FIBA Basketball World Cup 2014: Team USA Players Who Must Improve
It’s a testament to the overall strength of Team USA basketball that a 21-point victory over Turkey is cause for alarm, but the red, white and blue were down by six in the middle of the third quarter.
If it wasn’t for an incredible performance from Kenneth Faried, the Americans may have been in trouble. That type of effort simply isn’t going to cut it against Serge Ibaka, the Gasol brothers and the rest of Spain later in the tournament.
With that in mind, here is a look at a few Team USA members who must improve going forward if a 2014 FIBA World Cup championship is in the cards.
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All statistics courtesy of FIBA.com.
This is not meant to be another discussion about Derrick Rose’s health. That has already been brought up ad nauseam during the early stages of the World Cup, and it likely will be a major talking point for the entire NBA season.
It may even be in the Chicago Bulls’ best interest for Rose to work out his rust in international competition.
This is more a comment on his actual performance through two games for Team USA. Perhaps he is tentative with his knees, but he is averaging seven points a night behind 25 percent shooting from the field and 20 percent shooting from three-point range. More concerning are the team-high 3.5 turnovers a game in 20 minute of action.
It’s probably best if we don’t even project that to a per-40 minute average (alright, it's seven turnovers).
Rose also has a team-worst player efficiency rating of three. There is plenty of backcourt depth at head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s disposal with Kyrie Irving, Stephen Curry and James Harden, but Rose is an explosive playmaker who can create open looks for his teammates or score easy baskets at the rim with his penetration.
NBA on ESPN showed just what he is capable of doing on any single play:
Team USA is going to need more of that going forward. Easy baskets at the rim will be critical in the later stages of the tournament, especially if the jumpers aren’t falling. That is where Rose will need to shine.
DeMar DeRozan
The wing area is probably the most concerning spot for the Americans after Kevin Durant left, and DeMar DeRozan hasn’t helped quell that notion with nightly averages of 3.5 points and two assists.
He is also yet to grab a defensive rebound, despite the fact he checks in at 6’7”, and is only shooting 25 percent from the field without a single three-point make. His 3.5 player efficiency total is slightly ahead of Rose but still good enough for second lowest on the team.
The lack of perimeter shooting is somewhat concerning because the stronger opponents on the horizon—Spain, Brazil and Argentina—will stop focusing as much on the wings and help with Anthony Davis, Faried and the list of playmaking guards. A few outside shots could change that.
If DeRozan can hit a few jumpers, it will help open up the floor for the team leaders to guide the Americans to a World Cup title.
Mason Plumlee
Perhaps no player on the roster entered this tournament with more to prove that Mason Plumlee.
The majority of his American teammates are established superstars in the NBA, but there was some controversy that Plumlee was only on the roster because he played four years under Krzyzewski at Duke. He addressed as much, according to Ball in Europe, via James Herbert of CBS Sports:
"I'm very proud that I went to Duke and I'm very proud that I wear Nike, and that has nothing to do with it. If you were at our practices and our training camp, anybody that was there, they would see why I made the team."
Thus far, Plumlee has not quieted his critics.
He is averaging three points a night, but more concerning is the 0.5 rebounds a game he has grabbed. What’s more, Plumlee is yet to block a shot and has an efficiency rating of four. To be fair, he is only playing eight minutes a night but hasn’t exactly been tearing it up during his opportunities.
Plumlee’s performance is important going forward because Team USA is going to need production from all of its big men against mighty Spain in that hypothetical matchup.
Ibaka, Pau Gasol and Marc Gasol make up a lethal threesome, and Davis, DeMarcus Cousins, Andre Drummond, Faried and Plumlee will be asked to contribute on the boards and keep each other’s legs fresh. Plumlee needs to prove he is capable of doing just that.
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