Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves and Team USA showed some cracks during the 2023 FIBA World Cup Tournament when they lost to Lithuania in the group stage.
Even though the Americans have a solid group of guards and wings, the lack of size in the front court was exposed as they struggled to rebound and defend the paint. Jaren Jackson Jr. is the lone true big on the roster, with Paolo Banchero and Bobby Portis masquerading as centers.
International play has gotten much better over the years and despite Team USA entering the tournament as favorites their path to a gold medal wasn’t going to be easy. Case in point, they came up short against Germany in the semifinals, ending their tournament without making the finals.
Former Lakers guard Dennis Schroder has been one of the leaders for the German national team and despite the win, he shared that Reaves came to congratulate him on his Instagram account:
In Schroder’s post, he and Reaves are seen talking and dapping it up. Schroder also makes sure to talk up Reaves in his caption and ends it by joking about wanting to hold some money from his future max contract.
Reaves showed good sportsmanship by meeting up with Schroder following Team USA’s loss and later admitted he was happy for the guard but also disappointed that his team fell short. The 25-year-old is a feisty competitor who clearly was upset about losing earlier than anticipated, but it’s good to see him still celebrate his friend and former teammate.
As far as Team USA goes, they will play for the bronze medal against Canada who also lost earlier than some predicted. Like Germany, Canada boasts plenty of NBA talent headlined by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, so Team USA will have another tough matchup on their hands.
Reaves has been one of the most consistent players on the roster, so it’ll be interesting to watch how he responds from this loss.
LeBron James hints at playing for Team USA in Paris 2024 Olympics
Coming into this year’s World Cup, there were some analysts that were concerned about the talent level of the roster as none of the top superstars committed to playing this summer. Generally stars will wait to play in the Olympics and perhaps this loss in the World Cup will urge them to commit to playing for the national team.
For example, it looks like LeBron James could be considering one more gold medal run as he hinted at playing in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
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