as a medal sport, Basketball has been a part of the Olympic Games since 1936 in Berlin, Germany. At the time it was the men’s only category, with women making their debut decades later, in Montreal 1976.

Games are mostly dominated by one country, but The 12 teams that will be in Tokyo 2020 must present one of the most competitive tournaments in history. There will be big teams like the United States, Spain and Argentina, as well as up-and-coming teams like Nigeria and Slovenia.

There are many stories surrounding each team. What are the most important? Discussed by the NBA.com staff.

more | The Tokyo 2020 Olympics Men’s Basketball Guide: Kits, Lists, Numbers, Matches and More

Gilbert MacGregor (MustafaHosny Amin): I’m watching Luka Doncic and how far he can lead Slovenia. In the Olympic Annex, Luca put the team on his back. In the final, the 22-year-old scored three times 31 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds In the final to lead his country to its first Olympic berth by defeating local Lithuania.

Now what next?

Every time Doncic goes out on the field, he’s a must see. He is one of the few today who can dictate the entire outcome of a game by controlling speed and manipulating defenses. I’m excited to see how far you can lead your team, because I do not rule out that it can achieve a miracle.

Slovenia had not made it to the Olympics before this year, which means it has never won a medal. With Doncic not even close to his tenure, who’s to say he couldn’t make more history by leading this nation to a medal in his debut?

this is good. And I will definitely be attentive as he looks to make more history.

Yash Matang (Lord save her): keep looking for Team USA wins fourth gold in a row.

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The country that is said to have dominated Olympic basketball is, of course, The United States, which won 15 of 19 possible gold medals, including the first seven (1936-1968). However, since 1968, the most they have won has been three in a row. The good news for Team USA? After being awarded the Non-Gold Medal (1988, 2004), they have a proven track record of regrouping and dominating.

After winning three consecutive golds,It’s 2021 and it’s the year your newest domain ends? Given the lack of Olympic experience on the roster and the chemistry of playing together, it will undoubtedly be his toughest career in modern history.

Of the final 12-player roster, three players (Devin Booker, Khris Middleton and Gro Holiday) will not join the squad until a few days before the Olympics kick off, with no training camp taking place. Of the remaining nine, Kevin Durant is the most experienced, but he is one of only three players to have previous Olympic experience. The others are Draymond Green (2016) and Kevin Love (2012).

The remaining players, Damien Lillard, Jason Tatum, Pam Adebayo, Jeramy Grant and Zach Lavigne, will either play their first Olympics (Tatum) or prepare to compete for the first time in a major international tournament.

All of this means Team USA could have a tough road ahead.

Ken Bateman (Tweet embed): I’m obviously biased, but I think one of the main stories will be whether Australia can overcome the eternal glass ceiling for their first major medal in the men’s program.

In both the fourth place at the Sydney 2000 Olympics and the 2016 Rio Olympics, the Boomers badly failed to reach the podium. In addition to Rio’s suffering, this same group finished fourth at the 2019 World Cup.

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Losing Andrew Bogut to the veteran’s heart would be a blow, with Tokyo looming as a potential last chance for the quartet. Patti Mills, Joe Engels, Matthew Dellavedova, Aaron Pines To create history with everyone who is now over 30 years old.

What they bring is a wealth of experience playing together that will prove invaluable as teams scramble to find chemistry in the lead up to the tournament. They are also led by young NBA talents, Including the dynamic defensive force Matisse Thybulle. Other NBA players on the team include Dante Exum and Josh Green, while NBL stars Jock Landall and Chris Golding are expected to be heavily involved in the rotation.

The Boomers have a favorable pool with Nigeria, Italy and Germany, all competing nations but no known strength in the FIBA ​​world.

Kyle Irving (hahahaha): I’m curious to know if the noise It’s real with this team of Nigeria. With the second highest number of NBA players on their roster in all of the Olympics, Nigeria was already attracting me as a potential under the radar team. After surprising the US in a friendly match, I’m starting to think it can surprise a lot of people.

