Tag: USA Basketball

Wisconsin women’s basketball forward to represent USA Basketball in Mexico City

Wisconsin women’s basketball forward to represent USA Basketball in Mexico City

Wisconsin women’s basketball forward Serah Williams was named to the 2024 USA 3×3 Nations League roster today, per a release from USA Basketball.

Serving as a qualification route to the FIBA 3×3 U23 World Cup 2024 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, the 2024 USA 3×3 Women’s Nations League Team event will take place in Mexico City from July 22-28.

Both the USA men’s and women’s 3×3 Nations League Teams will attend training camp in Phoenix July 18-20 before the trek to Mexico.

Williams will compete alongside Christina Dalce (University of Maryland), Morgan Maly (Creighton University), Cotie McMahon (Ohio State University), Lucy Olsen (University of Iowa) and Mikaylah Williams (LSU). This event will mark the first time Williams has donned the red, white and blue on the hardwood.

At UW, the Brooklyn native averaged a team-high 17.4 points per game during her 2023-24 campaign. She also pocketed 2024 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and 2024 Big Ten First Team honors after appearing in 30 contests for head coach Marisa Moseley a season ago.

Williams will look to build upon her recent success as Wisconsin’s go-to scoring option ahead of this season. She will play alongside four new Badgers this fall: international guard Alba Martin Mesa, walk-on Reese Jaramillo, former Northern Kentucky center Carter McCray and former Duquesne guard Tess Myers.

Two former Notre Dame players make WNBA All-Star roster

Congrats, Arike and Kayla!

The final decade or so of [autotag]Muffet McGraw[/autotag]’s tenure at Notre Dame saw her develop many future WNBA stars. Those stars have their mark on today’s league and have earned the right to display their skills as much as possible.

The WNBA All-Star roster for the annual All-Star Game on July 20 in Phoenix has been announced. That roster will include the Dallas Wings’ [autotag]Arike Ogunbowale[/autotag] and the Minnesota Lynx’s [autotag]Kayla McBride[/autotag], two players who came up with the Irish.

Ogunbowale was named to the team by virtue of being one of the top 10 vote-getters among fans, players and media. McBride was one of eight additional players named after coaches completed the final round of voting. Among those on the final ballot but not making the roster were the Seattle Storm’s [autotag]Skylar Diggins-Smith[/autotag] and the Chicago Sky’s [autotag]Marina Mabrey[/autotag].

The WNBA All-Stars will face the U.S. Olympic team, which includes the Las Vegas Aces’ [autotag]Jackie Young[/autotag], who also was one of the top 10 WNBA vote-getters, and the Storm’s [autotag]Jewell Loyd[/autotag].

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Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Two former Wisconsin Badgers make 2024 USA Basketball select team

Two former Wisconsin Badgers make 2024 USA Basketball select team

Former Wisconsin Badgers Micah Potter and Nigel Hayes both made the 2024 USA Basketball select team on Friday.

The full team also includes Jalen Duran, Cooper Flagg, Langston Galloway, Trayce Jackson-Davis, Jaime Jaquez, Brandon Miller, Trey Murphy, Keegan Murray, Brandin Podziemski, Payton Pritchard, Jabari Smith, Jalen Suggs and Amen Thompson.

Related: Big Ten basketball teams ranked by returning production entering 2024-25 season

This collection of mostly former college basketball stars will train with the 2024 USA Basketball Men’s National Team as it prepares for the Olympic Games in Paris, France.

The group specifically consists of 12 current NBA or G League players, two players with NBA, G League, international or USA Basketball experience, plus one incoming college freshman with USA Basketball experience. It will be coached by Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley.

Hayes recently won the 2024 Turkish League Championship with Fenerbahçe Beko. His professional basketball journey has included stops with the Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings and Toronto Raptors, plus time in Turkey, Lithuania and Spain.

Potter, meanwhile, has been in the G League since beginning his professional career in 2021. He currently plays for the Salt Lake Stars — the affiliate of the Utah Jazz.

This selection represents a valuable opportunity for the two former Badger stars as they work toward returning to an NBA court.

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Rockets prospects Jabari Smith Jr., Amen Thompson named to USA Basketball select team

Third-year Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. and second-year guard Amen Thompson will be part of the 2024 Select Team for USA Basketball.

