Fans have begun to play the blame game after Team USA finished a lowly seventh place in the 2019 FIBA World Cup. Team USA head coach Gregg Popovich, however, isn't putting the blame on anyone, including those who initially dropped out prior to the tournament.
“I don’t fault anybody that decided not to come — everybody’s got a life,” Gregg Popovich said, per Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “Things happen in people’s families. People have things going on. Could be injuries, could be personal commitments that they have. Whoever came, came.
“This group I couldn’t have been happier with any other group no matter who would’ve come. They wouldn’t have worked any harder than this group.”
Team USA had faced a major dilemma with the significant number of players who backed out of their national team commitments. Guys such as James Harden and Anthony Davis were supposed to banner this squad in this year's FIBA World Cup. However, the two, and a lot more others, decided to pass on the opportunity and wanted to focus instead on the upcoming 2019-20 season.
Despite fielding an arguably C-grade roster, many still expected Team USA to finish with a medal, at the very least. However, the team got knocked off in the quarterfinal stage by France.
Looking back, nobody is really at fault for Team USA's early exit in the 2019 FIBA World. The team prepared for and sacrificed their entire summer to compete and represent the red, white, and blue. Likewise, several teams around the world are already catching up to the standard of USA basketball.
Playing the blame game isn't going to help anyone, considering that all parties involved – including those who rescinded their commitments – just did what's best for themselves.
Follow Us
Subscribe