be different once the group as a whole comes together.
Everyone should already be anticipating a bit of a battle for the backup center minutes behind Wendell Carter. It is the same battle fans saw play out at the end of last year. And it does not really have a resolution.
Both Moe Wagner and Goga Bitadze are providing great fodder and a great preview for that battle in their World Cup runs. And honestly, the Orlando Magic should be very happy with their options.
Both Wagner and Bitadze have been coming off the bench for their respective teams. Both teams are advancing to the second round. And both players have been big scorers and big boosters coming off that bench.
They have both been effective in their roles and do exactly what they are asked to do. It is hard to be upset.
Wagner has averaged 13.7 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game in 18.6 minutes per game for Germany in their unbeaten run through the first round.
Bitadze has averaged 11.0 points per game and 9.3 rebounds per game in 22.2 minutes per game for Georgia in their run to the second round. His rebounds are the sixth most in the tournament so far.
For both players, it feels like a continuation of what both showed throughout last season.
Wagner is an excellent screener and can step out and hit shots on the perimeter just as he cleans up around the basket. He has been solid as a post-up player too.
Bitadze has done much of the same too. He is defending the rim and gobbling up rebounds. He also works well around the basket and has served as a fulcrum in the high post. His mobility has been a big boost for Georgia too.
The Magic are going to have to find a way to manage both players’ minutes once the season begins. They may go back and forth between the two for a good chunk of the season. But it looks like both players will be up for the challenge.
5 things to know after the Orlando Magic’s FIBA World Cup first round
Franz Wagner is human
The amazing thing about Franz Wagner is his durability and reliability. Wagner has missed only five games in his two seasons in the NBA. And all five of those games were late in the season when the Magic were shutting down players.
That does not mean Wagner has not been hurt before. He has rolled his ankle as all NBA players do. But he will usually brush it off and be back on the floor quickly. It is actually kind of amazing, especially considering how often he forays into the paint and needs his plant foot to change direction and explode to the basket.
That good luck ran out a bit in Germany’s first game against Japan.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Wagner drove the lane and tried a jump pass to the opposite corner. He landed on an opponent’s foot and immediately went down with a sprained left ankle.
Wagner missed the final two games of the first round. Germany still won both — defeating both Australia and Finland — to take the top spot in the group. Wagner is still listed as day-to-day and there seems to be optimism that he will return.
But we have been notably deprived of Wagner playing basketball. Which just makes everyone sad.
Especially because Wagner had a really strong game against Japan. He scored only 10 points and continued his offseason struggles from beyond the arc missing all six of his 3-pointers but going 5 for 6 from inside the arc.
But he filled up the stat sheet with six rebounds and five assists. He was everywhere getting the ball moving. And Germany really could use that secondary playmaker and driver.
Wagner is going to get his points and probably get his shots, even if it feels like he is not. But he just makes smart plays and now it seems like his passing is up and he has been more active on the glass.
The injury put all of this on hold. And now everyone is waiting to see when he will come back.
Germany has the advantage at 3-0 after group play and they start the second round against Georgia. The question is whether they will need to be Slovenia and need Wagner for that game or if they can bide more time before the knockout round.
5 things to know after the Orlando Magic’s FIBA World Cup first round
Joe Ingles struggles from deep
Orlando Magic fans are still getting a feel for Joe Ingles and what he is about.
The Magic’s big free agent signing is a veteran with a good reputation around the league. He is a solid shooter in the NBA and a great playmaker from the top of the key. He is a better driver than he gets credit for and holds his own defensively.
What makes Ingles great is that he knows how to use the physicality he has and knows exactly what he is good at.
He has helped Australia as the veteran on the squad and plays an important role as the organizer at the top of the key. That often helps get Patty Mills off the ball to get better shots or for the athletic wings on this team to get open and cut through the lane.
Ingles is not afraid to drive on players who hang off him too much and create separation to get his shot off or to just fire it from three if defenders give him too much space.
It is easy to see why he will be useful.
But there is the rub. The Magic certainly brought him in not only for his veteran leadership but for his 3-point shooting too. And that has come and gone a bit more than you would like so far in his run with Australia.
So far in the tournament, Ingles is shooting 4 for 12. That is a small sample size and so nothing to panic about. And Ingles has his penchant for stepping up and taking some heat check shots. This is where he is going to find a good chunk of his value.
At the end of the day, Australia is winning and Ingles has been solid in his minutes — even if Australia’s new generation is starting to take over and make a bigger impact reducing some of Ingles’ role.
Ingles will have to step up as Australia has to score a win over both Slovenia and Georgia most likely to advance to the quarterfinals.
5 things to know after the Orlando Magic’s FIBA World Cup first round
The Favorites
Now that half the field has been eliminated — sent down to the 17-32 classification games for Thursday and Saturday, so even they get some extra games — we can get serious about who is going to win this thing and how the bracket sets up.
With three games under our belt, we have a sense of who is actually good and what teams should be eyeing the medals.
Overall, there are two teams in each group sitting at 3-0. And so Sunday’s games are going to be the ones everyone will watch as all of those 3-0 teams will face each other in all likelihood to win their groups and advance to the knockout round.
The U.S. is still the clear favorite. They have the talent and depth that few teams in this tournament will have. And unlike previous iterations of Team USA, they are playing really well together quickly. They started off strong and have smoothed over their weaknesses.
The big concern with the U.S. remains the starting group which has gotten off to slow starts. Steve Kerr replacing Brandon Ingram with Josh Hart in Wednesday’s gmae was a seeming recognition of this. The U.S. was never threatened in the win over Jordan.
The U.S. will face a tough challenge in facing Jonas Valanciunas and Lithuania on Sunday. Valanciunas is the kind of bruising center this U.S. team is not designed to face (they get Nikola Vucevic and Montenegro on Friday).
But if the U.S. wins Group J, they would face the second-place team in Group I — the Dominican Republic with Karl-Anthony Towns, Italy, Puerto Rico or Serbia. That means the U.S. is not going to face any heavy hitter or tournament favorite until the semifinal round.
That is if they win their group.
The top challenger? Look no further than Canada.
If there is any team that can keep pace with the U.S.’s speed and depth it is Canada. They like to run up and down the floor and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been one of the best players in the tournament.
Canada would get the second-place team in Germany’s group. That is a tough road with the possibility of facing Germany, Slovenia or Australia.
Germany is probably the best of that group provided Franz Wagner is healthy with Dennis Schroder playing well and a good mix of size and shooting. Australia has a lot of size and length that has proven difficult for a lot of teams to handle.
And Slovenia has Luka Doncic who might be the MVP of this tournament and its leading scorer so far.
That does not even get to Spain who just always wins these tournaments.
The U.S. seemingly has an easier path to get to a medal game — it is not as both Montenegro and Lithuania could prey on the U.S.’s big roster weakness. But there are still a lot of teams to watch out for now that the second round is beginning.