Third-year Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. and second-year guard Amen Thompson will be part of the 2024 Select Team for USA Basketball, program officials announced Friday. As part of the Select group, Smith and Thompson will practice against the U.S. national team ahead of the Paris Olympics, which begin in late July.

“There’s a long history of players from the Select Team eventually joining the national team down the line… including current players Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton, who served in the role in 2021 before the Tokyo Olympics,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst writes.

With training camp held from July 6-8, the news could indicate that neither will play for Houston’s 2024 NBA summer-league team. Both Smith and Thompson were on the 2023 summer Rockets.

“As a former member of the USA Select Team, I know how important and fun this opportunity is for each of these players,” former NBA player Grant Hill — who is currently managing director of the USA Basketball program — said in a statement.

“There is a tremendous amount of talent on this Select squad with the significant job of helping the 2024 national team as they begin their journey to the Olympics,” Hill added. “Each of these athletes will play a role in our preparation as we also develop the national team pipeline for the future.”

Beyond Thompson and Smith, other members of the 2024 USA Select Team include Payton Pritchard, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Jalen Duren, Jalen Suggs, Trayce Jackson-Davis, Brandin Podziemski, Brandon Miller, Trey Murphy, Keegan Murray, Micah Potter, Nigel Hayes-Davis, Langston Galloway, and collegiate prospect Cooper Flagg.

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Why Caitlin Clark is not an option to replace the injured Cameron Brink on the U.S. 3×3 Olympic team

No, Caitlin Clark will not be getting the call here.

The Los Angeles Sparks had their fears confirmed on Wednesday when it was revealed that star rookie Cameron Brink had suffered a torn ACL in Tuesday’s game against the Connecticut Sun. The injury, which will almost certainly end Brink’s season, also has major implications for the upcoming Olympics in Paris.

Brink was named to USA Basketball’s women’s 3×3 Olympic squad earlier this month. With the torn ACL leaving Brink out of the Summer Games, many fans seemed to suggest that Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark should be considered as her injury replacement. However, that simply cannot happen.

According to FIBA eligibility for the Olympic 3×3 roster, two of the four players must be ranked inside the top 10 of their country’s talent pool. The other two must be ranked inside the top 50. But to gain those ranking points, the player needed to previously compete in 3×3 events. Clark has not played in any 3×3 competitions, which would leave her ineligible as a roster candidate.

Given that criteria, Los Angeles Sparks forward Dearica Hamby is the likely pick as Brink’s replacement. We’ll see what USA Basketball decides.

And while Clark’s exclusion from the 5-on-5 Olympic roster sparked debates across the internet and sports media, it wouldn’t have made much sense to go with Clark as Brink’s replacement even if she was eligible. From a basketball fit, the team needs to look to replace Brink with another big. Clark is a guard.

But FIBA’s eligibility criteria makes all of that moot — Clark isn’t an option for consideration.

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Arike Ogunbowale withdrew from U.S. Olympic player pool ‘months ago’

That’s unfortunate.

Most basketballs would love to accomplish even part of what former Notre Dame standout [autotag]Arike Ogunbowale[/autotag] already has. However, she has not made a U.S. Olympic team, and she doesn’t seem to think it will happen anytime soon.

Ogunbowale recently was interviewed on the podcast “Nightcap”, hosted by Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson. In talking about the selection process for the 2024 Olympic team, she didn’t hold back:

“Me being me, I just felt the vibes. When it comes to that stuff, it really doesn’t have much to do with your game. It’s really about who they feel like fits with the team. That’s on the men’s side, too.

The committees say they look for people who … I don’t know, honestly. But I could already tell. I actually took my name out of the pool months ago. With the pool, it’s a big commitment. If I know they’re not picking me, I’m not going to keep going to these [camps] when I know the vibe. I’m not going to give you my time if I know the vibe.”

You can see all of Ogunbowale’s interview here:

Here’s hoping that Ogunbowale finally will get her chance at Olympic gold in 2028.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Micah Shrewsberry takes gold for U.S. at FIBA Men’s U18 AmeriCup

Way to go, Coach!

[autotag]Micah Shrewsberry[/autotag] has a long way to go before making Notre Dame into a national championship contender. For now though, he’ll settle for being an assistant coach on a gold-medal national team.

