8 Burning Questions to Follow at the USA Basketball U17 and U18 Trials
School is out for the summer, and that means the nation's elite high school basketball players are competing in important national camps and tournaments over the next few months.
The tryouts for the USA Basketball U17 and U18 teams that will compete for gold medals in international competitions this summer are this June.
Tryouts for both events will be conducted in Colorado Springs, Colorado, this week as 38 players compete for 12 roster spots on the U17 world championship team and 26 players fight for 12 spots on the U18 FIBA Americas team.
The U17 world championships will be held from June 23 to July 3 in Zaragoza, Spain, as the world's best youth players will compete for a gold medal in front of a bevy of international scouts.
The U18 FIBA Americas is not quite as important as the U17 world championships, but the event serves as a qualifier for next summer's U19 world championships while also putting plenty of spotlight on the competing players. The U18 FIBA Americas will be held in Valdivia, Chile, from July 19-23.
Here's a look at some of the burning questions for both tryouts, which go on throughout the week before both rosters are decided.
How Many New Players Will Make the U17 Team from the Previous Year's U16 Team?
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One of the major questions with the U17 tryouts revolves around how many new players will make the team from last year's U16 FIBA Americas gold-medal team?
With 11 members of that team trying out for the U17 team and only 12 spots on the new roster, it could mean that we see a lot of the same faces from last summer for this summer's world championship team.
Jordan Brown, Wendell Carter, Markus Howard, Tre Jones, Kevin Knox, Jaylen Nowell, Gary Trent Jr., Javonte Smart, Jarred Vanderbilt, Connor Vanover and Robert Woodard are all returning to Colorado Springs for tryouts this year after winning gold medals last summer.
Obviously, a lot can change in a year's time, both with those players and the other players trying out for spots on the U17 team, but those returning players will have an advantage over the others because of their international experience while also showing that they can work together as a team.
Is Gary Trent Jr. the U17 Go-to Scorer After His U16 MVP Performance?
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Last summer was a big one for Gary Trent Jr. as he parlayed a great spring in the Nike EYBL into the MVP award at the U16 FIBA Americas.
The 6'5" guard has returned for tryouts for the U17 team, and given how well he played this spring, it would be a surprise if he wasn't included on the world championship roster.
A well-rounded scorer who can hit jumpers from all over the floor, Trent Jr. had some huge performances during the U16 FIBA Americas, including scoring all 19 of his points in the second half in a come-from-behind win in the gold-medal game against Canada.
But while Trent was counted on to be a go-to scorer for last year's team, will he have the same role for the U17 team? There are a lot of talented scorers in tryouts this year, including guards Collin Sexton and Romeo Langford, who led the Nike EYBL and Adidas Gauntlet in scoring, respectively.
Big man Wendell Carter has also improved a lot since last summer and could be a go-to guy on the block with his skill level. It's hard to say if Trent will be the go-to scorer for this U17 team again this summer. Last season's U16 team was very balanced in scoring for the Americans, but when they needed someone to take over, they looked to Trent. Now, they might have other options or a litany of players to chose from if they're in the same spot.
How Does Collin Sexton Fare in U17 Tryouts After His Blistering Spring?
3 of 8One of the most intriguing players in the U17 tryouts will be class of 2017 guard Collin Sexton. The 6'2" guard is coming off a ridiculous spring in the Nike EYBL in which he led the league in scoring by nearly nine points while also making double the free throws of everyone else in the league.
Although Sexton has shown that he's a high-level scorer, it remains to be seen how he will look playing with some of the most talented players in the country as his teammate.
Sexton didn't show much ability as a point guard during the spring, and with so many talented scorers like Gary Trent, Kevin Knox and Romeo Langford around him, he could be asked to show more as a distributor during tryouts.
Perimeter shooting is also an area in which Sexton was inconsistent as he was only 33 percent from deep this spring. If Sexton shows that he can make others better while also consistently hitting perimeter shots, he could be a dangerous weapon for this team.
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Will Kevin Knox Get a Bigger Role This Year?
