It's a classic, almost unmissable in all team competitions. Every major tournament requires a “group of death”. Sometimes exaggerated or even downright hackneyed, the expression takes on its full meaning this time with Group A of these Paris Olympic Games, in the men's (5×5).
With only three groups of four teams and a host of outsiders behind the favourite Team USA, it was written that at least one big name would fall prematurely to the trapdoor at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Villeneuve d'Ascq.
There will even possibly be two between Australia, Greece, Canada and Spain. In this group, there will be no observation round, and everything could be decided until the last moments of the third day between the Boomers bronze medalists in Tokyo, Giannis Antetokounmpo's Greece, Canada 3rd in the last World Cup, and the “Roja”, reigning European champion.
AUSTRALIA
What if the Aussies did it again in Tokyo? In Japan in 2021, the Australians finally managed to grab their first medal in a major intercontinental event after finishing just off the podium at the 2016 Olympics and the 2019 World Cup. Since then, the squad has aged a little and key players Joe Ingles, Patty Mills and Matthew Dellavedova are now well over 30 years old.
New talent has emerged, and in the same back positions to take over, like Josh Giddey, who may be more comfortable in a FIBA context than in the Thunder's in recent months. The interior sector is still as hard-working, but it also lacks guarantees like Andrew Bogut or Aron Baynes.
The workforce
Leaders: Matthew Dellavedova (Melbourne United), Josh Giddey (Chicago Bulls)
Backs/wingers: Dyson Daniels (Atlanta Hawks), Dante Exum (Dallas Mavericks), Josh Green (Charlotte Hornets), Joe Ingles (Minnesota Timberwolves), Jack McVeigh (Houston Rockets), Patty Mills (Miami Heat)
Interiors: Nick Kay (Shimane Susanoo Magic), Jock Landale (Houston Rockets), Will Magnay (Tasmania JackJumpers), Duop Reath (Portland Trail Blazers)
The coach: Brian Goorijan
The star : Patty Mills
We believe that at every international competition, he has reached the stage where the magic will no longer work. But the Heat combo guard is stainless, possessed even when he wears his national team jersey. Ask the Serbians, who have undergone 28 points and 35 evaluations in preparation! When Mills is in “FIBA Patty” mode, Australia is necessarily dangerous.
Qualification : best team in Oceania at the last World Cup 2023
History at the Olympics: 16e participation, best result in 2021 (3e)
CANADA
Canada is about to rediscover the joys of the Olympics. The Canadian team owes its last Olympic memories to Makan Dioumassi, the French fullback who gave Steve Nash a nightmare in the quarter-finals in Sydney.
That was 24 years ago, before a generational gap and then the spectacular revival that began in the 2010s. The Canadians have regained international stature, and can now hope to go all the way and challenge the very best teams on the planet, including the United States.
The workforce
Leaders: Jamal Murray (Denver Nuggets), Andrew Nembhard (Indiana Pacers)
Backs – wingers: Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Minnesota Timberwolves), RJ Barrett (Toronto Raptors), Dillon Brooks (Houston Rockets), Luguentz Dort (Oklahoma City Thunder), Melvin Ejim (Malaga), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Interiors: Khem Birch (Girona), Trey Lyles (Sacramento Kings), Kelly Olynyk (Toronto Raptors), Dwight Powell (Dallas Mavericks)
The coach: Jordi Fernandez
The star : Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Excellent last summer at the World Cup (fourth in scoring and best rating), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has since taken on a new dimension. The Thunder guard has established himself as an MVP-caliber player, and can confirm that he is indeed among the international elite at these Olympic Games. His association with Jamal Murray, absent during the World Cup, will be interesting to follow.
Qualification : among the two best teams in the Americas zone of the last World Cup
History at the Olympics: 10e participation, best result: 2e in 1936
SPAIN
Who says big basketball event says Spain. Despite a squad much less talented than in its heyday, Sergio Scariolo's “Roja” has the experience and tactical intelligence to get out of a complicated group, hoping for a double revenge. First at its last World Cup, where it went out before even the knockout phase, beaten by Latvia and… Canada, who had beaten it by three points.
But also on its last outing at the Tokyo Olympics and a sixth place after finishing on the podium in the three previous editions. The title of European champion 2022 confirmed that this selection could still have some under the hood. But it is also at a turning point for the last Games of the figures Rudy Fernandez and Sergio Llull.
The workforce
Leaders: Lorenzo Brown (Panathinaikos), Alberto Diaz (Malaga)
Backs – wingers: Alex Abrines (FC Barcelona), Dario Brizuela (FC Barcelona), Rudy Fernandez (Real Madrid), Sergio Llull (Real Madrid), Xabi Lopez Arostegui (Valencia)
Interiors: Santi Aldama (Memphis Grizzlies), Usman Garuba (Real Madrid), Juancho Hernangomez (Panathinaikos), Willy Hernangomez (FC Barcelona), Jaime Pradilla (Valencia)
The coach: Sergio Scariolo
The star : Willy Hernangomez
The former Pelicans center is not the biggest name in the Spanish national team. And while he has not managed to make a lasting place for himself in the NBA, “Willy” is a formidable player in the international game.
The Euro 2022 MVP doesn't need a lot of playing time to show off his attacking technique. And Santi Aldama's rise through the ranks during the OQT could both relieve him of some responsibilities and give him more space to express himself.
Qualification : winner of the Valencia Olympic Qualifying Tournament
History at the Olympics: 15th participation, best result: 2nd (1984, 2008, 2012)
GREECE
You can be led by one of the best players in the world and count among the best European nations in history, the steps to Olympus are no less steep. Giannis Antetokounmpo's Greece had to go through a TQO at home to get their ticket, pushing aside Luka Doncic's Slovenia and then Croatia. The Hellenes would almost be seen as the fourth wheel of the carriage due to their inability to reach the top level in recent years with the “Greek Freak” as leader. This is a great opportunity for the 2021 champion to make his first big splash in the national team.
Qualification : Piraeus Olympic Qualifying Tournament winner
The workforce
Leaders: Nick Calathes (Monaco), Vassilis Toliopoulos (Aris)
Backs – wingers: Vassilis Charalampopoulos (Sassari), Panagiotis Kalaitzakis (Panathinaikos), Giannoulis Larentzakis (Olympiakos), Dimitris Moraitis (Panathinaikos), Kostas Papanikolaou (Olympiakos), Thomas Walkup (Olympiakos)
Interiors: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Kostas Antetokounmpo (Panathinaikos), Konstantinos Mitoglou (Panathinaikos) Georgios Papagiannis (Monaco)
The coach: Vassilis Spanoulis
The star : Giannis Antetokounmpo
NBA champion, double MVP, defender of the year… Giannis Antetokounmpo has won everything in the NBA, with nothing left to prove. In the national team, it's a different story. The Bucks star struggles to be as dominant in the international game as he is with more space across the Atlantic. And since behind him, the new Greek wave has still not broken through, Antetokounmpo will still have to take his national team on his broad shoulders to hope to get it out of this group.
History at the Olympics: 5e participation, best result: 5e in 1996, 2004 and 2008
The calendar
July 27, 11am: Australia – Spain
July 27, 9 p.m.: Greece – Canada
July 30, 11 a.m.: Spain – Greece
July 30, 1:30 p.m.: Canada – Australia
August 2, 1:30 p.m.: Australia – Greece
August 2, 5:15 p.m.: Canada-Spain