The U.S. U18 squad, for which Shrewsberry is an assistant coach, won the gold in the FIBA Men’s U18 AmeriCup with a 110-70 victory over Argentina. This is the 11th time in 13 editions of the event that the U.S. has been the last team standing.

It’s hard to tell exactly how this experience will impact Shrewsberry moving forward or whether he’ll implement anything from this team when it comes to the Irish. All we know is this will look good on his resume moving forward, and maybe that will implore some recruits to give a serious look at the program.

Congratulations to Shrewsberry and the entire team on capturing gold. Here’s hoping they enjoyed every bit of their experience.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Team USA Basketball shares first look at Duke signee Patrick Ngongba II on U18 team

One of Duke’s vaunted 2024 recruits made the USA Basketball U18 Team, and the squad shared photos of him in uniform on Friday.

Duke basketball fans got to see [autotag]Patrick Ngongba II[/autotag] repping Team USA through social media on Friday.

Ngongba, one of six signees in Duke’s 2024 recruiting class, made the Team USA U18 Team earlier in the week. The USA Basketball Junior National Team account introduced the team in a social media thread, sharing photos of each player with their country proud across their chest.

Ngognba will wear No. 11 for the team.

The 6-foot-11 center attended Paul VI Catholic alongside fellow future Blue Devil Darren Harris. The duo led their school to the championship game at Chipotle Nationals earlier this year. They fell short against Montverde Academy, the school of No. 1 prospect and future Duke class member [autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag].

According to 247Sports final class rankings, Ngongba is the 19th-best player in the upcoming freshman class and the fifth-best center.

He was the only member of Duke’s incoming roster to attend tryouts for the U18 Team, although coach Jon Scheyer joined Team USA as a court coach during the scouting process.

Ngongba, the 6-foot-9 Flagg, and 7-footer Khaman Maluach will help make Duke one of the nation’s tallest and most formidable teams in 2024.

Incoming Duke freshman Patrick Ngongba named to USA Basketball U18 team

USA Basketball announced its 12-man U18 team on Tuesday, and Duke fans will notice a familiar name.

USA Basketball announced its 12-man roster for the U18 men’s basketball team on Tuesday, and incoming Duke freshman Patrick Ngongba II made the final cut.

The 6-foot-11 Paul VI product is one of the six members of Duke’s vaunted 2024 recruiting class. Every signee is within the top 50 of 247Sports’ Recruiting Rankings, led by consensus top prospect Cooper Flagg.

Ngongba, for his part, is the site’s 19th-ranked overall prospect and the fifth-highest center in the class.

Ngongba and fellow signee Darren Harris played together in high school, helping lead Paul VI to the national championship game at Chipotle Nationals, losing only to Flagg’s Montverde Academy.

Ngongba, Flagg, and South Sudanese 7-footer Khaman Maluach will help form of the nation’s tallest and most formidable backcourts for the 2024-25 season.

Ngongba was the only Blue Devil to work out for the team, although Duke head coach Jon Scheyer joined him as a court coach during the evaluation process.

Cameron Crazies who love the recruiting trail will also notice Nate Ament, a potential name to watch in the 2025 recruiting cycle.

Duke basketball signee Patrick Ngongba II named a finalist for USA Basketball U18 team

Patrick Ngongba II, one of six top-50 recruits in Duke’s 2024 recruiting class, is one of 18 candidates for the 12-man USA Basketball U18 roster.

The USA Basketball U18 team released its 18 finalists on Saturday, and Duke signee Patrick Ngongba II made the cut.

Ngongba is one of six members of the 2024 Duke recruiting class, one of the most esteemed freshman groups in class history. Every signee sits inside the top 50 of the national rankings, including the 6-foot-11 Ngongba.

The Paul VI product is the 19th-ranked player and the fifth-ranked center on 247Sports Class of 2024 rankings. He was the only incoming Duke freshman to attend the camp.

The final U18 roster will consist of 12 players, and Ngongba will need to wait until next week to know if he makes the final cut. He might have an upper hand, however, as Duke coach Jon Scheyer is working with the U18 squad as a court coach.

A handful of 2025 recruiting targets like Caleb Wilson and Nate Ament also grabbed a spot as finalists if any overeager Duke fans want to keep an eye on the future.