FIBA World Cup: How would the 9 best FIBA squads perform in the NBA?

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NBA Charlotte Hornets Kemba Walker (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

Serbia

PG: Milos Teodosic (NBA), Vasilije Micic (2014 2nd round pick)

SG: Marko Guduric (Grizzlies), Nemanja Nedovic (2013 1st round pick)

C: Nikola Jokic (Nuggets), Boban Marjanovic (Mavericks), Nikola Milutinov (2015 1st round pick), Ognjen Kuzmic (2012 2nd round pick)

Verdict: Being noticeably thin on the wings does not bode as well in today’s current pace and space league. However, Jokic, a potential MVP candidate, playing with a group of people who understand how to play off of him is a scary thought.

If this squad could find ways to take advantage of their size and Jokic’s ability to make this teammates better then an Eastern Conference playoff push would not be out of the question. And it wouldn’t hurt if Jokic was also noticeably thinner as he’s going to have play a lot of minutes for this squad to be competitive.

United States

PG: Kemba Walker (Celtics), Derrick White (Spurs)

SG: Donovan Mitchell (Jazz), Jaylen Brown (Celtics, Marcus Smart (Celtics)

SF: Jayson Tatum (Celtics), Khris Middleton (Bucks), Joe Harris (Nets)

PF: Harrison Barnes (Kings), Mason Plumlee (Nuggets)

C: Brook Lopez (Bucks), Myles Turner (Pacers)

Verdict: On paper, this seems like an obvious NBA Championship contender. In actuality, this group struggled against, and eventually lost to, Australia. And if Kawhi Leonard’s 2019 postseason taught us anything, one marquee player is enough to put any team over the top no matter how many All-Stars are on the other team.

Also, if uneven playing time caused that much upheaval on the 2018-19 Boston Celtics, are we sure that something similar wouldn’t happen with this much talent on one roster? That being said, over the course of the season, if players could put aside their egos, I would expect that this team would eventually settle into a groove and make a deep playoff run.