4 of 8During last summer's U16 tryouts, class of 2017 wing Kevin Knox was a surprise inclusion on the team after being a role player in the Nike EYBL during the spring.
Since making that USA U16 team and helping it win gold, Knox has seen his game take off, as he's become a bona fide 5-star prospect while pushing for top five in the national class.
Now that he's become more comfortable as a spotlight player, how will Knox look potentially playing for the U17 world championship team? Knox already averaged double figures in the U16 FIBA Americas last summer, but now he's a much more well-rounded scorer who was in the top 10 in scoring this spring in the Nike EYBL.
At 6'8" with great athleticism, Knox can also rebound and defend for this team, but he could also be asked to be one of the team's main scorers since he's really expanded his game over the last year or so.
Will Terrance Ferguson Get a Shot at His Fourth Gold Medal?
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Class of 2016 wing Terrance Ferguson has been a huge part of USA Basketball the last three summers as he's helped the team capture three gold medals in varying international competitions.
Ferguson is back for his fourth consecutive summer with USA Basketball this week, as he is one of the focal points of the U18 FIBA Americas team.
Already a gold-medal winner at the 2013 FIBA Americas U16 Championship, 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship and 2015 FIBA U19 World Championship, now Ferguson will try to continue to build his USA legacy with another gold in Chile.
Performing well at the Nike Hoop Summit this spring, the 6'7" Ferguson is a noted perimeter shooter who can also play well above the rim. It will also be intriguing to see how Ferguson deals with the latest reports of him potentially skipping college and playing overseas. Whether those reports remain a distraction for Ferguson remains to be seen.
Will the U18 Tryouts Favor the College Freshmen or High School Players?
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One of the interesting parts of the U18 tryout will be how the team selects its roster from a pool of players that includes incoming college freshmen as well as rising high school seniors.
While the one-year age difference shouldn't mean that much in terms of strength, the experience factor could come into play since a handful of the rising college freshmen have played on the spring all-star circuit.
Players like Texas center Jarrett Allen, Washington guard Markelle Fultz and Ferguson all played against the best players in their class all spring, so they have a small leg up in the experience factor.
With the U18 team also being led by familiar college basketball coaches like Texas' Shaka Smart, Maryland's Mark Turgeon and UConn's Kevin Ollie, it will be interesting to see how those coaches choose to build their roster.
There are still plenty of talented high school players trying out—some of them with international experience with USA Basketball—but the incoming freshmen might have a small advantage entering tryouts thanks to owning more experience.
Does Markelle Fultz Carry over His Momentum from the Spring?
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Not many players had a better spring of basketball than Washington guard Markelle Fultz.
After playing in the McDonald's All-American Game, Jordan Brand Classic and Nike Hoop Summit, the 6'5" Fultz shot up the national rankings and now finds himself at No. 2 in the latest Draft Express 2017 mock draft.
Now, Fultz has a chance to make his first USA team that plays in an international competition, and the spotlight is going to be on him as one of the lead players in the tryout. With an ability to play both guard spots, Fultz is versatile enough to play multiple spots on the floor, and it'll be intriguing to see how USA Basketball opts to use his talents.
If this spring was any indication, Fultz might be one of the U18 team's go-to players as a scorer, but he also might be trusted enough to play point guard in a pinch if the team needs him on the ball.
How Will Mohamed Bamba Look During His First USA Tryout?
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The U18 has a lot of intriguing big-man options to make the FIBA Americas team, but none are more interesting to follow than Class of 2017 center Mohamed Bamba.
The 6'11" Bamba potentially gives the Americans an elite rim protector and rebounder thanks to the New York native's ridiculous 7'8" wingspan. Last fall at the USA Basketball minicamp, Bamba started really scratching the surface of his potential, and this is the kind of international competition that could elevate his stock even higher.
Already in the discussion for the No. 1 prospect in the class of 2017, if Bamba can make the U18 team and have an impact, it's a great chance to showcase himself in front of NBA personnel and establish himself as a top-tier NBA draft prospect.
Bamba will have a lot of stiff competition among the crop of big men, but he potentially has the most upside of any player in the USA tryouts this week.
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