I know they suffered a tough loss against Australia after that but with the Australians in their group they might have been saving something for when the match really counts.

Players love Precious Achiwa, KZ Okbala, Gabe Vincent (all Miami Heat), Mie Unni (Utah Jazz) and Shimzi Mito (Sacramento Kings) They have the opportunity to take charge of much more than their roles in the NBA. Josh Okoji (Minnesota Timberwolves) and Jahelil Okafor (Detroit Pistons) They play with a special load. Nigeria will also have a strong striker with El novato de Milwaukee Bucks, Jordan NworaOnce the finals are over.

A tribute publication to Jalil Obeka Okafor.

Elite bucket collector.

15 points and 7 rebounds in 14 minutes from the bench. Tweet embed pic.twitter.com/uSFJoRLplk

– D’Tigers | Nigeria Basketball (@NigeriaBasket) July 13, 2021

This is a really impressive roster that could make some noise in Tokyo, and Nigeria will compete without certified players in OG Anunoby (Toronto Raptors) and Monte Morris (Denver Nuggets). Imagine if this tandem was also preparing for the Olympics. The future is bright for basketball in Africa.

Leandro Fernandez (Tweet embed): The Olympics will be a great opportunity to witness and appreciate some legends that we probably will never see again, especially two iconic personalities: Luis Scola and Pau Gasol, who is likely to retire at the end of the tournament. Yes, a kind of “last dance” for both of us.

At 41, Scola will once again put his amazing longevity on the table. After all, with 39, He averaged 17.9 points and 8.1 rebounds to lead Argentina to runners-up at the 2019 World Cup. It will be his fifth Olympic Games, and He will seek his third medal after gold in 2004 and bronze in 2008.

Pau also arrived in Tokyo at the age of 41, although in a different context than Scola, he had to overcome a long lethargy before he could finish that farewell he expected with Spain. It will also be his fifth games, and so far he has two silver (2008 and 2012) and one bronze (2016).

With all that they represent for the sport, winning a medal for anyone would be the perfect end to their legendary career.

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agustin papi (Tweet embed): eaves selection Washington Wizards, Rui Hachimura, to be one of Japan’s flag bearers at the opening ceremonyDespite being his first Olympic Games, it shows how important it is to Japan. He and his teammates face an uphill battle when it comes to medals, but Roy’s stardom and example of multiculturalism mean so much more than that.

In general, the Japanese men’s team was not very successful at this point. This will be their first Olympics since 1976, they finished last in the 2019 World Cup and the last time they had success was in 1997 when they finished second in the Asian Championship. However, they entered the Tokyo Olympics with two young players who might be their biggest stars: Hashimura and Yuta Watanabe.

If Japan beat Spain, Argentina or Luka Doncic’s Slovenia, and each one of them is in their group, it would be one of the biggest surprises in basketball history at the Olympics.

Carlan Jay (Tweet embed): There are a lot of interesting stories heading into the Olympics, but the one that interests me the most is Yes, the Czech Republic can continue to surprise the basketball world.

I was fortunate enough to have been on the field broadcasting play-by-play for most of his career until he reached a surprising sixth place in the 2019 World Cup. I was back on the field when they qualified for the Olympics in Victoria Rechage. In both cases, no one expected the Czechs to go far, but they beat everyone else.

in order to win 😯

Tomas Satoransky hit tough match winner to defeat Canada at OT pic.twitter.com/43dnv5XmHB

– ESPN (espn) July 3, 2021

The team is led by Chicago Bulls guard Thomas Satoransky and former NBA coach Jan Vesely, but the core of the team has been together for years and has developed the necessary harmony in tournaments like this. They’ve been in pressure situations before and also felt very comfortable in their role the underdogs They will definitely have it in most of their matches in Japan.

Their coach, Ronin Ginzburg, has the perfect blend of calm, risk management and intelligence that gives the team a real air of confidence that they can compete with anyone in front of them.

The Czechs have been writing the history of basketball in their country over the past few years, and what would you end up telling a story if they could surprise again and come home with an Olympic medal.

The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the National Basketball Association or its affiliated organizations.